The world of office interior design has changed over the years with employees getting more involved than before. This is just as well since they are the ones spending almost 9 hours of their everyday lives in the office. Add that to the fact that current office design are not just about providing mere, meaningless space to staff but more about offering your people a place where they can harness their creativity.
Now, office space planning has defined the importance of a great workplace environment in a very different way. You can finally bid farewell to rigid rooms and say hello to offices designed to inspire and boost your employees’ productivity. To help you out, here are some science-backed office design trends for improved productivity:

1. Take advantage of the power of color.

A lot of research has revealed how colors can affect a person’s disposition. To know the best color to use in the office, take into account the kind of work each department does. Certain colors appeal to the creative and to the logical; for instance, the color blue is universally known to encourage concentration while green’s ability to calm the eyes is perfect for those usually working long hours. For creativity, the optimistic color of yellow is perfect while the color red is best for employees with work that requires physical activity for it invokes passion and emotion.

2. Go green.

A study by Washington State University has shown that people work 12 percent faster on computer-related tasks when a room has plants. Besides adding life and color to a room, having plants in the office brings outside elements so employees won’t feel too trapped inside the workspace. Having plants could also help employees focus better, improve their manual dexterity, and process data and information faster.

3. Create collaborative workspaces.

Research shows that having community tables as an office design could decrease employee productivity. Majority of office workers actually need their own personal space to concentrate on the tasks at hand but there is a big BUT to it- collaboration still has its benefits. The best way to work around this idea is to know just how to design the collaborative workspace the right way. Don’t make every space a collaborative one- just assign a room where coworkers can brainstorm and work together when needed. Another study done by Harvard review also revealed that pairing employees with different educational backgrounds can also positively effect their performance.

4. Invest in modular furniture.

Implementing flexible working practices have been reported to boost productivity. Whether it’s flexible hours or the choice to work from home, providing your team options could significantly affect how they go around their jobs. Thanks to modern technology, flexibility can also be achieved by choosing the right pieces of furniture. Modular furniture allows employees to move, mix, and stack components of the workspaces into numerous combinations and into however they see fit.

5. Make it more cozy and home-y.

Bet your money on it but employees probably wish they could work from home at least once a day; after all, being able to work at the comforts of their home make them happier and more likely to stay on their jobs. Since not all companies have the liberty to let their employees work from home, you could do your part by making the workspace feel more like home. If possible, try to stray away from the boring white laminates and rigid metals and instead go for office furniture with soft fabrics and earth tones.
If you need help re-calibrating the office space to improve employee productivity, just contact our effective office space planning experts here at SOI