Research has found creative workplaces promote greater innovation and productivity, which translates to higher profits. Businesses in all industries are shifting focus from traditional boring offices to more creative and innovative spaces, and those that are jumping on board the movement are reaping the benefits.
Even if you are working with four boring white walls or even a basic shipping container, anything can be transformed into an awesome office people want to work in. Here are some ideas to help inspire your office build out, allowing you to create a workspace that enchants employees, potential clients, and anyone else that walks through your doors.
1. Add A “Think Tank” Or Other Creative Space
One of the latest trends arising in workplaces around the world is a creative room. Creative rooms, think tanks, whatever you want to call them, look nothing like a traditional work space but they are proving quite profitable when it comes to sparking employee creativity.
Younger generations of tenants are especially keen on creating these types of office spaces, which look nothing like the offices mom and dad went to work in. A ‘think tank’ should be light and bright, full of cozy seating and lit up with inspirational art and décor. Different architects have used unique ideas to create these spaces. For instance, the creative space at iProspect’s in Fort Worth, Texas is known as the “Brain Room.” Architects specially designed the space with no corners in order to promote collaboration.
2. Add Windows
Sunshine is good for employee moral. After all, without the sun the world would cease to exist. No one wants to work in a dark, dull space that feels entirely cut off from the outside world. The ability to see the sun, sky and birds chirping outside provides inspiration and helps prevent employees from feeling trapped and isolated at work.
3. Use Interior Office Walls To Boost Employee Creativity
Boring office cubicles with plain white walls are far from inspirational, and can quickly contribute to employee burnout. In order to inspire employees and energize their desire to do good work, it’s adamant that their office space is as exciting as the ideas they produce. Adding glass walls instead of plain white walls is one way to infuse a space with a pop of inspirational fun. Glass walls provide the privacy and sound protection necessary to work in peace and quiet without making employees feel closed off from one another. As a result, greater workplace collaboration is encouraged, a win-win for all. Also, since glass spaces are less hidden away, employees tend to feel more accountable for their actions while in their office.
Another benefit of glass walls is that it lets sunshine in office spaces that otherwise don’t have access to windows.
4. Create An Inspirational Discussion Piece
Use old and recycled materials to create a focal piece that serves as a great discussion point and even icon for your business. You don’t have to spend a fortune to find something cool. Junkyards, garage sales and even thrift stores may have exactly what you need. Feeling a bit lost as to where we are going with this one? Take this for example: If you work in the tech industry, you could combine a random array of old recycled pieces from phones, computers etc. that span across the years to create a statue or monument of sorts. The end result serves as an example of how far technology has come and where it is headed. Need some help finding inspiration? Local unknown artists can offer affordable assistance. If you create a cool enough piece it could even go viral on social media, attracting more attention to your brand.
5. Don’t Confine Yourself To The Indoors
Take advantage of any outdoor space your property has to offer. Getting employees ‘outside of the box,’ literally, can spark new thoughts and awaken ideas that might otherwise remain hidden deep within. Rooftops, courtyards, patios, there are countless ways the outdoors can be incorporated into your business. If there are no exterior options, focus on creating a light and bright space where employees can at least feel like they have left the confines of the office.
6. Channel Your Inner Coffee Shop
People love to work in coffee shops. That’s why more and more businesses are using inspiration from their local Starbucks to create workspaces that employees feel empowered by. Combining the atmosphere of a coffee shop with an office environment is quickly becoming a favorite technique amongst architects.
7. Invest In Portable Desks
Desks that can be easily moved around the room help employees work collaboratively or individually, depending on the task at hand. The actual design of portable desks and the space that they reside in is key to successfully pulling off this idea.
Take Your Office Build Out To The Next Level With PCI
Creative workspaces help attract top-notch talent as well as the attention of potential partners and recruiters. Allow the unmatched experience of PCI help create an ideal workspace that inspires collaboration, innovation and success that surpasses your wildest dreams.