Australia
Over the past couple of years, hybrid work has gone from cautious experiment to a matter of fact. Covid-19 forced flexible work arrangements on almost everyone, and the impact has been deeply and widely felt.
Australia is especially well-adapted to hybrid work culture, according to Adaptavist’s Reinventing Work Report. Not only do Australians lead the way with the number of employees who prefer a flexible work model (47%) and who believe where they work should be determined by the employee (63%), more companies in Australia (50%) offer hybrid or remote work options than anywhere else in the world.
The same study also identifies some of the stresses that Australian employees feel when they return to the office. For example, distractions (38%), the commute (34%), sensory overload (34%) and sharing office space with others (28%) are the leading causes of anxiety.
The good news for employers? Australian employees are the least resistant in the world to returning to the office – only 15% say no amount of perks would lure them back.
It’s clear the way people work has evolved rapidly in recent years, and if we are to bring people back to the office, we need to rethink the role of the office as a place of work.
Towards More Human-centric Design
“So much of the work we do at the office today isn’t solo, it requires working with others. We’re designing workspaces that reflect an understanding of how people work today and tomorrow.”
– Sylvia Bay, Vice President and Senior Director (Design) of Workspace, JustCo Global
1. The Hotelification of the Workplace
As a consequence of pandemic-induced Work From Home, many employees not only developed a taste for working in comfortable and non-sterile environments, they also began to value health and wellbeing over work.
Given how highly-sought-after talent are making deliberate choices to step into the office, their workplace therefore needs to be designed as a destination which signals warmth and hospitality.
Expect to see a growing number of companies invest in amenities that create warm, welcoming environments which take inspiration from bars, cafes, hotels, homes and even spas.
Going beyond soothing colour palettes and visual cues, Hotelified offices will incorporate scents and sounds to stimulate a range of moods and feelings across different office settings, from vibrance and energy in the collaboration spaces, to calm and focus in the quiet zones.
But workplace designers aren’t just theming these spaces – they are also animating them. By programming spaces with curated hospitality experiences, companies can take on a more active role in looking after the wellbeing of employees and guests.
Imagine a meditation suite where clients and employees can go to recharge themselves in between meetings, under expert guided meditation. Or stepping into a café-styled desk-lounge with a barista lovingly preparing your custom coffee concoction.
“So much of the work we do at the office today isn’t solo, it requires working with others. We’re designing workspaces that reflect an understanding of how people work today and tomorrow.”
– Sylvia Bay, Vice President and Senior Director (Design) of Workspace, JustCo Global
2. Biophilic Design
The broad use of maple and pine complements the large fiddle-leaf fig plants, areca palms and generous views of the harbour, creating an office oasis at the JustCo centre at 60 Margaret St in Sydney.
Interest is also growing in biophilic design to foster physiological, psychological and cognitive benefits in the office. Psychoanalyst Erich Fromm coined the term “Biophilia” around the idea that humans are genetically coded to thrive in natural settings because they evolved in nature, and therefore should occupy spaces that have direct and indirect connections to the natural world.
For example, it has been widely reported that employees who work in offices with access to natural light sleep an average of 46 minutes longer than those who work without natural lighting.
Biophilic strategies have already infused hospitality and home design, and workplace planners have also begun to incorporate natural light, ventilation, materials and even flora and fauna into the office as well. Sylvia points out, “Especially following the pandemic, organisations are bringing nature into their internal spaces, as they recognise this offers opportunities to improve occupants’ health and wellbeing, and provide respite from the density of the urban environment. We turned to biophilic design principles as our centres evolved over time in the past few years. We want to create the most desirable working environments filled with nature-inspired spaces that bring our members into the centre and help them engage with each other and their surroundings.”
The JustCo centre at 175 Pitt Street in downtown Sydney is a great example of biophilic design principles at work in the office. Large floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking King Street and Pitt Street Mall open the floor to abundant natural light, revealing a bright, comfortable work, rest and socialisation areas with rejuvenating views of the city skyline. Ample use of green, leafy plants and woody elements help to evoke the natural environment, and creates a comfortable space for members to spend 8 hours or more each day.
3. Micro Spaces and Neighbourhoods
Another trend on the rise is the proliferation of “micro spaces”. Open floor plans have diminished in appeal, especially over the pandemic. In their place, a design consciousness that prioritises individual flexibility and privacy in the workplace has gained ground, fuelled in part by the surge in the popularity of coworking spaces.
Micro spaces are small and clearly distinct zones for the different modes of work, including focused work, collaboration, socialisation and learning. While these zones can be purpose-built and permanent, organisations are increasingly embracing the use of hot desks and other flexible furniture to reduce the reliance on fixed workstations. A major benefit of doing so is being able to open up room to organise workspaces more imaginatively around “neighbourhoods”, which are clusters of micro spaces that accommodate multiple work styles for defined groups of users.
Another benefit of micro spaces is the lowering of desk density. As dedicated workstations are removed from the office plan, the “sea of desks” is optically transformed into oases of productivity.
A large enterprise can create neighbourhoods to great effect at a coworking serviced suite like the ones JustCo offers. The corporate functions that require defined seating can be allocated fixed workstations with their own dedicated meeting rooms. Meanwhile, the other teams that can operate in a more decentralised function can occupy hot desk clusters that are surrounded by privacy booths and flexible breakout spaces. Additional shared amenities could be easily booked on demand, so there is no capital expenditure for unused occupancy – particularly useful if teams are operating a hybrid work policy.
Sylvia adds: “Micro spaces and neighbourhoods are seamless working environments that look great on the eye. They promote collaboration among employees, while simultaneously accommodating their unique work styles.
Not only do they foster productivity, they also improve the wellbeing of individuals. A hotelified office with well-planned neighbourhoods is a great advertisement for the best and brightest talent today.
Take a tour of these ideas in action at JustCo
Workspace design is trending towards creating better environments for people to return to work in, by helping them feel more productive, more comfortable and better looked-after. Large organisations with huge, hybrid teams will especially appreciate the growing focus on designing the office for modern collaboration.
As Australian employees return to the office, is your organisation in a position to capitalise and make great gains in productivity and employee wellbeing? For a glimpse of how these design trends might transform your workspace and boost your business, book a tour with your preferred JustCo centre in Melbourne and Sydney today.
