If your company is ripe for a workplace redesign, it’s a perfect time to get some expert advice. Rearranging the office causes a certain amount of unavoidable disruption. You want to make sure the results are worth the hassle—and that employees will end up more satisfied than they were before.

Create a Buffet of Choices for Workers

Meg Osman has shared quite a few insights about how to empower people through workspace design. She advocates for in-depth research and a design that is in alignment with business goals. Osman offers a case study of Follett as a company that was able to make a radical transformation with the right redesign initiative. They had a workforce that was very unhappy with current office space. Employees felt isolated or tied to their desks, and there never seemed to be enough meeting space for collaboration.

Follett built its new headquarters to consolidate 3 other facilities, and rethought the entire environment. Today, their employees are spoiled for choice. According to Meg, “Ultimately, the typical floor offers 10 different types of settings to choose from and encourages communication, collaboration, and employee experience.”

Desks Aren’t the Only Place Work Gets Done

Research from the CBRE Group demonstrates that this desire for options isn’t unique to companies like Follett. Typically, employees spend less than 50% of their time at their desk. The rest of the time, they are interacting with others or getting the job done away from their assigned workstation. When they have more types of workspaces to choose from, satisfaction levels increase 10-15%. A good mix includes both private and shared spaces so that workers can find the right place for their frame of mind and the task at hand.

Design Flexibility into Your Work Environment

Offering a certain level of choice and control to employees is almost always a good design idea. It’s just a matter of finding a cost-effective and space-efficient way to do this in your specific facility. Interestingly, flexible workspaces often make better use of square footage than traditional layouts. You may be surprised at how well this approach works in your owned or leased office space. We encourage you to take advantage of our no-cost, no-obligation space planning consultation. Our goal is to make sure your new office design is far better than your old one.