Preserving space in your office can make all the difference | Blog
The Workspace Consultants

Preserving space in your office can make all the difference

The ramifications of Covid-19 will be felt for years – if not decades – to come, and nowhere more so than in the realms of office design. A central aspect of this is the overall size of the office itself and, as a consequence, the space that’s allocated to each individual team member.

It’s a subject of debate as businesses try to identify the working model – whether in office, hybrid or fully remote – that suits them and their workforce the best, and it’s highly subjective. In reality, the spatial dynamics of workplaces have been changing for some time, but they’ve been brought into even sharper focus during the pandemic.

Improving employee personal space

Prior to Covid-19, the tendency was to attempt to fit as many desks and personnel into the available space as possible in order to maximise cost efficiencies. As a result, the footprint of each individual workstation was reduced, and the concept of shared spaces gained traction as the way people engage with their workplace began to change. However, there’s a limit as to how far this can continue as it can impact humans on a social, personal and cultural level. And post-pandemic it’s also a matter of hygiene. Maintaining a clean working environment is now a key objective for employers, as is ensuring that employees’ personal space is respected.

As well as using the office differently, there’s a likelihood that employees will have different expectations of their office space, especially when it comes to protecting their health and keeping them safe. The father of ‘proxemics’ (or the study of personal space), anthropologist Edward T Hall, maintained that most people have four ‘comfort zones’: ‘intimate’, ‘personal’, ‘social’ and ‘public’. If these four zones are correctly accounted for, people feel more comfortable around their fellow human beings.

It’s important to recognise that as humans we don’t simply exist within our own skins, but rather extend out into the world in other ways. As such, it can be disconcerting if what is often referred to as our peripersonal space – or the space immediately around our body – is violated. Not only that, there are cultural aspects to the allocation of personal space, with the British more removed and protective of it, and that needs to be reflected in the design and layout of the office.

Any intrusion into personal space can cause stress, but it can also create issues with privacy, disruption and acoustics, while the trend towards collaborative working spaces can’t be applied in a ‘one size fits all’ way. An open-plan setting won’t suit everyone, or every activity, so creating a mix of different spaces with task-oriented zones is likely to be the best solution.

Soundproofed spaces

One way of introducing ‘soundproofed’ and private space is to opt for freestanding office pods. There are many different products on the market and they are more relevant now than ever as people continue to meet virtually within the hybrid model – some even have antimicrobial lighting that eliminate viruses, bacteria and particles. Freestanding pods are available in a range of sizes and can pretty much accommodate as many people as necessary as well as allow you to introduce sofas, tables, chairs, AV and plants.

Modern office design

Soundproofed space

Most offices are now seeing the need for a single user to have regular and unbookable access to soundproofed space, and several manufacturers have started to offer solutions. Of note are the HushOffice Hybrid pod, Orangebox's On the QT, the Framery O, the Sedus se:cube and the Vetrospace Phonespace Clean.

Hush office

Orange box

Summary

As Carol Chinn, design partner at The Workspace Consultants, explains, any office design project should avoid pandering to the members of staff who shout the loudest. ‘Any workplace model – regardless of headcount – can be complex because you’re bringing together individuals who are likely to have different personalities, preferences and working patterns,’ says Carol. ‘It’s vital, therefore, to gain a thorough understanding of the needs of the organisation and its employees before embarking on the design phase. Surveys and workshops will inform this process, and it’s always time well spent because it’s not necessarily the case that a reduced footprint will increase profitability. Post-Covid, it’s possible to argue that giving team members more space – and potentially privacy – will increase their productivity and job satisfaction. In other words, it’s worth thinking about space when the majority of your workforce are hoping to be collaborative and productive as well as safe when they come into the office.

Get in touch

The Workspace Consultants offer office design and project management in Cambridge, London and Manchester, so if you are looking to re-design your office space, why not contact us today for an initial discussion?

Related article

Reducing noise in the workplace

Workplace Strategy

The information gathering process required to develop a robust brief should involve a series of surveys to map current and expected business requirements, if implemented they will ensure project success.

Learn more >

Office Design

The design and usability of a workspace affects staff productivity, morale and retention. It also influences internal and external perceptions of your organisation and can therefore affect growth and profitability.

Learn more >

Project Management

A strong project management team can control the budget and the schedule, as well as the quality of the finish. Our experienced project managers are trained to pre-empt and remove risks from your project.

Learn more >

Furniture

Furniture selection is an integral part of the design process and often plays a vital role in productivity. That's why we're now offering office furniture in Cambridge, Manchester and London...

Learn more >

Download Our Brochure

Get a better perspective of everything we have to offer by downloading our corporate brochure and letting us know how we can help evolve your office environment.

View Brochure

Cambridge

  • Unit 1, Avenue Business Park
    Brockley Road
    Elsworth
    Cambridge, CB23 4EY
  • Telephone 01223 656111

Manchester

London

  • 1 Giltspur Street
    London, EC1A 9DD