Seven simple design tips to improve your workplace

To help employees achieve their best performance, we need to give them the best possible space to work in. Updating the design of the workplace is easy, here are seven simple tips to help get you started:

Make it lighter

One of the easiest ways to modernise a workplace and help employees to feel happy and productive is to incorporate plenty of light into the design.

Natural light reduces eye strain and headaches and is a source of Vitamin D which is vital for healthy immune systems. Installing mirrors to reflect light and replacing solid walls or partitions with glass will instantly boost levels of daylight in your workplace.

Make it brighter

Once you’ve made your workplacelighter, make it brighter with some bold accented colour. Different colours have been shown to influence different behaviours; yellow is associated with feelings of well-being and productivity, blue is thought to aid clear thinking and collaboration, and green is said to be calming. Choose your colours for different areas of the workplace, creating a different vibe for each according to how you want people to feel.

Don’t feel that adding colour means a complete overhaul of your interior décor. Simply adding accent colours at minor intervals through furniture, manifestation or artwork will make a big difference. London advertising agency Scorch London is a great example of how it can be done.

Quiet areas

Regardless of the department a member of the team works in, or what level they business they are at, everyone needs a space where they can find some peace and quiet. Some open plan workspaces can be noisy, distracting places to work in, so creating quiet areas for busy minds to retreat to is vital. A great example of this is London based digital advertising agency, Essence. They recognise the importance of a varied work environment and have factored quiet spaces into the design of their new Soho offices so that employees can find a suitable area to focus and . This project was recognised as Best Office Interior UK at the International Property Awards 2015, highlighting how well this has been implemented.

Sense of smell

Sensory elements such as smell can influence our behaviour and the workplace this is no different. Studies show that plants in the workplace can help make employees more “physically, cognitively, and emotionally involved in their work” and it can also increase productivity by as much as 15%.It is also suggested that different aromas can help with specific tasks. For example, peppermint is associated with clear, alert thinking, floral scents increase concentration, and vanilla is thought to relieve stress and anxiety.

Brand identity

The branding of your organisation should feature as prominently in your workplace as it does on your website, social media or your other customer-facing platforms. Branding in the workplace helps to remind employees of your company culture and can unite people who have different roles in your organisation to get behind common causes. Branding also helps to maintain a focus on business aims, so that they underpin everyone’s approach to getting the job done.

Temperature

Something as simple as the temperature in a workspace can have a big impact on employee comfort and productivity. The recommendations of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is that workspace temperatures are maintained at 13-16˚C, however each company and individual has their own preference.

Feel at home

Although each of the changes we’ve suggested will make your workplace a more pleasant space to work in, employers are increasingly introducing some home comforts to create a workplace that employees want to come to.

Creating a destination workplace is a big step for some companies, but there are a number of small initiatives you can start with now. Ideas include placing comfortable sofas in breakout rooms, installing a coffee machine and sandwich maker, or providing secure bike storage facilities to encourage people to be fit and healthy.