As the needs of the workforce change, businesses are reimagining their physical space to increase efficiency, maximize productivity and better connect with workers. To help with this re-imagination, companies are incorporating innovative ideas in office furniture.
Open to Collaboration
Although not necessarily new, open office floor plans provide essential benefits for companies looking to improve employee performance. Daily hot desking or the sharing of personal space has cooled, and employers are creating spaces designed to strengthen collaboration across teams, departments and organizational levels. Unique furniture such as a multipurpose desk or a custom table design assists employers with adding flexibility and mobility to their new-found space.
Employees working on multiple projects and across different teams need a variety of areas to complete their work. Almost instantaneously, lightweight, moveable furniture can transform traditional workspaces into a meeting room, a media center for a press conference, a brainstorming area for a new project team or a private space to return phone calls. Movable walls also help to quickly transform office space to meet a wide variety of business needs. Creating multiple high-quality areas for collaboration as well as private work enhances employee efficiency and productivity, which every employer recognizes as a plus.
Health and Wellness
Innovations in office furniture are also helping to improve employee well-being. Adjustable laptop stands, particularly for remote employees, and adjustable desks provide employees with significant health benefits. Sitting up straighter and standing improve posture, burn more calories and decrease health risks associated with sitting for long periods of time.
Although less obvious, mobile furniture employed in an open work environment encourages movement around an office and even between floors, which is another added health benefit. Movable furniture also helps employees find the best airflow and more natural light within the office, both of which are seen as important benefits for the physical and mental wellness of staff.
A Sense of Home
Employers have begun to use office furniture and designs to make workers feel more at home, as well. Comfortable couches adorn employee lounges, and brightly colored walls and furniture work to minimize sterile office conditions. Plants and plant-wall installations contribute a feeling of nature to a workspace. Some companies located in milder climates have even created outdoor workspace. The use of natural materials such as wood or bamboo in office furniture, walls and décor also helps reduce the corporate feel of an office, and as an added bonus, it helps companies create more sustainable work environments.
As the business world rethinks how to use office space, furniture is being created to assist employers in their effort to build efficient and connected work environments. When this furniture improves employee health, wellness and productivity, it’s a win for everyone.
