Changing ideas in workspace design

What does a modern workplace look like? There’s no simple answer to this question. Organisations must look to combine different elements and styles to find the one that best reflects their brand identity and values.

BRINGING NATURE IN

Designers are now finding ways to counter the negative physiological and psychological impact of blue light from all our laptops and mobile screens with Biophilic design. These are systems that mimic natural light and regulate our circadian rhythms and are a smart solution for countries not blessed with a lot of sunlight.

There are firms specializing in biophilic garden environments. You can do it by planting trees, designing gardens on walls, green breakouts zones within the office and outside in the campus.

THE ‘THIRD SPACE’

We’re entering a decade of digital nomads and gig economy. This new workplace model is a ‘third space’ between work and home where people can bring laptops and work alone or in a group. They will meditate, ideate, collaborate, workout or grab a bite. They will go there when they feel like. The rest of the time, they will work out of home, in an uber or metro, or even in the cloud. Rethink work-spaces to align with this flexible workforce.

THE IMPACT OF TECH

From AI transforming boardrooms into multimedia platforms to digital whiteboards enabling video-enhanced collaboration, workplace technologies will revolutionize our lives, creating a more productive and efficient world. Your workplace design today must keep in mind the coming of age of this technology and combine it with office layouts which transform team collaboration. This is the future of work. And there are challenges too. Security, privacy and confidentiality are the biggest one of the shared spaces.

SUSTAINABILITY

For millennial and Gen Z workers, the climate crisis is the most pressing issue of our times. It’s no longer cool to have a workplace that is not sustainable or environmentally conscious. Using sustainable building materials, designing for renewables source of energy, recycling, upcycling, in-house composting, zero waste, water harvesting, water recycling, are some of the many ways in which workspace can be made environmentally conscious.

The author is head of marketing, brand and communications at Brookfield Properties.