Precision Diagnostics

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for the workplace. The scope of the project can be as simple as a three-week replanning to optimize the office layout and recommend basic infrastructure improvements. A more comprehensive 12-week investigation might include blocking and stacking studies, cost/benefit analyses, and a pilot office.

Either way, an office revitalization can only boost performance enough to justify its cost if it is tailored to the business’s specific needs. It is essential that designers study space usage analyses, benchmark comparisons, employee surveys, and growth projections. Digital models can be used to establish precise environmental technology criteria. A systematic needs assessment pinpoints which components of the workplace could be working harder.

Planning for Radical Change

A lean business needs an office tailored for the specific kinds of work its employees do. Financial, legal, consulting, and creative firms each have unique spatial requirements. Technology-savvy knowledge workers may require less support space and personnel, allowing a corporation to adopt a more efficient layout. By calculating the ideal size for workstations, designers can reduce a company’s footprint by 25% or more. In turn, if individual heads-down space becomes smaller, a modest increase in social and team space often boosts productivity by stimulating collaboration.

Of course, it would be a mistake for any company to design with only today’s needs in mind. Agile corporations need to plan for multiple futures, making office design an open-ended problem. Designers should favor “looser” workplace models that can be adapted without costly architectural reconfiguration. For example, bench systems provide greater elasticity than cubicles because they can accommodate varying numbers of workers doing different kinds of tasks. Single- or multi-floor neighborhoods of related employees can be designed to expand or contract rapidly if the company needs to reorganize.

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