Research shows that 21% of 18-24 years olds have turned down a job offer because of the design of the employer’s offices.
Over the past 10 years, the team here are Rocket Projects have worked on many office refurbishment projects from design conception to fit out completion.
We have observed that more recently the focus of the project from the client’s perspective is not always just the budget but as important is how to make the most of new design and technology approaches within the office fit out to ensure the happiness and productiveness of the employees that spend so much of their time there.
So what are new recruits looking for in their potential new employers office and what will make them turn a job down?
The winners in the coolest office category have many of the same themes running throughout – of course these big employers tend to have the benefit of a nice healthy budget when it comes to their space planning and office design considerations, but let’s look at a few for inspiration.
Workspace Flexibility
Still a big focus on this now with the slow and safe return to the office – the workspace that has agile workspaces offering staff flexibility and a chance to even get away from technology in “technology free zones” (shock horror!) are certainly tempting the young recruits to accept that job offer. This shows your staff that you value their time spent at work, it recognises that staff need space to unwind and ensures good staff productivity. This agile working approach works well to encourage social distancing safety measures too.
Colour
Always a big consideration in an office design because many companies need and want to incorporate their brand colours but need to balance this with the impact that colour and mixing of colour can really have on human beings. The general reaction to colour within an office environment that we have often are:
White – safe, pure, clean (but too much equals boring)
Black – authority, control (but absorbs natural light)
Purple – luxury, ambition (but can be deemed artificial)
Green – balance, growth, nature (remember plants require looking after)
Blue – stability, trust
Red – passion (too much can be overpowering)
Yellow – positive, said to be the best colour to use in team workspaces
Lighting
A big mistake can be cutting back too much on the budget on the lighting of the office. Poor lighting can contribute to staff drowsiness and lack of focus (think of those old school fluorescent strip lights and you may think you are in fact back at school!). Another factor is the ability to individually control the lighting in your office space – giving your employees individual control of lighting in the open plan office can reduce stress significantly and used in conjunction with directional light sources such as blinds, angled lighting and glare filters this can boost employee activity and wellbeing.
Keep it safe
Did you know there are guidelines laid out in The Approved Code of Practice to the Work Place Regulations which advise on issues such as ventilation, temperature, lighting, room dimensions, seating etc. It is of course important to incorporate this advice as much as is feasibly possible in your workspace and this is where implementing the agile workspace approach can really be beneficial.
(image courtesy of Jim Stephenson)
We have only touched on some of the elements here to consider in getting those new recruits into your company and happily sitting at their desk.
With many years of experience now in working with our clients to get the best out of their space and utilising the latest workspace space planning and design techniques, we are dedicated in continuing to offer the best opportunity to launch you into your new space.
Contact us today on 01273 728703 or hello@rocket-projects.co.uk