Creating a collaborative working space
Creating a collaborative working space
Collaborative or co-working spaces are certainly becoming popular. However, given that they’ve been proven to boost creativity, productivity and employee retention, and therefore profitability, then it’s safe to say, they’re no fad. Collaborative workspaces are going to be around for quite a while.
We’re often approached by organisations who want a piece of the collaborative action, but aren’t sure how best to create the space within their work environment. There are a number of elements that we’d strongly advise considering, irrespective of the size and scope of your business. These are the important factors and features that need to be included if your collaborative space is going to be readily utilised by your employees. After all, square metres of office space come with a high price tag these days, so you can’t afford for any space to be wasted.
What is a collaborative workspace?
A collaborative workspace is any area of a work environment where employees can come together to work with each other. Essentially, a meeting room is a collaborative workspace. It’s a space where people can work collaboratively. The problem with meeting rooms are, they take up a lot of room and they’re very restrictive.
A meeting room will usually have one large boardroom table, but the space doesn’t allow for a number of smaller groups to utilise the room at the same time. If two or three people book the meeting room to collaborate on a project for an afternoon, that entire room is then out of bounds to anyone else. That’s a lot of space that’s out of action for an entire afternoon.
The way individuals and teams work has changed dramatically over the last 20 years – and that’s all thanks to advancements in technology and the wonderful World Wide Web. We’re now far more flexible in how we work and where we work. Thanks to technology, workers are far more mobile. Work and meetings can be conducted from just about anywhere, which makes it very easy for workers to enjoy productive, impromptu meetings – providing the space is available.
Meeting rooms certainly still serve a purpose. There is always likely to be a need for people to get together round a table with the door closed. That’s business. However, organisations are increasingly coming to the realisation that they require minimal official meeting rooms and more space that provides areas where different groups of people can work simultaneously. What size that space is, how it is designed and what furniture, fittings and features it includes, depends very much on your business, your company culture and of course, your budget.
However, there are four factors that we believe every collaborative workspace needs to include. If you take these four elements into consideration when designing and building your collaborative space, then you can be confident that it will be readily utilised by your employees and therefore you’ll see a rapid return on your investment.
1. Flexibility
You need to consider what types of people and what types of meeting and work will be carried out within the space. This will depend upon your business, your company culture, your employee demographic and how they like to work. If the space and furniture budget will allow, then providing a number of different options for ways of working is best. For example, long tables and benches and tall tables and stools provide a great setting for informal collaborative meetings. Low seating and tablet tables with access to a screen or white board provide a good creative space. Small booths and pods will allow for private meetings or enable individuals to step away from open plan offices and benefit from a more secluded space when privacy and concentration is required.
Furniture designers, manufacturers and suppliers have really embraced the idea of collaborative workspace and there are a myriad of office furniture solutions and options to choose from. The best way to ensure you get bang for your buck is to create a versatile environment with options and furniture that can be easily moved so employees can create the space they need – as and when they need it.
2. Acoustics
Distractions caused by noise are often one of the lead causes of dissatisfaction and productivity loss within office environments. Noise is proven to hinder office workers carrying out their work accurately and efficiently, and can also have a detrimental impact on health and stress levels. Chatter and conversations are one of the biggest bugbears and the degree to which they distract depends on how clear and intelligible the speech is. The clearer it is, the greater its potential to cause distraction.
Given that this is the case, then acoustics is a priority purchase when it comes to collaborative workspaces. You don’t want impromptu team meetings or high-spirited creative sessions to impact on the productivity of individuals working in your open plan office. At the same time, you don’t want to stifle the energy or enthusiasm of people collaborating in your co-working space. There are a plethora of acoustic solutions that are designed to dampen and block sounds. We’ve written an entire blog on the subject already, so feel free to have a read. It’s available here.
3. Technology and equipment
For your collaborative space to work it needs to be functional for the teams and individuals who are going to use it. Therefore, one of your priority questions needs to be, what technology are they going to use and bring to the space, and therefore what power do I need to supply? And what type of equipment or technology would help them use this space more often or more efficiently, and therefore what do I need to provide?
4. Refreshments
Where the provision of refreshments in the office used to be considered rather decadent, these days organisations are coming round to the idea that providing colleagues with easy access to hot and cold beverages and healthy snacks, pays dividends.
Well stocked fridges in collaborative spaces or mini-kitchens with access to a zip tap that immediately dispenses boiling water, prevents delays in meetings getting started or the need for refreshment breaks. Employees will view complementary refreshments as a perk, whilst employers gain the benefit of improved productivity and a happier workforce. It might not be top of the agenda when planning your collaborative space, but it’s certainly food for thought!
No two organisations are the same, so what you want to achieve from your collaborative space, needs careful consideration. We’d advocate asking your teams how they like to work when they collaborate and asking individuals what they need and want from the space. Where you put it, is a whole other set of questions that involves assessing how your existing space can be rationalised, but that’s another subject entirely. More to follow on that one coming up!
If you’re considering adapting a space in your office to create a collaborative area, and would like to talk to us about your options, then we’d love to hear from you. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
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