Design Ideas For Your Corporate Office Renovation

Corporate office design is rapidly changing. The aftermath of the pandemic has left employers scrambling to create an office space that employees want to come back to.

So how do you transform your office from lackluster to modern and welcoming? Let’s take a closer look at what you need to consider for your upgraded space.

Why should you renovate your corporate office?

If your office hasn’t been renovated in a while, it’s probably time for a spruce!

As you consider a renovation for your corporate office, your first thought is probably about cost. While budget is definitely an important factor when renovating your office, you should also consider what these improvements can do for your office and employees.

Office renovations and remodels are shown to boost employee morale and overall productivity, which improves your bottom line in the long run. Currently, the average employee is only productive for 2 hours and 53 minutes each day! Low productivity can be due to a myriad of reasons, and one is office layout.

Your existing layout may not be enabling your team to work at peak efficiency. Perhaps there aren’t enough private areas to work or take meetings in or the acoustics are poor and create a distracting environment for your employees. Whatever your problem area is, revamping your office layout, furniture, design, and decor is a step in the right direction.

Before you start, know what your goals are.

The most important step in planning your corporate office renovation is understanding what your goals are and how it will affect the success of your business and morale of your employees.

Ask yourself why you want to renovate. Is your company growing and you need more space? Is your current layout not efficient? Do you need a more collaborative workspace? Do you want a space that better reflects your company’s brand and values?

Your goals will affect the direction and design of your new office space. If you’re looking for a more collaborative space, you may consider an open floor plan with pods spread throughout. Alternatively, a space that reflects your brand and values will focus on colors, lighting, and additional community spaces.

Current trends to incorporate into your corporate office renovation.

1. Blend work and home into one space

One of the biggest office design trends for 2022 is merging the comfort of the home with the office.

So many employees worked from home during the pandemic and enjoyed the little comforts of a home environment. Incorporating hybrid living and working design into your office is vital for not just productivity, but employee morale.

You can take inspiration from your own home as you design your new office space. Additions like plush carpeting, comfortable seating like couches or loveseats, curtains, or indoor plants can make a big difference in the office.

2. Decide on your layout

One of the hardest decisions you’ll make is deciding on a layout for your office space. Essentially you’ll need to decide between 3 different layouts: open, cubicle or “closed”, or a hybrid.

The open concept office layout is very popular mainly because there’s less barriers to communication. With no walls or doors between employees, it’s much easier to communicate and collaborate with each other. If teams often work together on group related projects, an open space makes working together and sharing ideas easier.

On the other hand open spaces tend to be much louder than other layouts, especially as more employees come into the office and the team grows. There are also more distractions in open offices like people moving around or having loud conversations or phone calls which can result in reduced productivity.

Cubicle office layouts are more traditional and feature sets of cubicles arranged in various styles. Unlike open layouts, cubicles give employees more privacy and produce less distractions and overall noise.

On the other hand, cubicle layouts tend to take up more space which means that you can fit as many employees as you may like to. Cubicles can also be more isolating for employees and are also more expensive than open layouts.

Cubicle layouts are also often criticized for being drab or boring, but brands like Groupe Lacasse or Global Furniture Group have a modern take on workstations so you can have private spaces without sacrificing style.

A hybrid layout can be the best of both worlds. You get the privacy of cubicles and the communication of an open space. Hybrid layouts typically include cubicles with movable dividers to promote flexibility along with communal spaces that encourage collaboration.

Global Example

3. Go green with biophilic design

Biophilic design is one of the biggest trends in corporate office design right now, and for good reason. Nature elements within the workplace have been shown to improve physical and mental health in the workplace which increases overall productivity.

When it comes to biophilic design, think beyond just a couple of indoor plants. Things like waterfalls, increased natural lighting, natural textures and colors, and improved air circulation are all great ways to incorporate the benefits of the outdoors into your office.

Green or ‘living’ walls are a great way to incorporate biophilic design into your office space. Brands like Vistafolia provide customizable green wall design solutions that can transform your office space!

Vistafolia Example

4. Focus on the acoustics

Sound control is vital to a productive office environment. You may be concerned that your open office space checks every box except for sound control, but being strategic with acoustics can help drastically.

While open spaces tend to be louder, you can better control noise levels with acoustic furniture. Things like phone booths, pods, flexible private offices, and sound absorbing furniture can help minimize overall sound levels and decrease distractions for your employees.

Brands like Mergeworks, Mio, and Unika Vaev offer acoustic solutions for your office space that limit noise disturbances so your employees can work distraction free.

Choose a design team that understands your goals

At the end of the day, don’t forget to involve your team in the process. You may think they want a trendy open space, but that may not be the case.

You can’t please everyone, but by listening to the wants and needs of your employees, your renovation will start off on the right track.

Upgrading your office space is a big undertaking and choosing the right design team is vital to the success of your project. Get started on your office renovation with a free design consultation with our design experts at Furngully.