How About Office Layout: 12 Tips to Design an Open Office Workspace That is Highly Efficient

You and your staff work at your workplace for at least 40 hours each week. The way you manage the space between those four walls has an impact on not only aesthetics but also comfort and productivity.

A floor plan centered on a large, open space with few enclosed offices is known as an open office layout. Open office designs are cost-effective, adaptable, and can work well for highly collaborative teams. An effective design must strike a balance between openness and privacy options. 

To plan the layout of your office space, you’ll need to do more than just move a few desks. Prepare to select furniture, adjust lighting, intentionally leave some floor space open, and acquire decor. You’ve come to the correct place to discover how to create an optimal environment for your business, whether you’re relocating to a completely new site or your present space just needs a change. Here are 12 tips in creating an open office plan.

Make a strategy 

Before you go out and purchase everyone’s treadmill desks and install a slide, sit down and prepare a budget to evaluate how much these open office layout upgrades and updates will cost. The following stage is to determine who will make the decisions. If you have the funds, hiring an interior designer is a good option; organizing the room yourself is less expensive but takes more time. Finally, make sure you take into account the unique demands of your employees and firm. You should poll, share prospective designs with, or at the very least talk to your direct reports to find out what kind of setting they want to spend their time in. 

Remove unnecessary furniture

Before you arrange the furniture, think about if it’s even necessary to keep it. Back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, migraines, and eye strain are all health issues that can be caused by old or poorly constructed furniture. Starting with ergonomic office desks and chairs is a fantastic place to start.

Create collaboration-friendly environments

Encourage your colleagues to take a walk around the workplace and use the collaborative space. A few cushy chairs in a semi-circle surrounding a fireplace, indoor fountain, or art show can be as basic as PCs set up on tables where numerous people can gather. These places are fantastic, contemporary alternatives to meeting in someone’s workplace.

Participate in the process with your staff

According to a study, employees are more satisfied at work when their supervisors allow them to set up their own workstations or choose where they want to work. Letting your employees rearrange the furniture in their offices as they see fit, allowing them to order the type of furniture they want, or providing them with a number of workplace options around the office building are all examples of this. One employee, for example, might want to answer emails in a private phone booth in the morning but go into a communal location in the afternoon to communicate with coworkers.

Noise Control & Sound Privacy are two issues that need to be addressed.

The most common concerns in an open office setting are noise disruptions and a lack of privacy during conversations or personal interactions. In any open office space, noise control, and sound privacy are top priorities—and something that many design professionals have tackled head-on with tremendous success.

Pay close attention to the lighting

Lighting has an impact on productivity, health, happiness, well-being, and depression. Take a walk around your office and look for any area with insufficient lighting. Natural light is wonderful, but not many places, especially interior workplaces, and cubicles, can take advantage of it. For these areas, consider obtaining ceiling lights that replicate natural light or sunlight desk lamps.

Make a separate area for unwinding

Breaks are vital, and workplace space may encourage employees to take them when they need them. By having a work-free zone in the office space, employees can use it to leave their desks and feel more at ease. They can use the space to express themselves and cooperate better with their coworkers in these spaces, which come in a variety of sizes and designs.

Allow space for some breathing

While it may be tempting to cram as much furniture as possible into your office, this can be aesthetically overpowering and difficult to maneuver. Consider your open space as if it were white space on a résumé. This will help in walking and standing while not working. 

Think about the temperature in your workplace

While it may appear that workplace temperature and layout are unrelated, they are not. For instance, the sun beaming through a window may make one location excessively hot, while an air conditioning vent positioned over an internal cubicle may make that room too cool. You won’t be able to account for all of these difficulties, but being aware of temperature variations in the office might help you make better layout decisions.

Don’t Excessively Decorate

Nothing is more depressing than a dark, uninspiring office that is well-organized but lacks personality and design. While it’s easy to prioritize function above form when it comes to office design, a little imagination may go a long way. Plants, artwork, encouraging messages, and company branding are all good ideas. But don’t go over.

Variety should be a priority

There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all solution, so take into account the peculiarities of the space, the demands of your employees, and the details of your business. Variety, on the other hand, should be a priority in any office setup.

Take into consideration the technological needs

Set aside time to speak with your IT department or director of engineering about how to best arrange the space so that everyone has access to the equipment they require before you start unknowingly pushing desks away from phone jacks employees require. Consider printer placement, technology storage, proximity to outlets, wifi routers, and projector and screen space, among other things.