Recent redesign project for a global management consultancy firm
All businesses are aiming for custom-fit, creative solutions for their offices. Tech companies are particularly open to experimenting and integrating new concepts into their workplaces such as residential and hospitality elements. This type of components are making their way into modern workspace design strategies, while common-area amenities are also moving into the limelight.
Shannon Gaffney, co-founder & creative director of Seattle-based SkB Architects, has gained experience in creating original office spaces, mainly for tech companies. The full-service architecture and interior design firm was involved in the development of Microsoft’s Design Language for Place, a set of guidelines put together for the creation of Microsoft offices, presented at the 2017 Design Summit in Montreal.
SkB Architects has designed numerous workplaces. What sets tech companies apart as clients?
Gaffney: Actually, very little. Everyone wants an evocative workplace that caters to the way they work and offers an array of blended amenities. No one comes to us and says “make our workplace feel like a workplace.” Everyone from tech clients to lawyers are looking for residential, workplace and hospitality-esque qualities for themselves and their clients.
What are the most recent innovations in workplace design, especially regarding tech companies?
Gaffney: I think we’ve seen the popularity of end-on-end, Hogwart-style workstations reach their zenith. While they’re great for density, they’re much more challenging for acoustics or if you work in smaller teams and need a greater variety of workpoints. Microsoft, followed by Google, has been on to this for a little while now. We call them “neighborhoods” and they typically have eight to 16 people with an optional meeting table. It’s open, but zoned, so you get some degree of privacy within a big space—sort of alone and together at the same time.
What amenities are tech companies seeking for in a workplace?
Gaffney: Most commonly, they’re looking for a variety of workpoints, larger meeting rooms, subsidized food options, bike/fitness facilities, games and recreation services, as well as features that cater to pets—dog parks, piddle pads, you name it.