A dramatic shift has taken place in offices around the world. Once mired in a sea of sameness, today many are moving toward a collection of bright, diverse spaces that might more likely be found in a café or an abandoned warehouse-turned-loft apartment. The power of the employee is evident. Most organizations no longer need convincing that place is a powerful lever for attracting talent. And, they’re employing other amenities as well. Many paved with good intentions but ending in the extreme — from see-saws to swings and doggy daycare to dry cleaning.
The problem? In an effort to set themselves apart and dream up all the ways they can make people happy, some workplaces have lost sight of what people actually want. These new casual spaces are taking up valuable real estate in today’s office landscape, but despite significant investments to create inspiring spaces that attract talent, many of these informal and fun spots sit empty. The question is why?
Recent research confirms that what people really want is form and function. And, they begin to suggest a formula for designing casual, shared spaces where people actually want to work.
Putting Space to the Test
To understand reasons why people use certain spaces and not others, our researchers and designers have conducted 23 experiments in multiple facilities. They compared identical spaces side-by-side — only one attribute was different. So, which spots did people use more, and why? First, let’s peek inside a few of the spaces put to the test.
Experiment #1: Task or lounge?
People had the choice between an enclave with a desk and a task chair and one with a lounge setting.
Result
The desk and task chair were chosen almost twice as often as the lounge chair — with one exception. People under the age of 35 tended to pick the lounge.
Experiment #2: How important is access to power?
Tables were placed in settings with or without power nearby.
Result
People chose tables where power was easy to reach — especially for individual work over long periods of time. Power access proved less of a factor on seat location for groups or more short-term work.
Other proof points — people picked a table with a large oversized lamp over one without. Researchers hypothesized the lamp created a boundary that gave people territorial privacy and made them feel protected. And, people overwhelmingly chose a lounge setting with a footrest over one without, underscoring a desire for ergonomic comfort even in more relaxed spaces.
“These experiments confirm we have to start applying the same level of scrutiny to the details in these spaces as we do when we design workstations for individual work,” says Steelcase Applications Design Manager Mary Elaine Roush.