Silver Linings – Good Design, Positivity and Productivity in the Workplace

After a time of forced remoteness and readjustment, what is it that will entice people back into the workplace? Using this period of flux to respond to the behavioural and habitual shifts of how people now want to work, workplaces are being re-sculpted to test environments for collaboration, focus and positive engagement.

With working from home becoming normalised and devices ensuring a constant line of access, workplaces no longer exist solely within the four walls of a traditional office or cubicle. Flexibility has proven a boon for some, but for others it has contributed to work bleeding through into all other aspects of life. Even prior to the pandemic, in response to the detrimental mental health effects of an ‘always on’ culture, Portugal had made it illegal for bosses to contact staff after hours, and France legislated the ‘right to disconnect’. Now, with a renewed understanding of both the challenges and benefits of working from home, will we regain an appreciation for the ‘destination of focus’ or are the days of work being conducted on-site behind us for good?

After adapting systems and modes of delivery – most workplaces are now operating in some form of hybrid model, and the existing environments will undoubtedly no longer serve the purpose they once did.

Never before has there been such widespread interrogation and stakeholder investigation into what makes a ‘workplace’ great. In 2021, Harvard Business Review identified five new working models when analysing office settings in a post-pandemic world. The first, ‘As It Was,’ pertains to pre-pandemic conditions, centralised but more sanitised. The second, ‘Clubhouse’, reorients the office as a place of collaboration and socialisation, where most people work by hybrid-means and come together to connect. The third is ‘Activity-Based Working’, an office of remote desking where teams move around based on projects. ‘Hub and Spoke’ is the fourth where, instead of one central office, employees work from smaller satellite offices in suburbs and neighbourhoods near their homes, saving on commute times while allowing face-to-face interaction. The final, ‘Fully Virtual’, is self-explanatory, allowing employees to work from home, with costs to be freed up on office leases.

There’s been a shift from employees conducting work in traditional office settings to employers needing to entice their employees back by providing shared and engaging environments. After adapting systems and modes of delivery – most workplaces are now operating in some form of hybrid model, and the existing environments will undoubtedly no longer serve the purpose they once did – the next challenge is ensuring these new models support positivity and productivity. Recent University of Melbourne research proposes the ‘new office’ as being a place where elements that were once considered ‘nice to have’ are now ‘must have’ – in order to regain a sense of collaborative connection. The research showed that people were not necessarily saying they didn’t want to go back into the office, but that they wanted control over when and where they work. These conversations have reignited the importance of creating healthy office hours, structured contactability, an improved focus on wellness and physical air quality, and creating positive places for engagement and collaboration in office design going forward.

These conversations have reignited the importance of creating healthy office hours, structured contactability, an improved focus on wellness and physical air quality, and creating positive places for engagement and collaboration in office design going forward.

One example of a workplace shaped by these considerations is Living Edge’s revitalised Sydney Office. Focusing on the human experience, Living Edge has aligned its space through dedicated placemaking, where functions are grouped throughout the space. Open social areas encourage breaks and allow for casual interactions, as well as the natural creation of a sense of belonging. “We wanted to re-establish those social, collaborative and community connections,” says Aidan Mawhinney, Living Edge CEO, “and our new workplace aims to reflect a more hybrid strategy, where employees have autonomy over their workday.

Ultimately, it is our human need for connection that will eventually drive us back into more cohesive, less distributed workplaces, not the latest features or amenities. Embedding flexibility and agility into the physical spaces, workplace design can ensure staff will almost be able to ‘choose their own adventure’ as they navigate tasks and teams. It would seem that the key lies in empowering employees, not containing them. In recognising a human need for collaboration, especially coming from a time of such isolation, workplaces and businesses are focusing on connection and positivity – and if this is the legacy that the last few years has endowed us, perhaps it is a silver lining that we all need.