The layout of your office space is one of the most important considerations during a fresh fit-out. Thinking about where your working areas are to be, how many desks go where, placing teams in certain areas, and ensuring ease of movement for employees takes a lot of brain power.
There are a number of aspects that can seriously impact the way your people work, both for the better… and the worse. Nailing the perfect layout for your office is critical, and at Niche Projects, we’re going to show you how.
Consider your needs
Before you begin the planning process, there are a few things to consider. Primarily, what you and your people need from an office layout. For instance, important questions to ask include:
- What does your business do, and how does this impact your office layout?
- How many employees do you have in your office?
- Do your people require empty floor space for certain tasks?
- How many meeting rooms, breakout rooms, and additional spaces are required?
- How wide do your thoroughfares need to be?
Every organisation is different and therefore, has different needs. When it comes to office layout, there is no one size fits all solution.
Staff
Different staff have different needs, depending on how they work, how many they are and what they want from their working environment. Consulting your staff is one way to ensure they feel heard when it comes to designing an optimal office layout.
It’s also important to remember that once your new office has been completed, furniture positioned and workstations hooked up, changes can still be made. Keeping in touch with the thoughts and feelings of your employees means you can make appropriate changes to your office space, ideally meeting their needs and increasing productivity.
The benefits of a good office layout are extensive
The way your design your office can have a huge impact on your employees and your business at large. It can foster more positive relationships between employees, contribute to ease of communication, and even boost levels of happiness among your people.
The daily user experience of your workers is so important because happier workers are more productive workers. What’s more, if your people are satisfied with their workspace, they’re much more likely to continue to work for your organisation, and even encourage others to apply for new vacancies… this is a wonderful way to attract new talent.
Essential areas in the office
There are a number of essential areas in any office, which need to be included in most office fit-outs. For most businesses, those areas include:
- A primary working area
- Meeting rooms
- Office kitchens
- Quiet areas
- Server rooms
- Collaborative spaces
- Breakout areas.
These required areas and rooms will likely vary from business to business, but most Sydney offices will incorporate most of these spaces.
Once you’ve confirmed which spaces you will include in your Sydney office fit-out, you can work with a design company to optimise your layout. That will ensure that each of these spaces is in the most effective location, and easily accessible by your staff members.
Design elements to keep in mind
Movement
People need to be able to move around the office easily so that they can complete their work in a swift and relaxed fashion. This means providing ample walkways, ensuring that corridors and avenues between desks are wide enough, and placing teams in strategic locations.
If your employees are not able to traverse the workplace with ease or need to go the long way around to chat with a colleague or client, employee satisfaction levels will drop. This is yet another reason why it’s crucial to work with a professional, experienced Sydney office design company.
At Niche Projects, we know exactly how to design your office layout, to ensure easy movement for your people.
Natural light and airflow
It’s important for any office to have ample natural light, and good quality airflow. These elements will have a significant impact on the wellbeing of your employees, in terms of both physical and mental health.
The benefits of good light and airflow include:
- Fewer instances of minor illness like cold
- Improved levels of happiness
- Less stress at work
- A more pleasant, welcoming workplace.
Functionality
As we mentioned earlier, user experience is critical for your employees. This means the layout of your office space must enable your employees to do their job as efficiently and easily as possible. If it does, your people will be happier. If it doesn’t, well… efficiency and satisfaction levels will inevitably fall.
What’s more, an inefficient office layout that impacts functionality will result in reduced productivity and efficiency among your people. That then translates into poor outcomes for your business, which can have long-lasting effects.
Professional Sydney office design
Nailing your office layout often comes down to who you work with. Some design companies will simply treat you like any other office-based business, and apply the same principles. At Niche Projects, however, we’ll sit down with you, speak at length about your needs and what you want to get out of your fit-out, and design appropriately.
We’ll work closely with you throughout the entire project, ensuring that the end result is the most effective office layout for your business and your people. That will allow you to reap the benefits, boosting your business in a number of ways.
Get in touch with Niche Projects today to discuss your Sydney office fit-out.
