In case you didn’t get the memo, recent trends in office-space configuration, size and amenities have led to increased efficiency, productivity and employee collaboration. Workers have been saying goodbye to boxed-in cubicles and large private offices. They’re heralding open floor plans, adaptable furnishings, wireless technology, and green design and construction.
Why the evolution?
“From my perspective, it’s important for tenants to keep their workforce happy, healthy and productive,” said Mike Mixer, executive managing director of commercial real estate firm Colliers International — Las Vegas. “Also, with today’s multifaceted workforce, which includes millennials and seniors and everyone in between, a one-size space does not fit all. Instead, we’re seeing hybrid spaces that are flexible and upgradable.”
A May 2015 Pew Research Center report found that millennials had surpassed both baby boomers and Gen Xers to become the largest generation in the U.S. workforce.
“Millennials are looking for lifestyle centers where they can work and play,” said Patti Dillon, senior vice president of Colliers International. “Millennials aren’t used to hard-wall offices, and they also tend to be more tech-savvy, so we’re seeing open spaces where employees can collaborate and engage with their coworkers,”
Darren Lemmon, first vice president of commercial real estate firm CBRE Las Vegas, said landlords were looking for enduring designs, and were leaning more toward smaller spaces in the 1,200- to 3,000-square-foot range, which can attract a wider range of tenants.
“It’s expensive to build out a shell space, so with smaller spaces, they can control the cost and design, and make them market-ready,” Lemmon said. “We’re also seeing more modular seating and desk pods and collaborative breakout furniture that can adapt to the needs of a changing office environment. Another trend we’re seeing, particularly in larger cities, is shared space where employees have integrated technology and can plug into any desk.”
Although open collaborative spaces are becoming the new norm, some companies, such as law firms, still require privacy. Experts are seeing an emergence of multifunctional rooms that can serve as small conference areas, huddle space, rooms for breastfeeding mothers, quiet zones and even nap rooms. Meanwhile, office layout also has shifted from the traditional footprint of private offices along the perimeter with dark and gloomy bullpens in the middle.
Nicholas Barber, a director with commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield Las Vegas, said his company recently relocated from traditional office space into a fully open work environment with multiple huddle rooms and only a few private offices.
“At first I was apprehensive, but it’s not forced interaction, and I’ve been more productive in the last month than I have in the last year,” Barber said. “Our furniture is also a great example of what the new workplace looks like, with standing desks that are very clean and minimalist, which is also a huge trend. We’ve also got glass along the tops of all the workstations, so you don’t feel like you’re crammed into a cube. The whole office is newer, modern and on the cutting edge with design and technology.”
Leonard Bergman, president and CEO of architecture and interior design firm Bergman Walls & Associates, also said his company relocated into new open-floor plan office space last year, with tangible results.
“Since we’ve moved, we estimate that our overall productivity has increased by at least 10 percent as reflected in our increased billings per employee,” said Bergman, adding that lighting also plays a larger role in employee wellness. “We are fortunate to have an entire wall of double-height windows, but something as simple as indirect lighting directed toward the ceiling and reflected back down to illuminate the room is well documented to increase productivity over overhead fluorescents.”
Bergman said employee wellness had become increasingly important, as employers were more conscientious about providing for a better work-life balance. Amenities such as fitness facilities, showers for those who bike to work, pet-friendly environments and engaging break rooms are now expected of larger employers, he said, and can give them a recruiting advantage.
Lemmon of CBRE said healthy environments also include bringing the outdoors inside, with more plant life, and natural materials such as more wood and less plastic.
“A new push is for WELL Building Certification — similar to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) — that incorporates standards for wellness in the office environment,” he said, adding that CBRE was in the process of rolling this out. “We spend most of our lives in the workplace, so any way we can make it cleaner and more pure and less stressful, the better off we are.”
The Cosmopolitan, a client of Colliers International, scored well in that regard when it moved into a 41,000-square-foot office space almost a year ago in the Howard Hughes Center.
“Throughout the building, work spaces were put up against the glass, and offices in the middle, to have an open and airy feel, with cubicles generally low to have open sight lines,” said Brian Stedeford, vice president and chief internal auditor with the Cosmopolitan. “Each floor is generally open and separated by collaboration areas versus walls. The break rooms have a ‘window to the resort,’ each with a television hooked up to a camera at the resort, one showing the high-heeled shoe — a guest favorite for taking pictures — and the other our front-desk operations.”
Stedeford said the conference rooms were named after resort venues, again for connectivity to the property, but more importantly so they were perceived as public spaces rather than department-specific meeting rooms.
“The office space we’ve curated at Hughes (keeps our employees who) work off-property constantly connected, while additionally welcoming new hires to a space that is representative of the resort,” Stedeford said. “The space has given us a platform to continue to keep employees creative, engaged and constantly forward-thinking.”