The future of workplace

Before I dive in, it’s important to note I’m not going to insult your intelligence with bland observations about the changing nature of work, working from home, hybrid environments or technological advancement.

They are a reality we are all well used to.

I would also hate to mislead you by referring to this as a window into the future of work, a hot prediction from a futurist or even “thought leadership”.

What I can promise is to share insights from some organisations that are leading the way in shaping the workplaces of the future, and why I think what they do matters. ?After all, it’s a very real possibility that some of these things could happen and given the number of organisations in the world, will happen for some. Does that make me a Futurist?

Deep work

Let’s start with office layout.?For some time, we’ve been sharing benches, screens and desks. Open-plan has been the flavour of the hour. While collaborative workspaces are not without benefits, who doesn’t get a pang of jealousy watching Suits, with Harvey Spectre in deep thought on his private sofa, surrounded by the things that make him feel like he belongs?

Notwithstanding the obvious social distancing benefit of separate spaces, they could also offer significant productivity gains.

“Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It’s a skill that allows you to quickly master complicated information and produce better results in less time.” says Cal Newport, Author of “Deep Work”.

The value of having your own space for undisturbed thought is not only recognised by those in the know but by all who have spent time working from home, tackling uninvited dog appearances, Amazon deliveries and endless Teams calls.

Could we see the return of the battle for the corner office?

Brand experience

The physical environment offers an incredible opportunity to encapsulate the characteristics of a brand. The benefit of this is two-fold. Employees feel a sense of belonging and connection the more they understand the brand they work for, and brands are increasingly likely to open their spaces to customers and brand collaborators.

Gymshark, the billion-pound sports apparel brand based in the UK are a glowing example of this.?In their headquarters, designed by Oktra, the space screams the brand, with sleek design, shared eating spaces, a “lifting club” and purpose-built presentation theatres that wouldn’t look out of place at TEDx.?Employees rave about their experience and customers request to visit on a scale not seen since Willy Wonka released tickets to his factory!

If your employees, customers, potential partners and collaborators can literally feel your brand, you have a strong recipe for retention, loyalty and fruitful partnerships.

Mission Control

“New sneakers dropping soon”. Drop culture (a product hyped for a period before being released on a single day) is huge in pop culture but isn’t vastly different to how we operate in business. Pitches, bids, events and campaigns are all highly involved activities requiring teams to collaborate leading up to a crescendo of activity.

The team at John Lewis, the UK department store, start collaborating on their Christmas campaign 12 months in advance. Starting with a light-touch before building in intensity, the core team work together on all aspects of the launch and continue to monitor activity after it has gone live.

Launch-ready spaces that facilitate small teams working together privately for periods of time should support collaboration, relaxation and a single-minded focus on the task at hand.

Content creation

We live a world where CEOs are on Tik Tok. Feeding LinkedIn, Facebook and Insta is now a full-time job involving entire teams, and SEO ready content is no longer a nice-to-have but a legitimate way to boost the bottom line.

While all of this can of course be outsourced, increasingly brands are choosing to bring expertise in-house to ensure creative control and reputation management – building (and retaining) IP without the agency price tag.

To facilitate this, brands like Gymshark have purpose-built podcast booths, photographic studios, interview spaces and brand spaces within head office.?This allows them to create content with ease, shoot new product straight off the production line and bring in influencers to co-create – a huge advantage in consumer transparency and speed to market.

CEO, Ben Francis, records YouTube videos on everything from factory tours and new products, to personal reflections as a leader, and fans of the brand love it.?His videos often topping one million views.

The upfront investment in the space can clearly pay dividends, in saved agency costs and in some instances, replacing previous investment in paid advertising.

The world is undoubtedly changing. Clearly, the brands that will win are those creating spaces that enable and support the way they work with employees, customers and collaborators and that represent how they want to be seen by the world.?