How to Create Introvert-Friendly Office Spaces

In an advice column to introverts seeking jobs, the employer review website GlassDoor.com recommended they only consider workplaces where they’d have a door.* Their rationale was that introverts will perform better in solitude. While this may have validity, the reality is that predominantly private offices are not a realistic option for most companies in today’s world. So, what options should introverted employees ask about when sizing up a potential workplace? And more importantly, what are some viable solutions for companies to ensure their current and future introverted employees are set up for success?

When attracting talent and planning ideal office spaces, leaders should look around their company, consider the other factors that play into effective workplace design, and ask introverts what they need to be productive. Let’s look at how taking these key steps can move your company towards a vibrant, supportive workplace for introverts.

Evaluate Your Current Workspace

Put on your consultant hat and spend a few days observing your office space. Is it a place that people seem comfortable? Obviously, the workplace culture as a whole will impact employees’ comfort level, but the physical space is a large piece of that puzzle.

What are employees getting out of coming in to work in your office versus working remotely? Is there a sense of community? How is work getting done? Most importantly, how are people engaged in these three key activities: collaborating, socializing, and focusing?

It is also important to take into consideration common areas and meeting spaces. Are people jockeying over limited conference rooms or are there plenty available? Are the common areas like the cafeteria, kitchens, or lobby places that people congregate in or spend time alone? How about outdoor spaces? Are those being used?

Designers even talk about bathrooms being important to consider. It is common for introverts to escape to the bathroom for privacy during a day at work, so their design is an important consideration.

Ancient Roman philosopher Cicero said, “Only the person who is relaxed can create, and to that mind, ideas flow like lightning.”

Pay Attention to the Sensory Environment

Besides the floor plan, other factors that play into effective workplace design speak to making employees feel comfortable and at ease, such as the sensory environment. For example, brain research indicates that introverts are more sensitive to light and noise.**

Consider:

• Is noise management built into the design?
• Are there tools like white noise or headphones available for when people need to focus?
• Are there natural materials in the office including wood and plants to make it feel more welcoming?
• Has natural light been utilized and do people have control over the lighting they need at different times?

On a recent trip to a large Silicon Valley tech company I was struck by the amount of plants and even wall spaces with greenery that were everywhere. Then I learned about a research study from the University of Washington Integrated Design Lab that found natural day light and the visual connection to greenery improves mood, helping to reduce the effects of depression. Bringing nature indoors has also been known to reduce stress and increase productivity.2 And adding plants does not have to be an expensive proposition.

Ask Introverts What they Want

A few responses from the recent survey we conducted were:

• “I think Do Not Disturb signs would be welcome.”
• “I wish we had quiet rooms accessible to anyone who needed them.”
• “Offices for small teams instead of a fully open office would be great.”

Not listening to your quieter employees can result in costly decisions and decreased morale. For example, a pair of introverted chemists approached me at a recent trade show where they shared their frustration about not being heard. Their lab had just moved to a new location and no one on their team had been consulted in the design process. They were quiet and didn’t want to speak up. The results? Electric plugs were in the wrong place and tables were poorly positioned for the kinds of experiments they needed to conduct.

Pay special attention to the introverts and those who exhibit introverted tendencies. Ask them about their experiences at work and what they would like to see in their current workspace that doesn’t exist now. You will learn a lot. Conduct a short survey to reveal more of their ideas, since introverts often prefer expressing their thoughts in writing versus responding in spontaneous conversations.

Visit other workspaces in your organization and in different industries to gather best practices. Be sure to bring introverts with you on these “field trips.” Ask employees to share pictures of office spaces they admire to spark your creative plans.

Be Flexible - Use What you Have

Once you have a better understanding of your current workspace and the needs of your workforce, you can consult design experts for ideas on how to best implement your ideas—or you can make an honest go of it yourselves. Consider the workflow needs. Giving people autonomy over where and when they work best also needs to be considered. For Berrett-Koehler, having huddle rooms to conduct private meetings and conference calls has helped support their introverted team members and serves as a compliment to the open-office environment.

A senior leader in R&D from Bosch USA suggested that managers play a key role in encouraging associates to take advantage of flexible options. Their state-of-the-art facility in Sunnyvale, California, has privacy pods and couches stationed around the building so employees have the option of working wherever they feel most comfortable and productive. They even have a relaxation area where they can conduct “chocolate meetings” and no discussion of work is allowed! In our discussion about workspaces for introverts he told me, “This whole building is their office. They can work anywhere as opposed to trying to build a fortress around where they sit.”

At my introverted leadership training program in Berlin, one of the students had a terrific idea that we immediately implemented. He suggested that we turn one of the breakout rooms into a “Quiet Room” that participants could go to whenever they needed to recharge and regroup. A sign was put on the door and the room was immediately put to good use for the remainder of the four days.

I love this example because it highlights how an introvert honored his preference and asked for what he needed using what he had available to him. Like him, we don’t have to wait for the grand new, costly office design to take place. We can all look around and see what we can do with the space and resources we already have.

I also like how this story underscores the growing trend of quiet or recharge rooms in workplaces. The office-space planning company Office Space suggests that, “When designing an open plan office, it’s important to ensure that areas of the office are reserved for quiet work. In today’s mobile workplace where most employees have access to a laptop and therefore have the ability to move around the office, it is important to provide spaces where introverts—and anyone seeking a little solitude for some heads-down work—can retreat when the hustle and bustle of the office becomes a little too distracting.***

Conclusion

Being in a pleasing workspace is key to our sense of well-being and our productivity, and it is well worth the time for managers and teams to design options for introverts given budget, time, and space allocations. Even if the space decisions are coming from levels above, there still may be opportunities to promote an introvert-friendly workplace design by:

• Asking the right questions - Where can people go when they need some privacy?
• Offering suggestions - Can we make our common areas more inviting to encourage natural mingling?
• Making better use of already available resources - Can we convert this space into a quiet corner?

The Bottom Line: Ensure your office plan—closed or open—allows for the smooth flow of collaboration, socialization, and focused work.

Jennifer B. Kahnweiler, Ph.D., Certified Speaking Professional, is a global speaker who helps organizations to harness the power of introverts. She is the author of the upcoming book (to be released June, 16) Creating Introvert-Friendly Workplaces: How to Unleash Everyone's Talent and Performance (available for pre-order) as well as The Introverted Leader, The Genius of Opposites and Quiet Influence which have been translated into 16 languages. Reach out to Jennifer on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.

*      Jillian Kramer, “How to Find an Introvert-Friendly Work Culture,” Glassdoor, April 8, 2019, https://www.glassdoor.com/blog/how-to-find-an-introvert-friendly-work-culture/.

**      T. D. Blumenthal, “Extraversion, Attention, and Startle Response Reactivity,” Personality and Individual Differences, vol. 31, issue 4, September 5, 2001, 495–503, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886900001537.

***      Zoe North, “How to Make Your Office Space Inclusive for Introverts,” OfficeSpace, July 31, 2018, https://www.office spacesoftware.com/blog/how-to-make-your-office-space -inclusive-for-introverts.