Obsolete Office Impacts
Does your workspace energise your team and impress your clients? Or does it feel outdated and obsolete?
Your workspace has a major impact on staff productivity and satisfaction - and your bottom line. However, many companies have outdated offices that no longer suit the needs of their staff - if they ever did. We've spent the last 17 years analysing and transforming workspaces. Many times, we've seen how an obsolete office can hold a company back.
In this article, we'll explore the key ways an outdated office may be hurting your business, and more importantly, how you can turn things around. By the end, you'll know how to decide if your office is outdated. You'll understand the impact it is having on your people and business every day, and you'll also know how to fix it.
Poor Space Utilisation
Poorly planned office layouts lead to wasted space within your office. Common examples include too many/large individual offices and meeting rooms. CBRE found the average office utilisation rate is 38%, a 45% decrease from the pre-pandemic global average of 64%. This shows that few companies have transformed their offices to suit the way they work. These outdated offices will be harming the performance of their companies.
Poor space utilisation leads to wasted space, higher real estate costs per employee, and a lack of flexibility for growth. It also indicates that your office, as well as being inefficient, is also ineffective.
If you think your space utilisation is poor, work with an experienced design or workspace consultant. They will be able to analyse how your people work and the environments they need to support that. You can then refurbish your office based on the actual needs of your people, not faulty or outdated assumptions. As a result, your space utilisation and staff performance will improve. To learn more, read How to Improve Your Office Space Utilisation.
Outdated Technology Infrastructure
Many older workspaces lack the infrastructure needed to support modern technology. High-speed internet, ample power outlets, and modern telecommunication systems are all baseline requirements.
Such outdated infrastructure slows processes, makes communication more difficult, and reduces staff satisfaction. This all contributes to a lower staff performance, which impacts business performance. Deloitte found 60% of staff feel outdated technology reduces their ability to perform.
If your technology infrastructure has not improved in the last 5 years, then it is out of date. In that time, the role of technology in staff and team processes has grown hugely. Your infrastructure needs to improve as a result. High-speed internet, wireless charging, and BYOD capabilities are all essential. It's crucial that your infrastructure not only meets your current needs but also your future ones.
Poor Lighting & Ventilation
Many older offices make poor use of the natural light. Often natural light is wasted on little-used spaces such as private offices and meeting rooms. This is compounded by poor-quality artificial lighting. Poor air quality is another common issue with outdated offices.
These conditions increase your employees' risk of health issues like eye-strain and respiration. Research shows that good lighting can increase productivity by 23%, while poor air quality can reduce productivity by 11%.
If you have these issues, reconfigure your office so that the most used areas of your office have access to natural light. You should also ensure your office has a lighting system that mimics natural light. An effective air-conditioning system with fresh air capacity will also improve the health of your staff.
Noise Pollution
One of the most common office design issues we discover is noise pollution. This is a particularly common issue in offices over 10 years old, built without modern sound-damping.
Poor acoustic design creates a noisy and distracting environment. This reduces staff productivity and job satisfaction. A study by the British Journal of Psychology found that noise can reduce cognitive performance by up to 66%.
If your people are complaining of noise pollution, there are several ways you can resolve it. The first is by optimising the layout of your office to ensure high-noise areas are not next to low-noise areas. Acoustic products such as baffles will absorb sound, as well as soft furnishings. By ensuring your space is not too noisy, you will improve the performance of your staff.
Lack of Collaboration Spaces
Outdated office designs often prioritise individual workstations and lack dedicated areas for teamwork. Such offices also tend to have large executive offices and boardrooms. This limits effective communication and teamwork.
A lack of suitable environments for teamwork hinders collaboration. This leads to missed opportunities for innovation and improvement. Steelcase found 70% of staff believe they would be more productive with better collaboration spaces.
The key is to create enough assigned communication spaces. Most outdated offices we visit have around 10% of the footprint assigned to collaboration spaces. Modern office designs feature 30-50% collaboration space. These spaces are specifically designed to suit the way your people work together - often informally in small teams. To learn more, read 5 Ways to Improve Collaboration with Office Design.
Insufficient Breakout Spaces
Another environment outdated offices tend to lack is breakout areas. These are spaces where staff can relax and recharge during the day. Offices that have not been refurbished for 10 or more years tend to have small and/or neglected breakout areas.
A lack of opportunity to relax can lead to burnout, stress, and reduced productivity. Studies show that employees who take regular breaks are 30% more productive. Breakout spaces also provide your people with crucial opportunities to build relationships. This strengthens long-term culture and performance.
The solution is to create suitable space within your office to encourage relaxation. These spaces should be designed around your culture and the needs of your people, so what they look like will vary. However, lounges and quiet rooms are good examples of spaces where staff can take short breaks to recharge. By helping your staff relax, you will improve their energy and focus.
Inflexible Workstations
The most common sign of an outdated office is rows and rows of desks. These fixed, traditional setups do not suit the modern ways of working, and hurt the performance of your people and company as a result. In many cases, these also don’t allow for ergonomic adjustments or changes in work style.
Such workstations can cause discomfort, reduce productivity, and contribute to health issues. These issues account for 15% of workplace absenteeism according to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
To resolve this issue in your office, first consider the quantity of desks you need. If you are operating a hybrid model then it's inefficient for every employee to have an assigned desk. You should also ensure the desks and task chairs are adjustable so that staff can adapt them according to their needs.
Non-Cultural Design
One of the most damaging, yet least quantifiable, signs of an outdated office is a design that doesn’t match your culture. Such spaces will feel either outdated and old-fashioned, or bland and soulless.
An office that doesn’t match your culture can negatively impact employee morale and make a poor impression on clients. Culture-based design is a crucial component of staff satisfaction. Research by the University of Warwick shows that happy employees are 12% more productive.
Bringing your company culture into your office design is about much more than adding accents of company colours. It's about creating an employee experience that reflects and enhances your culture. This includes everything from the location to the layout to the furniture, right down to the coffee. Learn more by reading How to Create an Office Tailored to Your Culture.
Is Your Office Outdated?
An outdated office is much more than an inconvenience. It can have far-reaching effects on your business, from reduced employee productivity and satisfaction to increased costs and a damaged brand image.
As you look around your office today, do you see any of these issues? Are some areas empty, while others are crowded? A traditional desk-based layout that doesn’t suit how your people work? A bland design that makes your office just feel like an office, rather than your culture brought to life? If so, you'll know that your office is outdated. It's limiting the performance of your people and company right now, as you read this.
By addressing these issues—whether through improving your space’s layout, upgrading technology, or enhancing comfort and aesthetics - you can create a workspace that unlocks the potential of your people, helping to drive your company forward.
Working with an expert to understand your workspace needs is crucial to unlock the potential of your workspace. To take the next step toward creating a fully optimised workspace, get your copy of The Ultimate Guide to Workspace Consultancy. You'll learn all you need to know about workspace consultancy and why it matters.
To learn more about workspace and company performance read How Your Office is Harming (or Helping) Your Company Growth, and How to Create a High Performance Workspace.
