You might be so deep into your studies that the last thing on your mind is the kind of workplace that will await you when you finally step into it. What might be “out of sight and out of mind” for you at this moment will soon be a very real experience. The good news is that there are a lot of fresh developments happening in the digital revolution that will fundamentally change the way organisations structure their working environment.
According to Simone Hjorth of AIRTAME, more and more businesses are growing towards being more people-centric, wellness-focused, flexible and environmentally conscious. Let’s take a look at two of these.
Happy team, happy boss.
One of the major shifts is a strong focus on people. The new mantra is that simple, healthy people increase productivity. This method is aimed to produce increased engagement, less retention, more innovation and better productivity within the workplace for a better sense of social safety.
Social safety refers to the concept that an employee works for a company where they feel they belong to, staff feel valued and that their contributions are meaningful.
The interesting thing is to see how developments in office design are catching on to this. From co-working spaces to wellness rooms, the goal is to incorporate elements that will counter the unhealthy, sedentary work culture of the modern-day digital society. These include sunlight, fresh air, plants, snacks, good coffee and access to the outdoors. Minimal furniture and vibrant colours add to the aesthetically pleasing spaces, ideal for increased productivity and workflow.
Hand me the remote
There is also a good chance that you will not have that corner office you might be dreaming of – not for a lack of promotion, but the corner office might cease to exist. Apart from the growing trend of open space and flat-structured office environments, there is also a big shift towards encouraging people to work from home. This trend is not only in cool startups but more and more formal industries are embracing the off-site work concept. Smart digital tools and innovative project management methodologies are making it possible to embrace flexible work hours and remote offices without losing productivity or social cohesion and its great for “crazy weather” traffic anyway…