Going back to the office doesn’t mean leaving pooch alone

Wombwell says a well-designed office should be making home-based workers wonder what they are missing. That includes being able to bring your pup with you.

“It is about creating a place of comfort and connecting with others to incite joy and draw people out of their home studios,” says Wombwell. “[Our office] feels homey. We’re embedding creature comforts from home into the workplace with carpet, beautiful curtains, a lovely veranda and adding colour.”

Optimising the possibilities for collaboration means considering the design of office spaces from the moment you walk in.

“Arriving at work, even the journey from the front door to your desk [is important]. How likely are you to meet new people? As you journey through the place, how do you slow that down and make people want to stop?”

Designer Kate Nixon has taken the notion of comfort a step further, creating a space for her team that is not only appealing, but a showcase for her studio’s work.

“It was very much about the environment for the team, with a holistic approach to comfort and creating a meaningful environment,” she says.

Much like residential design, spaces are multi-functional and partitions can open and close according to need. The emphasis is on beautiful, inspiring spaces where everyone is happy.

“We spend so much time at work and I want to enjoy it,” says Nixon, “And I want my team to enjoy it.”

Brooke Aitken from Brooke Aitken Design says while creating more residential-style work spaces is a welcome shift, good office design should also create moments for incidental collaboration between colleagues.

“I understand how easy it is to work from home, but you lose that connection, that real physical connection,” she says. “Even though you are looking at each other [over Zoom], you are not sharing a space or walking past their desk and seeing something unexpected that might spark an idea. Those chance moments are so important.

“Good design can meld those moments into something significant.”

While there are limits to full open-plan office design, with critics citing everything from too many distractions to a greater likelihood of catching colds and flu, cubicle-style work spaces are not ideal for the exchange of ideas either. Instead, Aitken says the modern workplace requires a flexible floorplan to reflect the multitude of tasks required, as well as the needs of staff.

“A well-designed office can make or break the time you spend there,” she says. “It can also make or break how you relate to your team. If it is only separate offices, break out spaces make it feel comfortable.”

And while home has made room for work, Wombwell says work environments should equally become more home-like.

“We recently had a family day. I brought my two daughters and my mum in and it made me proud of what we are doing here. It is like sharing a home.”

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