Biophilia in the New Office Space
By Michael McCullough, ASLA, Biophilic Designer
A recent JLL survey of leaders in business found that the future office place is changing. It is predicted that the majority of businesses will continue utilizing a hybrid work environment in the post-pandemic era. Many businesses see these changes as opportunities to improve employee safety, happiness, and productivity.
The survey found that 46% of businesses intend to reduce their real estate footprint by up to 30% to allow for flexible/hybrid workspaces. This reduction partly responds to the 72% of employees who would like to work remotely up to two days per week but who also want an office culture that promotes connection and collaboration. The hybrid model is also productive.
Another survey by PWC found that 83% of businesses that have a hybrid model have hit their productivity targets, while also saving money that comes from their reduced real estate footprints. So while changes are being made to how and where people work, the office is not going anywhere. What’s changing is how people work and the environment in which they collaborate.
What does the post pandemic workplace look like?
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses embraced the open office environment to allow for more interaction, creativity, and collaboration. The open office concept however isn’t always as effective for staff because it can increase noise, stress, and conflict, and even result in higher turnover. Post-COVID-19, the trend may be returning to a semi-open and part-private office environment that promotes both collaboration and interaction, but also responds to staff health and safety. Business leaders and staff find the best opportunity for collaboration occurs in person at the workplace, even if employees are there part-time. After all, humans are inherently social and feed on each other’s energy. People can work together around a whiteboard, sketch out ideas together, read body language, and most importantly, not get ‘Zoom fatigue’. The research has shown that work spaces need to be made available to people regardless of whether they get to keep the desk or not — it’s not about desk ownership, it is about providing people with productive and inspiring workplaces. A strategy to do so is to redesign for an inspiring atmosphere where human to nature design — biophilic design — provides ample opportunities for employees to feel inspired to go back into the work environment.
Why use biophilic design as a method to bring people to the office?
A biophilic design strategy that creates inspiring atmosphere and park-like experiences in the office responds to employee requests for safety and happiness and helps businesses reach their productivity goals. By providing a place for staff to be connected to nature in the indoor environment, biophilic design inspires people to go to the office. Biophilic design has components that rely on human wellness to improve the cognitive ability of employees, maintain physical and mental health, as well as provide documented economic improvement. There is a growing body of empirical evidence supporting the human-nature connection and why it is beneficial in the workplace. Over 700 studies support measurable, positive impacts of biophilic design on human wellness, productivity, and public health. This whitepaper is intended to provide visual examples of biophilia in the workplace, illustrate three budget tiers, as well as engage in the dialog to implement biophilia in the office as an architect/designer or as a leader in business. The intended audiences of this publication are interior designers, architects, landscape architects, business leaders, human resource managers, developers, as well as anyone wanting to discover opportunities that exist to apply biophilic design theory to their new office environment.
Business leaders and their employees are most productive when they are healthy and happy. Biophilic design provides opportunities for people to thrive in the workplace . Inspired employees cultivate customer service relationships that are positive, which in turn provide opportunities for business growth. This guide is developed for the purpose of providing examples of how biophilic design can be integrated into offices beyond plants, but through materials and furniture design. Additionally, there will be a description of opportunities to incorporate biophilia into various parts of the office space that provides opportunities for employees to feel safe, happy, and productive.
Biophilia — More than just plants
It is commonly assumed that biophilic design uses plants as a primary driver of the aesthetic. Although plants play an integral part of the human to nature experience, biophilic design gives equal consideration to biomorphic forms, natural materials, sunlight, water, fractal patterns, and views of landscapes. The primary objective of biophilic integration within architecture is to reconnect people with an experience that is interactive with the natural processes, in which plants are just a single component.
Budgeting Biophilia
UNDER $20,000
Connecting Staff to Nature on a Budget
Biophilia can be integrated on a budget by applying plants to the interior landscape. This can be done with new and existing offices that seek to add a sense of nature into the interior space. Opportunities include wall coverings, plants, green walls, and updates to the color scheme to have natural tones.
$20,000 — $200,000
Medium-Scale Biophilia
For medium-scale modifications, opportunities include minor spatial changes that incorporate biophilic design elements, large scale green walls, indoor trees, and a thoughtful planting design integration beyond strategically located potted plants. Biophilia can be integrated into existing furniture as well as used in conjunction with new furniture that have carefully designed biophilic integrations.
$200,000 +
Full Scale Biophilia
For project budgets over $200,000, many opportunities exist.
Such opportunities include architectural design/redesign of the building’s footprint, comprehensive spatial design that emphasizes the user experience , and incorporating biophilic design components that include plants, natural materials, and imagery of patterns found in nature. Biophilic designed furniture and fixtures allow for a holistic biophilic experience for the office place.
Summary
Envision biophilia as an opportunity to create wellness in the new post-pandemic workplace. Learn more about Biophilic Integration: https://www.commercialsilk.com/biophilic-integration
About the Author
Michael McCullough has been working in the Biophilic Design industry since 2005. He has participated in all parts of the project delivery process that has effectively combined landscape features with architecture on projects in 15 countries. Now Michael is committed to educating the public to better understand all things Biophilia to provide more people equitable access to nature within commercial spaces, workplaces, and educational settings.
