With another fiscal year slowly drawing to its timely end, entrepreneurs are drafting financial reports and counting blessings and milestones ticked off in the pursuit of corporate growth. But while business sharks are still looking back and poring over final statements and annual business reviews, interior designers have their eyes on the future already and are preparing for the year to come with fresh office design trends. So, what will the year ahead bring to workplace design arenas, and which elements will we be seeing more and more of in the year to come?
Outdoors Sneaking into the Workplace
Next year, natural elements won’t only be a hot feature in stylish homes– they’ll also be a huge trend in corporate spaces, too. Exposed concrete, stone, and hardwood floors, natural fabrics, reclaimed wood furniture, indoor plants, and other organic details will take front and center in a 2017 office, infusing the workplace with clean, casual, and cozy vibes. For a bonus functionality point, employment of natural materials in the 2017 office will help boost productivity, enhance employees’ mood, and reduce long-term absenteeism by lowering air pollution.
Flexible Layouts on the Design Horizon
Open-floor layout hopped onto the office design wagon a couple of years back, but the year to come will take the workplace game even further. In 2017, chic workplaces will feature a flexible floor plan as the informal layout suits design preferences of 21st-century employees better than the conventional, permanent-style workplace. At the same time, the shift to the flexible layout will make work areas more versatile, thus increasing the value of commercial real estate and enhancing the functionality of business-purpose property.
Multipurpose Furniture Is Here to Stay
In 2017, the multifunctional formula won’t only be limited to the office layout. Beyond the floor plan, the love of multipurpose design will transform office furniture as well, thus marking the beginning of the golden era of modular, adaptable, and breakout furnishings. Ergonomic seating with memory foam padding and sit-stand desks will still be trendy in 2017, but this year around, comfort-fit furniture will share the workplace design throne with informal, flexible, and multipurpose pieces.
No Wires on Corporate Premises, Please
Office technology will keep advancing in the year ahead, but its conquest of the contemporary workplace will leave no traces on chic business premises in the shape of exposed wires, charging stations, and other high-tech clutter. Elegant, no-frills wall lights, wireless tech solutions, hidden charging ports, and equipment with cords cleverly hidden away will transform the modern office into a minimalist no-strings-attached, no-wires-exposed workplace off magazine covers.
Where Work, Play, and Lounge Areas Collide
Together with the nod to wireless office tech, the year ahead will also be characterized by a shift towards the untethered workplace design, where collaboration thrives both in teamwork spaces and casual lounge areas. Laid-back break rooms with bean bags and alternative seating will add a precious dose of comfort to busy workspaces, allowing the staff to indulge in a more enjoyable at-work experience and relaxed collaboration backdrop.
Color-Coordinated Offices, Because Beauty Matters
A modern workplace is far from sterile, and the passion for hues in corporate spaces will remain as strong as ever in 2017. Nevertheless, the use of color in business quarters will be less buoyant and more on the synced side of the tonal continuum next year, and offices organized by hue and pattern will become a common sight in work environments around the globe. Unexpected pops of hue will give way to a more integrated office color scheme, reducing visual noise and creating an ambiance of tranquility, elegance, and stylistic flow.
Personal Losing the Race to Collaborative Space
A gradual transition to more interaction and less privacy is another change the year to come will bring that will impact office design. In 2017, community tables and collaborative work areas will move into business headquarters, driving out single-person workstations and spaces designated for individual work. Along with a growing popularity of collaborative areas, private office suites will fade to oblivion, giving way to shared space resembling a coworking environment more than a conventional departmentalized workplace.
The year to come will bring quite a few changes in the office design arena. Increased flexibility in terms of office layout and furniture designs, color-coordination, emphasis on collaborative over personal space, rise of natural elements in the work environment, and growing love for wireless tech and no-frills aesthetics are just the tip of workplace design innovations. If you want your business to welcome the year ahead in a cool, updated guise, keep an eye out on fresh design trends and implement them in your office without further ado. After all, office visuals matter for sustainable productivity, corporate growth, and employee satisfaction more than you think.
Thanks to Chloe Taylor from SmoothDecorator.com for this insightful post!
Photo Credits: Pixabay and Pexels
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