Modern Office Spaces and the Future of Work

Summary

Ryan Anderson from Miller Knoll discusses the evolution of office spaces to on-demand resources, emphasizing flexibility and modern design. He highlights the importance of furniture in supporting the future of work, showcasing Miller Knoll's Design Yard as a space for experimentation and employee reconnection. The transcript also touches on creating inclusive spaces, like the Tom and Ruth Harkin Center at Drake University, which prioritizes accessibility and comfort for all users.

Takeaways

• 💼 **Offices as On-Demand Resources**: The future of work sees offices as flexible, on-demand resources rather than mandatory daily destinations.
• 🌟 **Redefining Modern Work**: The mission is to redefine modern work spaces that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also supportive of people's work activities.
• 🪑 **Furniture's Role in Work**: Furniture, like the Aeron Chair and Womb Chair, plays a crucial role in supporting the evolving nature of work, both in home and corporate settings.
• 🛠️ **Emphasis on Flexibility**: There's a new focus on flexibility in office design, aiming to accommodate the changing needs and preferences of workers.
• 🏢 **Design Yard as a Testing Ground**: Design Yard serves as both a workplace and an experimental space for MillerKnoll to test new office concepts.
• 🌈 **Social and Colorful Spaces**: The 'plaza' area in Design Yard is designed to be social and colorful, encouraging employee reconnection post-pandemic.
• 📋 **Variety in Meeting Spaces**: The facility offers a variety of reservable meeting spaces, each unique, to provide choices that suit different needs.
• 📈 **Evolution of Office Design**: Offices have evolved from being IT-centric to mobile-centric, influencing the design to be more worker-focused.
• 🏡 **Team Neighborhoods**: Instead of assigned desks, teams are given 'neighborhoods' consisting of desks, social areas, and project spaces to foster collaboration.
• 🧘 **Well-being Spaces**: Spaces are designed to support personal well-being, offering quiet areas for respite from the busy office environment.
• 🏫 **Inclusive Design**: The Tom and Ruth Harkin Center at Drake University exemplifies inclusive design, considering a wide range of users including those with disabilities.
• 🔧 **Adaptable Workspaces**: Workspaces are becoming more adaptable with features like hydraulic desks that can be adjusted for height to suit different users.
• 👥 **Importance of Inclusive Consultation**: It's crucial to consult with people with disabilities to understand their needs when designing office spaces.
• 🌐 **Community and Variety**: Office spaces should encourage community by providing a variety of spaces that support social interaction and a range of activities.

Q & A

What is the future of offices according to Ryan Anderson?

Ryan Anderson suggests that offices will become on-demand resources, meaning that the traditional assumption of people needing to be in the office all day, every day is no longer valid.

What is the role of furniture in supporting the future of work?

Furniture plays a crucial role in supporting the future of work by providing flexibility and comfort in various work settings, such as home offices, corporate offices, and living rooms.

What is the significance of the Aeron Chair in office environments?

The Aeron Chair is highlighted as a product that has been widely used in both home and corporate offices worldwide, indicating its importance in office furniture.

What is the purpose of the Design Yard facility mentioned in the script?

The Design Yard facility serves as a workplace for MillerKnoll employees and a space for experimentation with new office designs and concepts.

How does the 'plaza' area at Design Yard contribute to employee well-being?

The 'plaza' area is designed to be social and colorful, aiming to provide a space for employees to reconnect after working in different spaces during the pandemic.

Why is the variety of reservable meeting spaces important at the Design Yard?

The variety of reservable meeting spaces is important to give employees choices, allowing them to find a space that suits their specific needs.

How has the design of offices evolved from the era of desktop computers?

Offices designed in the era of desktop computers were essentially designed around IT networks, focusing on where computers and their necessary infrastructure would be placed, with people coming in later. As work became more mobile, the design started to shift to accommodate this change.

What is a 'team neighborhood' and how does it function in the office?

A 'team neighborhood' is a concept where instead of assigning everyone a desk or having all desks shared, each team is given a dedicated area consisting of desks, social areas, and project spaces that are shared among the team members.

Why is personal well-being considered important in office design?

Personal well-being is considered important because it allows employees to have moments of quiet respite away from the office buzz, which can contribute to their overall comfort and productivity.

What is the significance of the Tom and Ruth Harkin Center at Drake University project?

The Tom and Ruth Harkin Center is a project that aimed to create an inclusive space for a wide variety of people, taking into account the needs of both disabled and non-disabled visitors, reflecting the legacy of Senator Tom Harkin, the principal author of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

How does the design of the Tom and Ruth Harkin Center accommodate different needs?

The design includes extra-wide hallways and walkways for side-by-side movement, hydraulic desks that can move up and down for adjustable height, and individual tables for better eye contact, creating what's called 'deaf space' to accommodate the needs of diverse users.

What is the importance of consulting with people with disabilities when designing office spaces?

Consulting with people with disabilities is crucial to understand their specific needs and ensure that the office spaces are designed to be inclusive and accessible to everyone.

How should office spaces be designed to support social interaction and community?

Office spaces should introduce social spaces and provide more variety and choice within the environment to support a broader array of activities, fostering social interaction and a sense of community among employees.

Outlines

00:00

💼 The Evolution of Office Spaces

Ryan Anderson, Vice President of Global Research and Insights at Miller Knoll, discusses the changing nature of offices. He emphasizes that the traditional 9-to-5 office environment is no longer necessary, as work can be done remotely. Anderson highlights the importance of modern design in creating spaces that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also supportive of people's work. He mentions products like the Aeron Chair and the Womb Chair, which are designed to be versatile and comfortable for various settings. The focus is on flexibility, with Design Yard in West Michigan serving as a facility for experimentation. The 'plaza' area is designed to be social and colorful, aiming to help employees reconnect after working in different spaces during the pandemic. The facility offers a variety of reservable meeting spaces to cater to different needs, promoting choice and personalization in workspaces.

Keywords

💡On demand resources

On demand resources refer to services or facilities that are made available as needed, rather than being constantly accessible. In the context of the video, this concept is applied to the modern workplace, suggesting that offices are no longer seen as places where employees must be present every day, but rather as spaces that can be utilized when required. This reflects a shift towards more flexible work arrangements.

💡Modern design

Modern design in the transcript pertains to creating aesthetically pleasing and functional spaces that cater to contemporary work needs. It is not just about visual appeal but also about supporting the activities and well-being of the people who use the space. The video emphasizes how modern design can redefine the office environment to better serve the evolving needs of the workforce.

💡Aeron Chair

The Aeron Chair is a specific product mentioned as an example of furniture that has been widely adopted in both home and corporate offices around the world. It is noted for its ergonomic design, which supports the comfort and health of users during long periods of sitting, illustrating the importance of thoughtful furniture design in supporting the future of work.

💡Flexibility

Flexibility, as discussed in the video, is a key aspect of designing office spaces for the future. It implies the ability to adapt spaces to meet various needs, such as different types of work or social interactions. The video mentions that providing a variety of reservable meeting spaces allows employees to choose a setting that best fits their current work requirements.

💡Design Yard

Design Yard is highlighted as a facility in West Michigan that houses employees of MillerKnoll and serves as a space for experimentation with office design. It represents a real-world application of the concepts discussed in the video, such as social areas and reservable meeting spaces, showcasing the practical implementation of modern design principles.

💡Plaza

In the video, the term 'plaza' is used to describe a social area within the Design Yard. It is designed to be inviting and colorful, aiming to provide a space where employees can reconnect after potentially working in isolation during the pandemic. The plaza exemplifies the idea of creating communal areas within office spaces to foster interaction and a sense of community.

💡Team neighborhoods

Team neighborhoods refer to designated areas within an office that are assigned to specific teams. These areas include desks, social spaces, and project spaces that are shared among team members. This concept is introduced as an alternative to assigning individual desks or having fully shared facilities, promoting a sense of team cohesion and providing a dedicated space for collaboration.

💡Well-being space

A well-being space is an area designed to provide employees with a quiet and relaxing environment, allowing them to take a break from the busy office atmosphere. The video mentions such a space as important for personal well-being, indicating a growing awareness of the need to support mental health and relaxation in the workplace.

💡Inclusive design

Inclusive design is the practice of creating products and environments that are usable by as many people as possible, including those with disabilities. The video discusses the Tom and Ruth Harkin Center as an example of inclusive design, where features like extra-wide hallways and hydraulic desks cater to a diverse range of users, ensuring accessibility and comfort for all.

💡Deaf space

Deaf space is a concept that emphasizes the importance of clear line of sight for communication, especially for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. The video mentions creating 'deaf space' by arranging tables to allow for better eye contact, which is crucial for non-verbal communication and inclusivity in a workspace.

💡Generic office spaces

Generic office spaces are described as spaces that lack specificity and do not cater to the unique needs of individuals or teams. The video argues for moving away from such spaces to create more personalized and functional environments that support a broader array of activities and help organizations meet their goals.

Highlights

Offices are becoming on-demand resources.

People no longer need to be in the office all day, every day.

Ryan Anderson, Vice President of Global Research and Insights at Miller Knoll, aims to redefine modern work environments.

Modern design should be both beautiful and supportive of people's work.

Products like the Aeron Chair and Womb Chair are used in various settings worldwide.

Furniture plays a crucial role in supporting the future of work.

Focus on flexibility in office design is essential.

Design Yard is a facility for experimentation in office design.

The 'plaza' area is designed to be social and colorful to encourage employee reconnection.

Variety in reservable meeting spaces allows for choice and suitability.

Changes in the workplace have been observed over 25 years.

Offices were once designed around IT networks and desktop computers.

The shift to mobile work has led to a more spread-out work environment.

Team neighborhoods provide a shared space for groups.

Attention to personal well-being is increasing in the workplace.

Well-being spaces offer quiet respite from the office environment.

Learning from these spaces helps create better future work environments.

The Tom and Ruth Harkin Center at Drake University is an example of an inclusive space.

The center was designed with the Americans with Disabilities Act in mind.

Extra wide hallways and walkways accommodate all visitors.

Hydraulic desks allow for adjustable height for comfort and functionality.

Deaf space is created to facilitate face-to-face communication.

Designing spaces requires consultation with people with disabilities.

Office spaces should move away from being generic to better support social interaction.

Variety and choice in office environments support a broader array of activities.

Transcripts

We should recognize that in the future,

offices are essentially on demand resources.

So for a long time, we might have assumed that people

needed to come into the office all day, every day,

in order to do their work.

But that's simply not true anymore.

I'm Ryan Anderson,

Vice President of Global Research and Insights at Miller Knoll.

Part of our mission is to

really redefine modern for the 21st century.

Modern design that’s not only beautiful,

but helps to support people in what they're doing.

Products like the Aeron Chair has been used in home offices

and corporate offices throughout the world.

Products like the Womb Chair

is beloved for people's living rooms.

Furniture has a really important role

in supporting the future of work.

One thing that we're really focused on

is thinking about flexibility in new ways.

Today we're at Design Yard,

which is a really interesting facility here in West Michigan.

It houses many of our employees at MillerKnoll

but it's also a place for us to experiment.

We call this area a plaza.

It's designed to be very social

and to be very colorful.

We want employees that have been working in different spaces

throughout the course of the pandemic

to feel like they've got a space to reconnect.

There's a variety of reservable meeting spaces in this facility,

but they're all different.

It's important to give people choices

so they can find a space that suits their needs.

I've had the chance to observe a lot of changes

in the 25 plus years that

I've been involved in studying future of work.

If we go back,

offices that were designed

in an era of desktop computers

in essence were designed around IT networks.

You basically figured out where the computers wanted to be,

how to route power and cabling to them,

and the people came in later.

But as it became more mobile,

we started to see work spreading out.

We're entering into one of our team neighborhoods.

Instead of assigning everyone a desk

or having all the desks in the facility shared,

we give each team a neighborhood,

basically a group of desks,

social areas, project space that's shared amongst them.

People are more attentive than ever

to their personal well-being.

And while it's great to come into the office to connect,

it's also sometimes really nice to be able to

get away from all the buzz.

So this space is one example of a well-being space

that allows people to just have a moment of quiet respite

so they can get away from the hustle and bustle

and just relax a little bit.

By learning in this way

we can bring those insights to our customers

and help them to create spaces

that work better for them in the future.

The Tom and Ruth Harkin Center at Drake University

is one of my favorite projects.

They wanted to move beyond those traditional goals

and try to create a space that was truly inclusive

for a very wide variety of people.

Senator Tom Harkin's legacy,

he's the principal author of the Americans with Disabilities Act

and we knew that in constructing a building,

we needed to take into account our many visitors

from around the world, people with disabilities

and people who are non-disabled,

all feeling welcome and included when they came to the space.

You'll see a lot of extra wide hallways and walkways.

It's very important to us, so people can walk

side-by-side or roll side-by-side.

We want to be able to create spaces

that are both functional and comfortable with sleek design.

Many of the desks here throughout are hydraulic desks,

so they all move up and down.

We have individual tables so folks can have a better chance

of having eye contact

and making sure that we create what's called deaf space.

So we'll be able to see the faces of the individuals

that are talking as they are around the table.

When thinking about the design of a space

it's really important to reach out and talk to

a person with a disability who is a job seeker

or who is the employee about what their needs might be.

We need to move away from very generic office spaces.

Being together is so valuable

and office spaces can be designed to support it.

So we need to introduce spaces

for people to be social,

have more time to come together as a community,

and start providing more variety,

more choice within an environment

to support a broader array of activities

and ultimately to help organizations reach their goals.