Creating Wow Factor Breakout Spaces
Breakout spaces have come out of hiding. They are no longer sequestered spaces, they are an integral part of the open office aesthetic. With a few adjustments, your current breakroom can become a key player in collaborative workplace culture as a meeting space, a breakaway space, and a counterculture work zone.
The decline of individual working spaces started early last year with employers favoring more informal and comfortable environments over traditional cubicles and partitions. Open-top benching systems that expand the dialog and increase the collaboration factor have altered conversation across the workspace.
A more agile workforce is driving these changes by demanding more agile workspaces, in part because of advances in technology, mobile working, more flexible working hours and the impact of creative office designs from huge tech companies.
Taking this trend into other spaces within your office design will update the flow and provide your team with some fresh perspective on downtime at the office. So how can you adapt your current office breakroom into an awesome breakout space? Here are some ideas:
Breaking Out of the Breakroom
Rethink the function of the breakroom area based on how your team currently utilizes the space. For instance, is your team using the breakroom as a lunchroom or a breakout space to make phone calls and chat with coworkers? If it’s mainly a conversation area, refit it with seating that transforms it into a multifunctional huddle space.
Upscale the design aesthetic with wood and natural tones on the walls so it feels more like a coffee bar. And add in healthier snack options that fit the coffee bar aesthetic. Create custom narrow bar height tables instead of traditional cafe tables. Put some color in the space with chairs and accent walls. If your office is not already connected, provide wifi connectivity for staff and visitors in this zone.
Gathering Spaces
If you would like for your current breakroom to multitask, but still function as a place for employees to eat together, split the difference and divide the space. Increase the footprint if you can and add a long shared table along one side of the room. Upgrade the space to include a fully functional kitchen. This will allow you to increase communication and provide a low-key collaborative space for your team to get to know each other which will work wonders for productivity!
Conference Room Refit
Over the past year or so conference rooms have been undergoing a shift into smaller, less boardroom-centric spaces. If this is how your team meets, consider retrofitting that old conference room into a more casual breakroom area at the front of your office. Relaxed spaces, perfect for coffee and conversation with a client, are replacing formal meeting environments, from corporate to tech companies, as a more relaxed way to meet.
Rooftop Oasis
Bringing the outdoors inside has been trending for a while. And repurposed spaces have decided to take it a bit further by designing rooftop garden breakout spaces. Employees crave open space as part of the workplace, from the lobby to the rooftop. These spaces can perform a variety of functions within a corporate situation, many even have gas grills and firepits for entertaining. Create a unique environment that fits your brand image and that can multitask as staff gathering spaces, meeting spaces, and mingling spaces for client events. This concept gives your team some much needed fresh air.
Branding Breakout
Rethinking your conversation areas is a great opportunity to reinforce your brand methodology. How you meet and disperse your ideas says a lot about your business. In a highly competitive market, creating unique ways that set you apart as a thought leader is where your uniqueness comes into play. Breakout spaces are no exception. When you begin rethinking your breakout spaces, let this be your guide for style, color and the role art can play in this redesign.
Getting creative with your office design and flow is what updated breakout spaces are all about. And depending on your industry, you can bring your team together in a multifunctional meeting space that speaks volumes about your commitment to well-being at the office. And it can propel the productive conversation incubator above a quick huddle around the microwave or the coffee pot in the kitchen.
We’ve got great ideas for any space in your office, but this one is a great opportunity to have some fun!
Photo: Visa Corporation, Palo Alto Headquarters | Photographer: Jasper Sanidad Photography
MEET JULIE SHEAFFER: Julie can provide you with answers and furnishing choices to fit your collaborative workspace needs. Her visionary skills, combined product expertise and application knowledge will upgrade your breakroom into a dynamic multifunctional meeting space. Contact Julie at 888-910-3769 x 129 or julie@officefurniturenow.com. For more inspiration visit us on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter!
