Offices in the digital era

In order to deal with the change of a business world that is moving faster and faster towards the direction of a more global and mobile culture, companies need to take a more strategic approach to design and organize their workplaces. The office design can determine the productivity of a team. Every inch, every corner can make a difference in the atmosphere and in the success of a company. Every now and then trends change, and new tendencies arise each time. The world is getting more and more digital and the spaces are continuously changing and evolving in order to adapt to a new pattern of working.

So, Meritocracy decided to dive into the matter, and ask to some experts about their way of approaching the changes.

We had a chat with Micheal Setter from the studio Setter Architects in Israel, a 2017 winner for the the A’ Design competition . His studio has been doing major projects for many important brands’ offices, and we were fascinated by his work. So, we decided to ask Mr. Setter about the way he approaches the design of a company’s office in the mobile-first world in 2017.
What we understood from the talk is that today technology does not strain people to the desk, but it makes them free. “It is a different way of working” the architect claims. Employees feel free to move around the space and get attracted to what inspires them the most. Digital helps people being more flexible, easy going. Having a chair is not so important when you have the device you need and can bring your tasks along. The most important thing is being surrounded by an inspiring environment, an atmosphere that can fit the needs. “We need to create an inspiring place, and we need to create a lot of variety of working places” he says. Designers and architects have the great job of reproducing inspiring places, where employees feel welcome. “Sometimes it can be like a joke if you bring the beach sand to the office”, the architect adds, “but we need to create many different vibes, among which people can choose”. Thanks to this flexibility, designers can give creativity and inspiration the chance to express themselves and create the best vibe possible that best adapt to the company culture. 

A digital work-space makes people free because space becomes a mind-set, but they still need to keep in mind how much is communication important in this world of people facing screens and not faces.

Employees need to work in a place where they feel encouraged, and triggered to produce. And digital allows this to happen anywhere. Today, the proliferation of mobile devices, wireless networks, and cloud computing has freed employees from their cubicles. Today’s work environment is virtual. IT must make it easy for employees to engage anytime, anywhere, on any device.

This means being digital.