How to transform the workspaces in companies?

The emergence of activity-based working

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What's it all about?

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The principle ofactivity-based working, or "ABW", is based on employees' freedom to choose their work environment according to their needs and the tasks to be carried out during the day.

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In this new model, desks are no longer allocated to one or the other: everyone is free to choose the workstation best suited to his or her needs, which improves productivity. Activity-based working also encourages social interaction and encourages employees to move around in shared spaces, thus fostering collaboration.

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To put this into practice effectively, companies need to reconsider the use of the office and rethink the organization of their workspaces.

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Expert support becomes an essential asset in adapting the space offer to the needs of each function. This approach enables the continuous evolution of the working environment and the implementation of practices that promote productivity and well-being within the company, whether it's a single site or several establishments.

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What are the prerequisites for activity-based working?

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Change management

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Activity-based working is bringing many changes to a company. To take advantage of this future organization mode, it must consider several key elements to achieve its transformation objectives. Here are the main ones: 

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• IT solutions : these tools need to be both collaborative and secure, with an offering that adapts to flexibility needs and encourages the development of innovation. 

• Human behavior: cross-functional management, based on trust, should be favored, reducing the constant monitoring of performance and encouraging more autonomous action. 
• Workspaces: while offices need to be reorganized to better suit employees' needs, they must also be free to choose where they carry out their activities.

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What work spaces should be offered?

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If workspaces are the basic professional environment for employees, they also represent an element that has an impact on management.

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To ensure employee well-being and boost productivity, companies need to rethink and transform their premises. Some managers are transforming old, closed offices into convivial or relaxing spaces, dedicating them to collaboration and exchange.

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The most important thing is to create several zones with different atmospheres to match each need:

• Encourage exchanges between teams;
• Stimulate creativity (brainstorming session...) ;
• Improve concentration...

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The open space: champion of collaborative work

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The advantage of open space is that it enables employees to share their knowledge and learn about the challenges facing the company's other businesses. What's more, its collaborative nature strengthens team cohesion and improves the quality of interactions.

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Barriers between colleagues or between employees and managers are broken down, reducing hierarchical distances. All members of the company can exchange ideas more easily, reducing wasted time. An open space, coupled with new digital tools, encourages communication and limits the isolation that some employees may feel in a closed, individual office.

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The design of these spaces can also be modified to suit the specific needs of each team, offering great flexibility in layout and greater efficiency on a daily basis.

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The closed office and the phone box for more calm and confidentiality

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The ideal workstation is not always in the center of the open space. Employees looking for a quiet, secluded place to concentrate prefer a closed office or phone box.

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These workspaces are essential for employees who exchange confidential information with company partners, organize professional events or conduct job interviews.

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The essential meeting rooms

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The meeting room is always useful for employees who want to get together while avoiding the noise of the open space. It is essential for :

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• Carry out brainstorming sessions and encourage innovation;
• Debrief at the end of a session (brainstorming, customer meeting, etc.);
• Use specific equipment (such as an octopus for sound capture or video devices to facilitate remote meetings).

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Semi-enclosed spaces

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Movable partitions can be used to create a private area in the center of the open space, or to create a passageway, such as a corridor. These flexible layouts enable the organization to adapt easily to the changing needs of teams.

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Semi-enclosed spaces also play a key role in encouraging serendipity, fluid collaboration and information exchange. They also offer a balance of openness and privacy for a variety of tasks, depending on the requirements of the moment.

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Spaces outside the office

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Coworking, telecommuting... New approaches to work make everyday life easier for employees, offering them the opportunity to break with routine by carrying out their activities outside company walls. In the real estate sector, for example, these changes are also transforming the use of space, by making it possible to organize a customer meeting or seminar in a coworking space.

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The benefits of activity-based working

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Activity-based working allows :

• Boost productivity by choosing the right location for each job, with the right people and the right equipment;
• Strengthen collaboration between teams;
• Boost work dynamics through a change of environment.

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Studies show that the more the workspace is adapted to the employee's activity, the greater the motivation. In short, activity-based working improves everyone's productivity!

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Workspace design must meet the needs of employees. Indeed, in a fast-changing professional world, it's important to modify and adapt offices to support new working methods.

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In the office, you need to provide a soundproof meeting room and spaces conducive to collaboration, concentration and creativity. But by letting your employees work outside the company walls, you diversify the environments and boost their productivity. 

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The icing on the cake is that activity-based working is a concept that adapts perfectly to hybrid working: each space is designed to meet a specific need. This transformation involves several stages of adaptation, to support your teams in the implementation of this model and encourage innovation on a daily basis. 

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So what are you waiting for to start transforming your premises?