Instead of creating a work environment centred around desks with soft seating on the periphery and collaboration areas more of an after-thought, a new trend has emerged that explores how hotel lobbies, cafes, airports and even parks are becoming the new areas of work. With that in mind, furniture that was once considered as unsuitable for the office, is now becoming the preferred choice.

Office furniture of the future needs to focus on the diversity of today’s workplaces and should include co-working space for nomadic (or hot-desk) workers, a flexible office that can transform overnight and place that focusses as much on wellbeing as it does on productivity.

The office of the 21^stcentury is constantly changing, and increasingly merging with the public realm.  Employees are working wherever they happen to be – in hotels, cafes, at the beach, on the bus, in an Uber.  These developments are increasingly turning public space into a productive workspace.

In other words, people are working in areas they have no permanent attachment to and in this type of setting, the traditional desk has become almost redundant.  The nomadic worker can just as easily take a laptop and work from a couch or from an armchair.

Formal work rules are dissolving, regardless of where and how we work.  As a result, the desk is no longer at the centre of our work life.

But, what type of environment will the work culture of the future need?  This was the question posed at Orgatec 2018, Cologne’s biannual workplace future fair which took place in October.  While the buzzwords were still collaboration and creativity, work is starting to move into airports, cafes, hotels and beyond.

Cosy pods and booths are taking over from desks and are beckoning us to ‘get working’ all over the place and this growing trend intends to turn convention on its head.

Rather than a working environment where office desks and chairs are the main focus, workstations are now being placed around a seating landscape and are no longer the heart of the office. Since technology has become much more mobile, people are predominantly working from laptops, tablets and even from their smartphones.  Big desks are not necessarily what employees use now, let alone what they actually need or want.

Technology has enabled people to work from anywhere and everywhere. Cecil Nurse has a number of offerings in this genre at present such as the COVE POD, the ARC module, CAMPUS collaboration furniture, laptop tables and privacy screens. Another addition to this type of office furniture is TAKE FIVE, as well as a few occasional chairs that offer an element of privacy when working in an open-plan areas.

However, although more people will be working remotely in the future, not all types of businesses can afford do that, and the traditional office is still relevant and necessary!

But, there is a better way to work within that space, and Cecil Nurse will help you design work settings, consult with you to combine different ideas and make it easier for you to have a more productive workspace.

The boundaries separating the workplace, home and socialising are becoming increasingly blurred as more businesses realise that an attractive and welcoming office can improve staff morale and well-being, leading to increased productivity and more profitability.