The Importance of Workplace Strategy and Design

8th January, 2025

Ethnobotanist, Terence McKenna, is credited with saying: “If you don’t have a plan, you become part of somebody else’s plan.”

While he was referring to our life choices, the same is true of the spaces that we occupy – if we don’t design them for our own, consciously decided purpose, then we will be forced to exist, quite literally, in a space that someone else decided upon for us.

Creating that environment isn’t a matter of serendipity, but one of intent, strategy and design.

What is workplace strategy and design?

Great office design comes from a smart workplace strategy. As experts in office design and build, we understand how a well-thought-out space can boost productivity, foster a positive culture, support wellbeing, and contribute to overall success.

Today’s offices aren’t just rows of desks where people sit all day. They’re dynamic spaces that spark creativity, encourage collaboration, and support both personal and professional needs. With hybrid working becoming the norm, it’s not just about how the space looks, but how it functions too.

Simply put, workplace strategy is about how the office works, while design brings that vision to life. These two elements are deeply connected and need to work hand in hand to create spaces that truly support the way we work today.

Why is workplace strategy and design important?

Workplace strategy is essential for maximising the opportunity that your office offers, making the most of the cost of the space and enhancing the health, happiness and productivity of your workforce. It ensures that the use of space is optimised, you have the best chance possible of attracting and retaining top talent, boosting employee engagement and supporting team wellbeing. You also maximise the chance of getting the best return on investment and future proofing your office design for long-term efficacy.

What does workplace strategy and design look like?

For effective workplace strategy and design, you need to consider your business’s strategic goals, culture and work methods, incorporating them into the layout and design of the office. That includes a number of elements, the key ones being as follows:

Your Organisational Goals

The first step in workplace strategy and design is defining your business and environmental goals. This helps align your space with your objectives. Consider if you’re aiming for growth, need more team members, or want to reflect your mission, vision, and values.

Employee Needs and Preferences

Your team is your greatest asset, so understanding their needs is crucial. Engage them through surveys, interviews, and discussions to create a workplace that supports their tasks and evolving requirements.

Understanding the Space

Knowing the characteristics of your chosen or prospective building is key. Whether it’s a heritage site needing structural updates or a CAT A space requiring a full fit-out, the building’s nature affects costs, timelines, and design possibilities.

Technology and Infrastructure Requirements

Modern businesses rely heavily on technology. Identify current and future tech needs, like sensors for lighting, power sources, or advanced installations such as video walls, to ensure seamless integration.

Sustainability and Wellbeing

Sustainability and wellbeing are essential. Incorporate eco-friendly practices, use natural light, recycled materials, energy-efficient systems, and create wellness areas with ergonomic furniture to enhance staff wellbeing and environmental impact.

Workplace strategy and design in action

At Maris, workplace strategy is an integral part of our design process. Yes, we are concerned with the aesthetics of the space, but before we get anywhere near that, we work with you and your team to understand the wants, needs aspirations, challenges and opportunities that you want to address. We seek to understand company culture as well as the functional requirements of the office, bringing them together with brand identity, wellbeing, cost and time requirements, and the planned trajectory of the organisation. Here are a few examples of design strategy to support client needs:

Optimising space use for a hybrid world

When international manufacturer JTI moved to a new, smaller, more central London office, they wanted to shift away from their 1:1 desk to staff ratio to a space that enabled hot desking, collaborative meetings and video calls. We worked closely with them to make sure they had a process in place to match the new desk count, that the team understood how the space worked, and that they had appropriate facilities so the team could store their personal items safely.

A unique take on cellular spaces

When a world-leading consulting firm wanted to create a highly cellular space with extensive private office requirements, but without resulting in a clinical feel, we created standalone rooms with lids that sailed underneath the mechanics of the exposed ceiling. Where normally we would have used that exposed detail to drive the design, this unique approach meant that the layout could be more organic instead of simply delivering a series of boxes.

Speak to the team at Maris