I’ve been wondering lately if, in our intention to provide flexible work places, we have been going about this all wrong.  Whilst I get that there are plenty of situations where it is useful and appropriate to work from home (particularly when there maybe kids involved), it seems to me that if our workplaces were more conducive, we could, in fact, home from work.

I wish I could claim this phase “homing from work”.  I heard it on a podcast (Future of work) - in an interview with Tim Oldman, CEO of Leesman, an organisation that audits the relationship between employees and the space that that is provided for them measured by the Leesman Index.

What he has found is that workplaces that are zoned, like homes make for the highest scores.  Think about this for a second.  Your home is zoned for specific tasks and the rooms provide the tools (furnishings) to support those tasks.  You wouldn’t sleep in the bathroom, and you wouldn’t cook in your bedroom.  However, workplaces seem to be designed in such a way that you do EVERYTHING from that one place…your desk.

Whilst that’s not what “homing from work” is entirely about, there is still an element of this that we need to think about in terms of the future of our work places.  Currently, we have very large open spaces, with desks where people are assigned to do their work.  Future workplaces would demand informal work areas and breakout spaces…like at home….where we can fold our legs under us on a couch, and work on our slide decks, proposal and documents whilst listening to music for example.  

And…to be clear, this is not actually the future.  Right now your people are doing this in coffee shops all over Australia.  When they need a more creative space, they go find it.  Sometimes they even “work from home” so they don’t get “distracted”.  Have you ever heard people say that?  “I’m working from home today, it’s much less distracting and I get twice as much work done”.  

What if we had spaces that could support this in our work places?

I recently went to visit a friend who works for Coles Supermarkets, in their Melbourne office near Hawthorn. They have a large atrium in the middle of the building and on the ground floor it is set up almost like a food hall in a shopping centre.  It feels very on brand for Coles, and not only that it was BUZZING with activity. There were lots of informal meetings taking place over coffee and around small tables, like in a coffee shop.  It had such a great energy about it.

I have also visited the newly built Medibank Place in Docklands. This building was purpose-built with employee’s health in mind.  There are large staircases encouraging exercise, a tennis court, a herb garden and extensive green areas to relax. Inside the building, there are many activity-based workspaces. There are large spaces to collaborate, quiet spaces to work alone, outdoor spaces with views of the city and there is even a large fireplace which is a great place to meet with colleagues and celebrate birthdays.

Another client of mine has recently refurbished their offices and the lunchroom/breakout area has booths along the side of one wall.  It’s become a great “home from work” space, as people can use the space when they want to get away from their desks and either work whilst having a coffee or a sandwich.  Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not espousing working through lunch, I’m suggesting spaces that people can relax in provide opportunities to be more creative, innovative and engaged.

According to the Leesman Index, there were two things that scored highly when it came to creating great work spaces.  One was atriums.  These create the feeling of open space and people can feel the air in the space.  The second was no designated or assigned desk.  Turns out people prefer to have flexibility about where and how they work, and don’t need to cover the space with photos of their family and pets. Although I’m sure there are some people that LOVE having their own space.  And that's really the point.

If you are considering creating a space for the future of your workers, you might like to consider the following:

• Empower your employees to do the work in the way, time and place that works for them and the outcomes they need to produce.  Gone are the days (if they ever existed) when a person sitting at their desk, being observed by their boss, was productive.
• Have variety in informal work areas and break out areas.
• Make sure your tech is supportive of movement around the space.  Most organisations are now fully WIFI and if you aren’t, you should be asking why.

How can you encourage more homing from work?