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How Facility Managers Can Enhance Wellbeing By Diversifying What The Workplace Delivers

By Paul Eatock, Managing Director, Eatock Design & Build.

Looking out for employee wellbeing is no longer a HR-only issue. Today, the impacts decision-making has on the mental health of those involved must be a consideration for all; from business and team managers to those managing the facilities in which workers operate. As 81% of organisations increase their focus on the mental health of their employees, a greater emphasis on ensuring the wellness of a building for those who inhabit it is now being placed upon facility managers to establish wellbeing from the outset.

The Positives And Pitfalls Of Open Plan Workspaces

Many modern offices utilise open-plan schemes where communication and collaboration are incentivised. These spaces are typically preferred by millennials, the workforce of tomorrow, and the growing trend is being welcomed by facility managers. Open-plan schemes are easier to maintain and allow natural light to brighten the space. This can make it far more welcoming and therefore, maximise its value.

However, it is important for facility managers to negate the noisy side effects that can plague these schemes. Ensuring spaces are acoustically treated through strategically placed absorptive PET boards can help soak up unwanted noise and make a space a far more desirable working environment.

Open-plan schemes also offer renting businesses the opportunity to implement their own interior design changes. Yet, widescreen thinking is advised here. Whilst open-plan schemes are perfect for helping extroverted workers to thrive, for introverts, a one-dimensionally collaborative space can be challenging to work in.

If a building is to cater for everybody, then areas for quiet working must be perceived as equal value to collaboration and communication-focused spaces. To that end, soundproofed booths can be multifaceted, providing a place for introverts to succeed and accommodating video calls and private meetings. Together, this variety of spaces makes a building far more inclusive of the needs of its inhabitants.

Making Space To Talk

Whilst workplaces can thrive from open conversations, space must be designed for private discussions too. New research from Mind has highlighted that for one in four UK workers, the office is the most ideal place to talk about our mental health, ranked ahead of cafes, pubs, and gyms. That means that our workplaces must provide private settings for more intimate exchanges.

This can also include collaborative kitchen spaces or tech-free breakout areas. For facility managers, it is about ensuring there are spaces where workers feel comfortable discussing their mental health. This in turn helps breed an inclusive, wellbeing-focused culture for whichever business uses the space.

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Creating Flexible Facilities By Designing For Diversity

Much has been said about the apparent death of the office in lieu of home working, and whilst the past few years have impacted our working habits greatly, the office has still proven an asset for workers. However, with 69% of UK employees believing that hybrid working positively impacts their mental health and wellbeing, many offices aren’t operating at full capacity every day of the week. Facility managers can respond to concerns of businesses consequently downsizing their workspaces by offering them greater flexibility with how they use a space.

If workspaces are designed with diversity and inclusivity – with spaces for collaborative and isolated working, socialising and rest – then they can be ready-made for almost any tenant, meaning flexible renting, where two or more businesses can operate within a space throughout the week, can become a viable option. Flexible models like this help keep costs down for multiple businesses while ensuring the potential of a facility is maximised, along with greater security of tenants for facility managers.

Facility managers must show adaptability in the face of changing times. Their role is no longer just about maintaining the fabric of the building, but also the wellbeing of those who inhabit it with how the facility is designed and operates. To do that, they need to accommodate the needs of a diverse workforce and be proactive with regard to the threat that hybrid working can have on the future of the workplace.