OECD data shows that the average South African works for 43.3 hours a week. This is the the fifth highest average in the world. The line between work, social and home life is increasingly fading as many people are spending more time at work than anywhere else. Because of this, companies need to provide an office space that motivates and inspires working individuals and teams to be happy, healthy and productive.

Thanks to research, modern office designs are ever-changing – mostly for the better – especially since most companies are adopting fluid and agile working styles, allowing employees to be more productive and creative. Here are the 2018 office trends we LOVE!

Collaborative space

Classic boardrooms are way too formal. For this reason, the open collaborative space is an ideal, comfortable space – often equipped with whiteboards, screens and comfy seating – that staff can use to bring their ideas together. The space is ideal for creative teams, especially ones that use agile methods of working.

Unconventional workspace

Think about places in an office you never thought you’d be able to work, such as corridors and other nooks and crannies, on bean bags or comfy sofas – these are the types of unconventional workspaces that may inspire employees to work better. Thanks to technology, employees can work from almost anywhere.

As working in random places may seem a little too unstructured for some companies, office designers have come up with a ‘Third Space’ concept. This is basically a space away from the conventional desks that employees can work. This promotes flexibility in the workplace.

Nature-inspired design

A new trend hitting the workplace is biophilic design, which incorporates nature-inspired designs and components. Besides the aesthetic benefits of biophilic design, there are other benefits, such as improved air quality, stress reduction and productivity.