Office Designs Reflecting Work, Not Perks

For a few years now, a movement has been underway to transition offices from all work to partial work and more than a little play.

The “office as amusement park” trend has seen workplace designers undertake ambitious makeovers of formerly-staid offices. Result: inclusion of game rooms replete with ping-pong and air hockey tables and foosball games, all added in the name of improved workplace morale, reduced stress and lower absenteeism. No word yet on whether an in-house tilt-a whirl is the next iteration of the theme park office.

Those who recall Newton’s third law of physics – for every action there’s an equal and opposite reaction – won’t be surprised to hear of a new development in office design. This is the advent of the work environment infused with an ambiance or personality clearly reflecting the client base and nature of the business conducted there.

Two Chicago companies, one a real estate brokerage firm and the other a life memorial publisher, have surged into the vanguard of this office design metamorphosis.

Former office reDACted

Downtown Apartment Company (DAC), a brokerage firm specializing in luxury rental and for-sale residences in downtown Chicago, formerly occupied office space that might best be described as faceless and antiseptic. The look of that space gave little hint of the nature of the firm’s work, nor of the qualities that made it successful in its field.

What the firm wanted instead was not a table-tennis set up or a pinball machine, but new office space that spoke of the sumptuous properties its clients are seeking to rent or purchase in and around downtown Chicago. DAC was able to create just that milieu at the Wells Street offices it now calls home in the city’s River North nook.

“Our old office was very basic space and did not reflect who we are as a company. It could have been a doctor’s office,” says Ben Creamer, co-founder and managing broker of the firm that touts its ability to show clients their “dream downtown apartment.” “Now, we’re set in an old building with arched windows that stream in natural light and we’ve incorporated beautiful light fixtures, ornate rugs, sleek large desks, gold accents in chairs and hardware, and original artwork custom made for the space. It’s an Instagram-worthy space. In fact, some of our clients aspire their new home to look like our office.”

Life affirming

What might you expect the offices of a technology firm specializing in memorials to look like? Whatever you imagined, it’s likely not the look achieved for Legacy.com by Wight & Company, a Chicago firm focusing on architecture, engineering, construction and sustainability consulting. Wight & Company created an 18,000-square-foot “happy and inspirational” space celebrating life by means of vibrant color palettes and motivational artwork. Among the objets d’art are conference rooms and gathering spaces named for inspiring American legends like Rosa Parks and Christopher Reeve.

Wight & Company also specified the Porch Blue ceiling paint adorning the office. The color is not only a vividly beautiful hue. It also enjoys a long legacy in America’s Deep South, where it’s been a time-honored choice to blanket the ceilings of residential porches as a way to extend daylight, ward off evil spirits and summon good luck.

Light fantastic

“Research indicates that one of the most attractive office perks is natural light, which has a significant impact on employee well-being and productivity,” says Janet Lougee, vice president, Wight & Company director of interiors.

“Legacy.com asked for a warm and uplifting environment. One of the goals of our design was to incorporate as much natural light as possible. We situated the open work space so that it is flanked with windows, and strategically placed the Café, one of the most active common areas, so that it captures the corner of the floor, offering not only abundant natural light but also an expansive view of the street below, livening the user experience.

“A corner office used to be a perk for only the highest-level executives at a company. But now that space benefits the whole of the company.”

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.