5 Ways Tech will Transform Tomorrow’s Office Spaces
The influx of digital technologies over the last twenty years has transformed how businesses operate. This has, in turn, caused a dramatic shift in how office spaces are structured, as they evolve to exploit new technologies and meet the changing needs of enterprise.
For example, conferencing software such as Zoom and WebEx has decreased the need for large meeting rooms — or indeed, for people to travel to one office at all. Cloud software has also enabled more employees to work remotely, thereby decreasing the need for permanent desks. The rolodex, the fax machine, even paper… all have fallen by the wayside as offices have gone digital, helping to create a leaner, more efficient, less cluttered working environment.
We’ve also seen thinking change around what produces a conducive working environment. The open-plan office has replaced cubicles, bean bags have replaced chairs — even sleep pods have been introduced to better facilitate the creative thinking and collaboration required today.
This evolution in what we need from our office spaces has led to the rise of coworking spaces such as Primalbase. They provide the flexibility and agility required in business today — particularly in emerging technology which is why we have focused our attention on that sector. They are also better placed for the smooth integration of new technologies — the focus is on running offices in shared spaces and every effort is made to ensure that any new technology that can improve the working experience and drive success is adopted.
The next stage in the evolution of the office is set to be driven by technologies emerging right now — whether blockchain, artificial intelligence, connected devices or virtual reality.
We took a look at how offices will be transformed in coming years.
- Connected devices for an environmentally conscious workforce
Millennials are now the majority generation in the labour force and, as they work their way up the ranks, their priorities will increasingly be reflected in the workplace.
One of these is a focus on the environment. According to research by Forbes, 59.1% of Millennials believe that they are more concerned with protecting the environment than people in the 60s. Just 7.7% believe that Baby Boomers care more. We can expect to see this reflected in the workplace, with more building projects vying to attract younger talent with more environmentally responsible and novel projects.
“Greener — in every sense,” Architect Lord Norman Foster said when asked what the offices of the future would look like. “Young people will choose office buildings based on facilities and lifestyle but also on their sustainability credentials.”
“Future generations will be much more demanding and much more questioning in terms of what a potential employer will be doing to tackle climate change,” he continued. “So I think we will see a shift where creating a good quality working environment which is more responsible in terms of sustainability becomes good for business as well as for the environment.”
The Internet of Things will play a huge role in creating these more sustainable office spaces. Using sensors to monitor activity across an entire building has serious potential in terms of preserving energy and avoiding waste. Digital Lumens smart lighting systems, for example, take rich sensor data and run it through intelligent software to customise LED lighting to the real-time changing needs of spaces. The results, the company says, are unprecedented, resulting in energy saving of up to 90% in some cases.
One-third of current office workers say the design of an office would impact their decision to work there — expect to see greener, more naturally lit spaces in future powered by connected devices.
2. Virtual reality will replace the video call…
The jumpy, poorly-connected video call is also due an upgrade. Experts like unified communications company Mitel believe that virtual reality meetings will be in place in many businesses by 2025. Improvements in connectivity and in the hardware itself will be the main driver behind this development, with the imminent rollout of 5G set to kickstart the widespread, mainstream adoption of VR.
Though it might not yet seem natural that a room of C-suite executives will strap VR headsets on for a morning briefing, the amount of time that could be freed up by not having to travel for physical meetings is huge. As with most emerging tech, it will first be adopted by younger, more innovative companies first, and later by industry incumbents once the benefits and ROI become clear.
Office spaces will need the infrastructure in place to ensure such devices can be used, and — at least at first while people are perhaps more self-conscious about wearing a huge helmet — privately. VR also requires a fair amount of room in which to manoeuvre. VR meeting rooms are not a far-fetched necessity in the office buildings of the future. At least they’ll save on decor.
3. …And take data visualisation to a new level
A second use-case for VR in the office is in data visualisation. Augmented reality also has potential in this area, but the prospect of VR allowing people to ‘step inside’ the data opens up new avenues to gather insight. Immersive data visualisation offers easier pattern recognition in big data sets and more intuitive data understanding. Unlike conventional data visualisation models that rely on two axes in a spreadsheet, VR allows users to walk around and look at the data from multiple angles, comparing any number of different factors at the same time.
Michael Amori, CEO of Virtualitics , a company looking to provide these solutions, explained its potential in conversation with Forbes.
“We can meet inside a shared virtual office — where we’re both able to touch the data, interact with it,” says Amori. “You can ask me ‘hey, what are those red dots over there in the corner?’ and I can tell you, those are the bad bonds — the ones we want to sell.”
It might be a while before the technology develops to a point where it can facilitate these use cases effectively. When it does, though, don’t be surprised if you’re asked to strap on a headset and explore some data virtually.
At the recent launch of our new space in London, we had a VR demonstration. It was more fun, but gives you some idea of what it might look like in an office environment!
4. Blockchain breaks through
In an unpredictable business landscape, the need for a fixed office space is diminishing. Expensive overheads can kill startups, and it is no longer expected that employees come in every day.
That being said, it is also important to have a base from which a company can run its operations. Remote working is a mess that reduces efficiency and leads to loneliness. This is why coworking has proved popular. Blockchain takes coworking to the next level.
A token system based on blockchain technology provides a means for anyone looking to work to access locations across a number of key tech and business hubs easily and efficiently, without necessarily committing to a set number of desks every day in one fixed space.
A PBT token, for example, gives the holder access to the company’s spaces in Amsterdam, Berlin and London — with further spaces being finalised. Tokens ensure that when you don’t need the space, there is minimal downtime as someone else can come in and use it — which also means the community using the office benefits from a constant flow of new inhabitants.
This is a new way of looking at office space — as an asset that can be acquired, leased and sold dynamically as a company grows. It is, in many ways, the true manifestation of the sharing economy — more so than the likes of Uber and Airbnb. Think of Uber at its most core — a ride-sharing service designed to minimise the number of cars on the road by getting everyone heading in one direction to travel in one car. By tokenising the workspace, Primalbase is ensuring that office spaces do not go to waste and can be filled flexibly and easily.
Blockchain technology also introduces a whole range of new efficiencies, for example storing members’ data more securely and transparently. This is still early days for the technology, and as it develops it is likely that many more applications will be revealed.
5. A screenless future?
We spend far too much time in any day looking at screens. It’s bad for our eyes, bad for our posture and prevents us from experiencing the world around us.
But we’re addicted — or so the thinking goes. In one popular TED talk, designer and Google Creative Director, Tom Uglow, points out that this is actually not so. It is not screens we are addicted to — it is the information that is displayed on them.
Uglow wants to change the way we consume information and move away from screens. He wants screens to be just one of many forms of information output devices.
Uglow’s ideas vary from the logical to the fantastical, often focusing on a world filled with natural objects imbued with the internet. But he’s not alone. Major tech companies like Amazon are also investing time and money into a screenless future.
The idea of an implant that sends information straight to your brain has been around for a while, but major universities are already reporting progress with brain implants used in lab rats and humans, while commercial applications for noninvasive coupling with human brain signals are also emerging. Japanese company, Necomimi, has even developed cat ears that can be worn on the human head and manipulated using only the human mind.
A screenless office filled with people wearing cats ears and information trees? Whatever it is, at Primalbase, we’ll be ready for it.
What do you think the office space of the future will look like? Let us know in the comments below!
At Primalbase, we aim to constantly stay on top of all new developments to optimise our shared office spaces to ensure our members are in the best possible place to run a successful enterprise. If you’d like to find out more about how you can become part of our growing community, or if you’re already working from one of locations and have an idea that would make your life better, email us at primal@primalbase.com
