Let your creativity resonate in space
A new method to define your own work environment
Our workspace does a lot more than equip us with four walls and a desk to get stuff done. It influences our behavior, impacts the way we interact with one another, and displays the culture of an entire organization to its visitors.
By purposefully designing our workspace, we can make sure that it is in line with the specific needs and identity of our team or organization.
The design of the workspace is however not a one man’s task. Is not even a one team’s task. It requires strong alignment across departments in an organization, and a common understanding of needs and limitations. To clearly explain to different parties how we want to work, we need to make our requirements tangible.
So, how do we start designing a work environment that reflects our values and fosters our creative potential? And, how do we make our ideas understandable to those who might later implement the new workspace?
Based on its own experience in the design of a collaborative and flexible workspace, the SAP Design AppHaus team has come up with MOSAIC, a method that empowers teams to prototype their own work environment.
MOSAIC is based on the idea that team behavior can influence the design of the physical space, which in turn changes the way people behave. Hence, the method does not start with spatial requirements or physical dimensions. Instead, it begins by helping members of a team understand how they want to work together.
The collaborative method consists of three phases.
Phase 1: it all starts with the people
From a colorful set of MOSAIC cards, the members of a team select activities for their new or future workspace. Not all activities are directly related to work. For example, activities like “prepare food” or “celebrate special occasions” are also included in the set. Even when they might seem unrelated to a typical work environment, these activities are part of a team’s work life and should be supported by the space if chosen.
There are six different types of activities. Each type is identifiable by color.
The participants need to select 18 activities in total, at least 1 of each type. Every time a card gets selected, the person in turn has to explain the rest of the team why the chosen activity is required. This exercise triggers fruitful discussions that reveal the values and mindset of the different team members in relation to work.
By the end of phase one, the selected activities are prioritized according to their importance within the team.
Phase 2: The versatile nature of space
In the second phase, the participants choose the rooms or areas where the selected activities should be performed. The back of each MOSAIC card includes a selection of possible areas, such as “workshop room”, “project room” or “sofa corner”.
During selection, the cards are clustered by area names. Clusters consisting of multiple colors indicate high versatility, whereas clusters consisting of one color focus on only one type of activity.
For example, a “workshop room” cluster containing more than two colors means that the team expects to use it for different purposes. That area or room will need to be designed with this flexibility in mind.
Phase 3: A new space layout
As a next step, the participants create a map of the future workspace. The formed clusters are rearranged, and decisions about the distribution of the space are made.
The placement of the different areas on the map is based on the characteristics of the selected activities and aided by probing questions from the moderators.
For instance, if the team has a “workshop room” cluster with many cards, the participants might decide between having a large workshop room, or several smaller ones, scattered across the space.
Another aspect to consider when creating the space layout is the expected noise level of the areas, which can be identified by the color scheme of the cards. Cold colors like blue, turquoise, and green, typically identify silent areas. Warmer colors like yellow, orange, and pink show areas where louder activities will take place. However, the mapping of noise level to colors can be modified by the participants if needed.
The result of MOSAIC is not only a map of the future creative space, but also a shared understanding of the team’s ideal way of working.
MOSAIC in practice
MOSAIC has already been used globally. The SAP Design AppHaus has been approached by organizations from industries, such as education, public sector, software, energy, and real estate for advice on space design.
Dial GmbH is a software company in Lüdenscheid, Germany focusing on the lightning and automation of buildings. Less than two years ago, all 70+ employees of the company moved to a brand-new building.
Even though the building was already designed, MOSAIC helped the team to explore different distributions of the space, based on the way in which they wanted to work. The method made it easier for the participants to translate their opinions into tangible outcomes and identify quick wins.
“MOSAIC is a really good tool, that helped to transform the needs of the colleagues to a solution.”
Jürgen Spitz — Business Unit Director , Lightning and Smart Building
Another example is the co-innovation workshop on the topic of space and culture carried out with the Saudi-Arabian national gas company GASCO.
The discussions triggered by the MOSAIC method were important to highlight all team members’ needs. It was particularly valuable to use an inclusive approach with mixed gender teams, making it easier for the female employees to speak out.
While GASCO had originally intended to design only one room for a newly formed project team, it ended up redesigning all four floors of the company headquarters in Riyadh, signaling a major transformational vision.
The non-profit organization, SOS MEDITERRANEE, is an example where MOSAIC was used to design a new workspace for a small team. To coordinate operations and support their way of working, the team was looking for guidance on how to better organize themselves.
MOSAIC helped them to envision how to best utilize furniture to make divisions, to create small spaces for interaction, and to keep the working space as efficient and welcoming as possible.
Try out MOSAIC
We believe that our workspace is the embodiment of our values and behaviors. Now, you can start setting up a creative work environment in your organization with MOSAIC.
Download the free DIY version to try out this method and experience the full version with our Creative Spaces Service.
About the SAP Design AppHaus
The SAP Design AppHaus team collaborates with customers by focusing first on users and their experiences. We guide customers and SAP to apply design methodologies in daily business and establish a collaborative spirit while optimizing the usage of SAP solutions for the end user.
Our approach is grounded in fostering creativity in three key pillars: people, process, and place. We help organizations drive innovative cultures by designing and establishing processes that remove obstacles to creativity. We also support our customers through the creation of innovative spaces, which enable people to do their best work. This focus has led to the successful design and implementation of 700 customer projects across a variety of industries.
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