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by Leigh Stringer - Smart organizations are always looking for new ways to improve their people's performance. Thoughtful workplace design can be a powerful tool for supporting employee performance. Strategies that support productivity also tend to enhance employee health and wellness - they're all related.

How can the workplace better support human performance in today's knowledge work economy? How can the workplace support all of the different activities, including collaboration, deep thinking and mentorship?

These five elements are especially relevant for designing for the workforce of today and tomorrow:

1. Access to Nature, Views and Daylight

2. Noise Control

3. Human Factors and Ergonomics

4. Choice

5. Employee Engagement

1. Access to Nature, Views and Daylight

People generally prefer to be surrounded by nature, where they can experience variety and sensory changes. It is important to replicate the instinctive bond between humans and other living systems in interior environments. It is also beneficial for people to spend time outside, even for limited time, during the day.

The presence of daylight and windows, as well as opportunities for active and passive contact with nature, sensory change and variability, positively impact well-being.¹

Daylight helps people regulate circadian rhythms, the daily cycles of waking and sleeping hours. When these rhythms are upset, people experience stress.²

When allowed to choose, people want to be at a height that allows them to look down. They prefer open, savanna-like terrain with scattered trees and shrubs and they want to be near a body of water, such as a river or lake. They pay enormous prices for these views.³

Workplace Strategies:

Organize the floor plate to maximize natural light. For example, place enclosed spaces in the core of the building and open spaces at the perimeter

Use glass in areas where visual privacy is not required

Give areas with "nice views" to shared spaces

Provide outdoor areas for use by employees. Encourage people to go outside for short breaks

2. Noise Control

Noise is an issue in most workplace environments. Interestingly, noise can enable or diminish productivity, depending on individual preferences and the type of work being done. The key is allowing people to control noise by providing access to a room with a door and acoustical separation.

Perceived noise (discernible by the average human ear) is typically higher in open office environments, but this depends on how a space is organized, the materials and the nature of the work.

When employees have some control over the noise in their environment, distracted by it.⁴

Noise interruptions during simple, mundane tasks can actually provide the stimulation people need to keep going. Interruptions during complex work, however, require a longer period of time to re-orient, and continued interruptions are likely to have negative effects on mood that reduce the motivation to resume work.⁵

According to the US General ServicesAdministration's recently published guide to workplace acoustics, "Office acoustics is a key contributor to work performance and well-being in the workplace. The ability to find quiet times and places is essential to support complex knowledge work, while the ability to have planned or spontaneous interactions without disturbing others is necessary for team work and relationship development. Having speech privacy is necessary for confidential interactions and work processes.

'Acoustical comfort' is achieved when the workplace provides appropriate acoustical support for interaction, confidentiality and concentrative work." ⁶

Workplace Strategies:

To achieve a non-intrusive level of speech privacy, designers recommend absorption through acoustical ceiling, fabrics and carpet; blocking through furniture systems, panels, walls, partitions and screens; and covering through sound masking. To achieve the best result, integrate all three strategies.

Try to separate busy, centralized and noisy spaces from quiet areas. Create opportunities for people to come together without disturbing colleagues.

Define policies for employees to be able to reserve both quiet and collaboration space.

3. Human Factors and Ergonomics

Workplaces designed for and around people are more likely to be comfortable and flexible while promoting productivity. They take into account the needs and limitations of the people who occupy them. "Human factors" is an area of workplace psychology that focuses on topics including ergonomics, workplace safety, reduction of human error, product design, human capability and human-computer interaction. The terms "human factors" and "ergonomics" are often used interchangeably.

According to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, people in the U.S. report musculoskeletal diseases, including back pain, arthritis, bodily injuries and osteoporosis, more than any other health condition. In 2004, the estimated total cost of treatment and lost wages associated with musculoskeletal diseases was $849 billion, equal to 7.7 percent of the gross domestic product.⁷

Using social media, HOK conducted a workplace survey involving 3,600 professionals across multiple industries. An overwhelming 82 percent of respondents reported experiencing a physical ailment at work. The most common complaints - neck, back and shoulder pain - were typical for workers sitting for long periods. About half of the respondents complained about pain in the neck, back or shoulders, while one-third reported headaches and eye strain. Workers who stand for long periods of time at their job complained of hip, leg and foot pain. The survey comments indicate that most of the complaints result from poor ergonomics or from being overly sedentary.⁸

The American Cancer Society released a report in the American Journal of Epidemiology stating that men who sat for six hours or more a day in their leisure time had an overall death rate that was nearly 20 percent higher than men who sat for three hours or less in the 14-year follow-up period. Women who sat for more than six hours a day had a death rate that was almost 40 percent higher. Dedicated exercise had no neutralizing effect.⁹

Workplace Strategies:

Provide adaptable furniture such as adjustable chairs, task lights, sit-to-stand desks and keyboard trays so individuals can adjust their workspaces to meet their needs. Provide training that helps employees properly use the furniture.

Provide technology to enable mobility and efficiency in all work settings.

Encourage employees to use the stairs by displaying calories burned or time saved. Use clear signage directing people to the stairs.

Provide incentives to encourage movement both in the work environment and outside of the typical workday. An employee competition measuring steps taken per day is a fun, healthy way to create buzz.

4. Choice

Today's knowledge work requires high levels of concentration, collaboration and everything in between. Well-designed workplaces provide opportunities for both and all individuals to choose when and how to use them.

Susan Cain's book, "Quiet: The Power of Introverts," has caused a not-so-quiet response from knowledge workers everywhere. She said in an interview, "A 'best office' is one that would give people a choice of how much stimulation is coming at them at any one time. I would create an office that has lots of nooks and crannies, but also lots of zones where people can come together and schmooze and hang out. Another thing is that when people work on projects, there should be more of a tolerance for people working on their own. The individual members need to be able to go off by themselves and do their own things and have a lot of autonomy

Environmental psychologist Sally Augustin says, "When we don't feel in control of what happens to us in a place, we are stressed, discouraged and frustrated. Feeling in control is the key here; we don't have to actually exercise control to reap psychological benefits."¹⁰

Workplace Strategies:

Provide a variety of on- and off-site work settings to support a variety of work functions.

Provide technology that allows workers to connect and collaborate more effectively, both in person and virtually. Consider a mix of teleconference, video conference, web conference, instant messaging, social media and other tools to enable different teams to communicate.

5. Employee Engagement

There is a direct correlation between employee engagement and worker satisfaction that affects productivity and innovation.

Engaged employees are more productive, more profitable and safer than less-engaged employees. They create stronger customer relationships and stay longer with their company. Engaged employees are likely to be a company's best source of new ideas.¹¹

Studying 7,939 business units in 36 companies, Gallup researchers found significant connections between employee satisfaction/engagement and the business unit outcomes of customer satisfaction, productivity, profit, employee turnover and accidents.¹²

Workplace Strategies:

Provide work spaces that enable visibility, openness and greater employee mobility to foster engagement. When workers can see each other, they are more likely to connect and collaborate.

Provide collaborative spaces that incorporate the five "Cs": coffee, CNN or some other background "buzz," circulation, connectivity and comfortable seating. These five characteristics are particularly successful for "hub" or central pantry spaces on the floor.

Engage teams in the design of their workspace. Even allowing teams to make small choices in their space, technology or workplace protocols can increase satisfaction and productivity. The best workplaces are the product of integrated design strategies that support performance, health and wellness in different ways for all types of users. Ultimately, flexibility, choice and a recognition that we all work differently helps create a happier, healthier, more productive workforce.

Sources
¹ Heerwagen, Judith H., Ph.D., "Design, Productivity and Well Being: What Are the Links?," March 12-14, 1998.

² Augustin, Sally, PhD., Place Advantage, 2009.

³ Kellert, Stephen R., Judith H. Heerwagen, Martin L. Mador, Biophilic Design, Edward 0. Wilson, Chapter 2: The Nature of Human Nature, Wiley, 2008.

⁴ A. Kjellberg, U. Landstrom, M. Tesarz, L. Soderberg, and E. Akerlund, "The Effects Of Nonphysical Noise Characteristics, Ongoing Task and Noise Sensitivity on Annoyance and Distraction Due to Noise at Work," Journal of Environmental Psychology, 16 (1996): 123-136.

⁵ F. R. H. Zijlstra, R. A. Roe, A. B. Leonora, and I. Krediet, "Temporal Factors in Mental Work: Effects of Interrupted Activities," Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 72 (1999): 163-185.

⁶ "Sound Matters: How to Achieve Acoustic Comfort in the Contemporary Office," U.S. General Services Administration, GSA Public Buildings Service, December 2011.

⁷ "The Burden of Musculoskeletal Diseases in the United States: Prevalence, Societal and Economic Cost," a joint project of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, American College of Rheumatology, American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, Arthritis Foundation, National University of Health Sciences, Orthopedic Research Society, Scoliosis Research Society, and the United States Bone and Joint Decade.

⁸ "Using Facebook to Transform the Workplace," HOK, 2012.

⁹ "Leisure Time Spent Sitting in Relation to Total Mortality in a Prospective Cohort of US Adults." Alpa V. Patel, Leslie Bernstein, Anusila Deka, Heather Spencer Feigelson, Peter T. Campbell, 5 Susan M. Gapstur, Graham A. Colditz, and Michael J. Thun. Am J Epid Published online July 22, 2010 (DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwq155).

¹⁰ Augustin, Sally, Ph.D., Place Advantage, 2009.

¹¹ "Engaged Employees Inspire Company Innovation," The Gallup Management Journal, 2006, New York, NY.

¹² Harter, James K.; Schmidt, Frank L.; Hayes, Theodore L., Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol 87(2), Apr 2002, 268-279.
About the Author
Leigh Stringer is a senior principal and director of innovation and research in HOK's Washington, DC, office. Leigh is responsible for shaping HOK's innovation, research and benchmarking efforts related to workplace, change management, master planning, technology and on-site services. She is the author of the book, "The Green Workplace: Sustainable Strategies that Benefit Employees, the Environment and the Bottom Line," and is the founder of TheGreenWorkplace.com, a blog covering workplace issues, green design and upcoming green policy changes, and co-founder of HOKLife.com.

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Workplace Strategies that Enhance Human Performance, Health and Wellness - FMLink

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Smart organizations are always looking for new ways to improve their people's performance. Thoughtful workplace design can be a powerful tool for supporting employee performance. Strategies that support productivity also tend to enhance employee health and wellness - they're all related. How can the workplace better support human performance in today's knowledge work economy?

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The happy secret to better work | Shawn Achor

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Blogging on human performance in the workplace

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Human performance strengths both individuals and organizations.

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HPI Strategies that promote good health & wellness in the workplace.

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HPI Strategies that promote good health & wellness in the workplace.

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Improving the performance of employees is the main goal of clever organizations. In companies where most of the work involves knowledge, the employees are the driving force that keeps the organization growing, transforming, developing and innovating.

One of the most powerful tools that can help in boosting the performance of your employees is to provide them with a friendly workplace. Aside from increasing productivity, it can also improve the health and wellness of your employees.

How can the workplace help in improving employees' performance? It is important that the workplace must be able to accommodate all the tasks that are involved in knowledge work. For instance, innovation, creativity, collaboration, intense thinking, etc.

What Are The Factors That Are Involved In Human Performance?

Organizational psychologists believe that human performance is a combination of ability, motivation, and opportunity. Ability is determined whether the employee can accomplish the task. Motivation is the person's desire to do the task, while opportunity pertains to accessibility.

Realizing that human performance is influenced by a lot of factors, it is important that there must be some support from the workplace. But how can the workplace help in boosting the performance of the employees?

According to Judith Heerwagen, a program specialist, productivity and the workplace are somehow associated in several ways.

A workplace can provide a positive influence on a person's ability by making it comfortable with lesser health and safety risks. Additionally, the person must be able to control and change the condition of the environment.

A workplace can enhance motivation by promoting positive feelings, and psychological engagement. Moods can affect a person's attitude and thought processes.

A workplace can improve the aspect of opportunity by implementing equal access to amenities and facilities that can minimize health and safety risks. So, what particular workplace strategies should you implement in order to provide the right blend of ability, motivation, and opportunity? Here are ten workplace design considerations that can help in enhancing human performance.

Workplace Design Ideas To Improve Human Performance

1. Comfortable Temperature

Having the right temperature, airflow, and humidity can make a person feel comfortable in the workplace. When there are some people who are complaining about the temperature, sometimes this can distract you.

The key is to set the temperature making it ideal for the workplace. A slightly lower temperature can reduce health risks and can improve accuracy on simulated tasks. Based on research, individual control on temperature can improve productivity.

Workplace Strategies

You can provide personal control of airflow by installing underfloor air. If possible, try to provide individual control on every workstation. Having operable windows or window coverings can also help in controlling the airflow, sunlight, and temperature in a particular space.

2. Access to Nature, Landscapes, and Sunshine

Typically, most of us want to be surrounded by nature. As humans, we have an intimate bond with other living systems. Also, it is beneficial that people should stay outside during the day even for just a short period.

Having access to nature and sunlight can provide a positive impact on a person's well-being. Most people would want to be in a higher place where they could look down. They want an open space surrounded by trees and shrubs. Preferably, it should be close to a body of water, for instance, a lake or a river.

Workplace Strategies

When organizing the floor plan, try to maximize the natural light that penetrates the floor. For instance, the confined spaces should be placed at the center of the building. While the open spaces will be placed at the edge near the windows. When there is no need for visual privacy, it is preferable to use glass. When sharing spaces, try to focus more on beautiful views. As much as possible, the building must have some outdoor areas where employees could take a break.

3. Sensory Variation And Variability

Aside from having access to nature, landscapes, and sunlight, most people would choose to have sensory change and variability. Insufficient visual stimulation could affect a person's capacity to remain alert. There is less productivity when workstations have the same texture and are made of neutral colors.

Sensory variation and variability include the ability to view outdoors, improvement in the lightings and highlights, materials that are chosen should have receptive occurrence in the brain as well as moderation in the visual complexity. It is important that the workplace should be stimulating so that the employees won't lose their focus and creativity. When there is a lack of stimulation, then it might result in boredom and laziness.

Workplace Strategies

Adding some texture to certain areas could help a lot. For instance, you could use natural materials such as plants, wood, and natural fibers. The presence of long corridors can be reduced by adding or changing the graphics, patterns, color, and texture.

4. Variation In Colors

The perception of color may vary from one person to another. Most often, it will depend on their culture and life experiences. But when it comes to the work environment, colors are perceived differently. Generally, brighter colors provide more focus and accuracy. Red provides strength and energy, hence it signifies endurance and ambition. Blue has a calming and cooling effect, making it perfect for creative thinking and mental control. Yellow provides clear thinking and alertness. Pink can help in minimizing the feeling of loneliness, despair, anger, and hardship. Orange can help in boosting self-confidence and can ease your feelings.

Workplace Strategies

When using colors, it should not be based on your personal preference but rather on the desired attitudes and emotions that you want to promote. There should be some variation in the colors being used in the workplace. Keep in mind that lighter colors can help in increasing the amount of natural light.

5. Managing Noise

Most often, noise can be a great issue. However, the effect of noise on productivity will likely depend on the person's preference as well as the type of work that he is currently doing. The best solution is to enable workers to manage noise by providing a door to their room.

Typically, in an open office environment, noise can always be perceived. However, this will depend on how the area was organized as well as the type of work that is being done. Distraction from work can be prevented if employees are provided with some control over the noise.

When employees are doing normal tasks, sometimes noise interruptions can be a good thing since it can provide them the stimulation that they need. On the contrary, if they are doing complex works, then noise interruptions might lessen their motivation to work.

Workplace Strategies

In order to be able to control noise in the workplace, designers suggest three strategies. These are absorption, blocking, and coverings. Absorption can be achieved by installing acoustical fabrics, ceiling, and carpet. While blocking can be accomplished by using panels, walls, screens, partitions. Covering relates to sound masking. If you want to be able to control noise in your workplace, then you should incorporate these strategies into your design.

As much as possible noisy spaces must be separated from quiet areas. Try to create some ways wherein workers could communicate with each other without disturbing other people. If you have an open space environment, then the people that are doing the same work must be grouped together. You could implement a "virtual door" scheme wherein the employees that are located in the open workstation do not have an opportunity to talk. To avoid noise, workers could wear headsets. Another way would be to establish a quiet area as well as a collaboration area for your employees.

6. The Perception Of Space and Crowding

Sometimes crowding can lead to stress. It can also make employees feel dissatisfied with their workplace. The perception of space and crowding will vary based on a person's gender, personal preference, and cultural background.

According to Sally Augustin, an expert in perceiving space, people will feel that they are less crowded if the room has high ceilings or has mirrors on the walls. At the same time, the room should look lighter and brighter.

Most likely, men are the ones who feel crowded than women. This is because men have good external vision compared to women. They can quickly notice when there are other people in the same space.

If you work in higher buildings, then you might feel more crowded than those who don't. However, it has a lesser effect on people who are living in tall buildings. Most probably because they can enjoy good views and daylight.

Using plants, furniture, and other embellishing elements can greatly help in reducing the perception of crowding.

Workplace Strategies

The feeling of being in a crowded space can be reduced by adjusting a worker's workspace in such a way that there will be limited views of other workstations. Another method to minimize the perception of crowding would be to provide access to views through the windows. The best way to do this is to relocate the office or conference room into the interior of the space.

7. Human Factors

When designing workplaces, it should consider the needs and the limitations of the people who will be occupying that place. Human factors actually cover a broad area including product design, ergonomics, minimizing human mistakes, workplace security, human skills, as well as the interaction between humans and computers.

Workplace Strategies

Employees must be provided with adjustable furniture so they can adjust their workspaces to make them feel more comfortable. Using task lights, flexible chairs and desks, as well as keyboard trays can greatly contribute to the employees well being.

Efficient technology should be provided in different work settings. For instance, collaboration spaces must be equipped with the same technology, making it more natural for employees to move from one space to another.

Provide tools and technologies that motivate mobility among employees. For instance, give them laptops and mobile devices. VoIP phones can also allow them to move from one desk to another while making a call.

Employees must be encouraged to use the stairs at all times. For instance, let them know that using the stairs can burn a lot of calories. Stairs must be designed in such a way that it is more visible and accessible.

You could also inspire your workers to move around by providing them with wearable devices, for instance, pedometers. Movement should not only be encouraged inside the workplace but also on the outside. For instance, initiate a fun contest wherein employees who have the most number of steps will get prizes.

8. Indoor Air Quality

Today, organizations are trying to make their workplaces as healthy as possible. This is because it has a huge impact on their health insurance as well as their productivity. Aside from considering human factors, organizations should also consider the health of their workers.

In some industries, workers are required to spend a lot of time indoors. Unfortunately, the indoor environment can affect the workers' health, productivity as well as the quality of life. Most often, the pollutants on indoor settings are far greater than those on the outside. These pollutants could come from building materials, maintenance, household cleaning materials, etc.

Workplace Strategies

When purchasing furniture, paint, or carpet for your workplace, make sure that it has lesser particulates and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can cause illness. Be sure that the equipment that you use include Energy Star labels.

Always have a regular schedule for maintenance of your heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), as well as other equipment that is used in the workplace. Adding plants to the workplace can help in cleaning the air.

9. Choice of Work Setting

In today's world, employees involved in knowledge work needs a lot of collaboration and concentration. That is why it is important to have a well-designed workplace. In this way, employees will have a chance to decide when and how to use them.

Susan Cain, the author of the book, "Quiet, The Power of Introverts," revealed that the best office will let the employee decide the level of stimulation that he requires at a certain time. It should have an area for privacy, but at the same time, it should also have an area where employees can come together and hang out. Working with a team is fine, however, it is also important that every member of the team should be given the chance to do their own things.

Workplace Strategies

The workplace should include different varieties of settings in order to support different varieties of works. Quiet areas are intended for concentration. There should also be a space for collaboration. Provide also a place for learning and socializing.

Technology that allows people to focus on their work should also be provided. This includes headsets, sound masking, etc. They also require technology for collaboration so they can communicate easily.

10. Employee Engagement

Employee engagement and worker satisfaction are somehow related to each other. Consequently, this can influence productivity and innovation. When employees are more engaged, they can become more productive and more effective compared to the ones who are less engaged. Most likely, these engaged employees will work longer with the company and they will become their best source of new ideas.

Workplace Strategies

In order to achieve employee engagement, workspaces must have more visibility, mobility, and openness. In this way, employees will get a chance to see each other and collaborate. These collaborative spaces must make employees feel comfortable. Making awards and recognition visible can also encourage employee engagement.

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Improving the performance of employees is the main goal of clever organizations. In companies where most of the work involves knowledge, the employees are the driving force that keeps the organization growing, transforming, developing and innovating. One of the most powerful tools that can help in boosting the performance of your employees is to provide them with a friendly workplace.

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