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The Importance of an Inspirational Working Environment

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The Importance of an Inspirational Working Environment

‘How do you create an office environment that’s conducive to creativity?’

We came across this infographic from Podspace, producers of innovative buildings and super-cool eco pod offices. The infographic discusses how to create a space where students of all ages can learn and develop without boundaries in immersive environments.

Podspace put together the infographic that highlights the benefits of a good creative working space and although the piece focuses on an educational environment, we love the way that many of the principles can be applied to any office space.

So what exactly does a creative workspace look like?

Well, it doesn’t have to replicate something from Google or Facebook, with deck chairs, gaming rooms and helter skelter slides. It can start with the small things, the little, thoughtful design considerations rather than the big transformations that carry the even bigger price tags. Considerable change can be achieved through small, incremental improvements.

Colour can play a key part – beginning with a neutral shade for the walls and some colourful furniture can transform a drab office space into a light, airy environment that can support a culture of creativity.

Space is important too, especially if you have a limited amount, so tidying away clutter and having a laptop instead of a bulky desktop computer can make a huge difference to an individual’s desk space.

Where to begin?

It’s important to understand your audience. Find out what employees want and need, spend time observing behaviour and gathering feedback about what stands in the way, identify which areas block the creative process and what would help to make the office a more suitable environment. This way, you’ll also be getting buy-in from the start as employees help to shape and develop their own working environment.

Open-plan offices have become increasingly common and are conducive to collaboration and the sharing of ideas. Creating a dedicated central area or focal point where casual meetings and thought-provoking conversations can take place is a good start. Encourage colleagues to share thoughts on projects they’re working on, interacting in a natural, relaxed environment. We loved the idea of an ‘employee graffiti wall’ shared by @frannycoll of Coventry City Council – a great way to share thoughts and ideas in a genuinely honest and open way.

Set up seating areas in breakout rooms for last minute meetings and brainstorming sessions too. Establish where employees like to gather for lively conversation and develop this space, remembering that it’s also important to have the right amount of private, secluded areas should a team member need quiet time alone.

Work in progress

Little changes like reorganising space needn’t be costly; they can easily be tested out and are a great way to learn about what works and what doesn’t. Try out some new ideas but see it as a work in progress project and celebrate the successes.

Take a look through the infographic for more thoughts on how to develop your workplace and build the foundations of an office culture that supports learning, development and creativity.

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Emily Stoten — Head of Marketing, Selecta

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Jo Hobbs — Communications Manager

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Sarah Crowdy — Campaign and Media Officer Communications, South East Water

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Kath Evans — Director of Children’s Nursing at Barts Health

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Thank you again for all the work you have done with us!”

Lianne Springer — Communications and Engagement Lead - Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA)

“Alive wowed us during the pitch process and they didn’t stop wowing us throughout the whole project. Every person we worked with at Alive were so friendly, knowledgeable and clearly passionate about what they do. They have worked with us to really understand what we do and have created a new brand and website that really stands out from our competitors. Thank you!”

Louise Burnard, Head of Marketing and Communications UK — Be | Shaping the Future

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Dr Anna Batho — Clinical Psychologist – Critical Care, UCLH

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Georgia Beech — Internal Communications Specialist, Ocado Group

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Sarah Wright, Head of Communications and Campaigns — NEA

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Alana Khaytin, Communications Specialist — Braskem America

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Sara Langston, Patient Engagement & Marketing Manager — italk

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Steph Tranter, Hybrid Exec Coach & Psychologist — StephTranter.com

“Alive helped us create a video of our response to the floods of winter 2019. Our Chief Officer received messages from all round the country praising us for it and was really pleased with both the video and the response to it.”

Alexander Mills, Communications Manager — South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue

“Alive were professional, friendly and great to work with. Most importantly they were creative, helping us to bring an extremely important safety campaign to life.”

Jack Grasby — South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue

“The (Alive) team were able to creatively pull together and document (in just over 2minutes) everything our service has achieved over the last few months, from thousands of prescriptions deliveries to hundreds of phone calls made to the vulnerable. The final product was so powerful and reflective of what our service has and continues to achieve. It couldn’t have been better received within the service – thanks Alive for once again helping us to communicate our vision!’”

Emma Wright — South Yorkshire & Rescue

“We worked with the team at Alive to create our staff recognition video.
At a time like this, its never been more important to share the amazing work that our staff have done and continue to do on a daily basis under very difficult circumstances. We wanted to shout about this and recognise that when the time came, South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue stepped up to the plate. We didn’t want an ordinary thank you post on social media or a basic email sent out internally, we wanted something special. Enter Alive. ”

Emma Wright — South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue

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Jack Ford, Head of Marketing — streamGO

“Our company is fun, we have great brands, but most importantly we’re all about our people – and I wanted an agency who would understand that and help us bring it to life through our website and other comms. Straight away I felt that Alive ‘got’ us and provided the creative inspiration exactly where we needed it, as well as the technical expertise to deliver a well-functioning website.”

Keren McCarron, Head of Corporate Affairs & Communications — KP Snacks

“Boom!
Thank you so much. Incredible work done at incredible speed by incredible people.
Outstanding work as ever and what a turnaround. As for the concepts – wow. These are that good it would be an insult to describe them as just good. It’s a joke, quite frankly. This is exactly the Alive effect I was after. Right now I feel like I am living in an Alive With Ideas wonderland. Thank you!”

Jack Grasby, Campaigns Manager — SYFR

“If you are looking to improve creativity and build teamwork, I highly recommend a session like this for your team. No matter where you are in your creativity journey, a workshop like this can give your team a boost of energy and ideas to invigorate their creative thinking.”

Amy Lilja, IC Manager — Hennepin Healthcare

“Alive were there to help when we were working every hour to respond to the coronavirus outbreak. They gave us the creativity, ideas and support we needed to deliver campaigns which empowered our residents in the most difficult time most of us have ever seen, personally and professionally. The team understood what we needed, worked closely with us and delivered fast without any compromise on quality. Working with Alive has been a joy in the darkest of times and I have no doubt will have helped to save lives. Thanks team x”

Julie Odams, Assistant Director of Communications & Customers — Derbyshire County Council

“We got 'Alive' involved to help us shift mindsets across our organisation and they delivered! Using simple, clear and creative ideas the team have delivered us a campaign which has seen a dramatic increase in idea sharing and development. They’ve also played a significant role in creating a culture of shared success. I wouldn’t hesitate to work with again, in fact, we already are!”

Gavin Buckle — B&Q
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