Every German spends around 43 hours a week in the office – and not alone: The majority of Germans share the office with one or more colleagues. Office experts such as Andreas Röhrl and his team at Büro Idee GmbH ensure that employees can work in a relaxed, creative and, above all, efficient manner despite the presence of colleagues. In this interview, Andreas Röhrl reveals that open-plan offices are no longer as much of a horror as their reputation suggests and how the furnishings influence the mood among colleagues.
Employees should feel at home in the office
Fresh from OrgaTec, a trade fair for new work culture, Röhrl and his team took away a lot of inspiration and knowledge about the latest trends in office furnishings. “Feel-good offices are currently very much on the rise. It is clear to see that companies also need to offer their employees something when it comes to office equipment. The furnishing and design of an office contributes greatly to a good working atmosphere, which increases creativity and motivation,” says Röhrl. Retreat rooms such as lounge areas or conference rooms also offer employees the chance to take a breather: “During the week, employees spend more time at work than at home, so places need to be created where they can retreat and take a break from the hustle and bustle of the office.
Open-space offices create dynamism in everyday working life
Röhrl currently sees open-space offices, i.e. open-plan offices that enable flexible and agile working with daily changes of perspective, as the biggest trend. According to recent studies, a third of employees in Germany already work in open-plan or multi-person offices. “Although I find the word open-plan office difficult, because everyone immediately thinks of battery cages,” says Röhrl. Yet modern open-plan offices have little to do with the open-plan offices of the past. Free choice of seating in the office, working stations, direct communication and private telephone booths enable undisturbed work despite colleagues being present. “Acoustics are a big issue in open-plan offices. But there are ways of reducing the noise level, such as telephone booths or acoustic insulation materials.” Röhrl sees the necessary tidiness of employees as a major advantage of open-plan offices. As there are no fixed workstations, especially with desk sharing, which is increasingly common in open-plan offices, every employee has to leave their workstation neat and tidy. “Nothing must be left lying around, otherwise chaos reigns. Every employee has their own locker and can easily store their items there.”
Hallbergmoos as the Silicon Valley of office equipment
Röhrl and his two sons Michael and Maximilian, as well as three other employees, use six manufacturer showrooms spread across the entire Munich Airport Business Park. “Basically, Hallbergmoos is a small Silicon Valley for office equipment,” says Röhrl proudly. The team at Büro Idee GmbH develops comprehensive furnishing concepts in close cooperation with customers. At least one meeting takes place on site in one of the showrooms. “Here in Hallbergmoos, we are lucky enough to be able to show our customers our showrooms directly. There they can see what is possible in terms of furnishings and how the corporate identity can be integrated into the concept.”
Open-plan offices must not become a culture shock
The fact that companies are not averse to modern office furnishings can also be seen from current figures. In a study conducted by the University of Freiburg, 15 out of 17 companies stated that they would be happy to invest in an open-plan office solution when refurbishing their offices in the future. For expert Röhrl, however, office design is more than just cosmetics. Simply preparing and installing new furniture is not an option: “Employees first have to get used to the new design concept. It’s important that the customer tells us exactly what is feasible.” Timo Brehme, Managing Director of the Germany-wide architecture consultancy CSMM, agrees: “Advantages aside, for some employees the move to an open-plan office is like a culture shock. To prevent this, communication between decision-makers and decision-makers must be right.”
You can find Büro Idee GmbH’s social media presence on Instagram under @bueroidee and Facebook.
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