Beyond the Workplace Zoo

This book begins by outlining the common design mistakes with the modern open plan office and the industry focus on cost that has resulted in the ill-fated Workplace Zoo. The requirements of office-based workers according to psychological theory and research are then explained. Dr Oseland references historical studies in psychophysics to describe how to design environmental conditions (acoustics, lighting, temperature, indoor air quality) that enhance performance by supporting basic physiological needs. More contemporary research in environmental psychology investigates how cognition affects our interpretation and response to physical stimuli depending on personality, context, attitude and other personal factors. This in turn informs individual requirements for the environmental conditions as well as group needs. Studies in evolutionary psychology and biophilia are also referenced.

The latter part of the book turns to workplace solutions and focuses on how to plan, design and manage offices to accommodate our innate human needs now and in the future. The importance of designing for inclusivity is also recognised, including accommodating cultural, gender and generational differences along with designing spaces for neurodiversity. Dr Oseland’s proposed workplace solution the Landscaped Office is a revived and revised version of Bürolandschaft with a contemporary twist. The impact of workplace trends, such as agile working and hot-desking, is also explored and found to complement the workplace solution, resulting in the Agile Landscaped Office.

This book is key reading for professionals, and post-graduate students, in business, interior design, architecture, surveying, facilities management, building services engineering, HR and organisational or environmental psychology.

Dr Nigel Oseland is an environmental psychologist, workplace strategist, change manager, researcher, international speaker, lecturer and published author with 11 years research and 23 years consulting experience. In his consulting business, he draws on his psychology background and his own research to advise occupiers on how to redefine their workstyles and rethink their workplace to create working environments that enhance individual and organisational performance and deliver maximum value. Nigel lectures on two masters' degrees at The Bartlett, UCL, one on space management and the other on wellbeing in buildings. He is the programme advisor and a regular speaker at the Workplace Trends series of international conferences. Nigel regularly presents at international (academic and corporate) conferences on designing workplaces that enhance performance and wellbeing. He made a TEDx talk in 2018 on How We Can Create Unique Workspaces and introduced the concept of the Workplace Zoo.