Liberlife Key Trend: Workplace Social Spaces

With return-to-office mandates dominating work culture, workplace social spaces will become assets in attracting and retaining employees.

Need to know

Opportunity

Isolation and loneliness affect 67% of workers in the US, with younger generations the most likely to express these feelings at work (Coverings). This issue presents an opportunity to attract employees back to the office with environments primed to foster social connections. Dedicating spaces to building bonds between colleagues and improving company culture will positively impact productivity and employee retention rates (Oxford University).

Companies must address worker belling, as 40% of global Gen Z employees feel stressed most or all of the time (Exploited). Address the loneliness deficit and an ageing workforce by considering how to meet the social needs of a diverse age range. Create hierarchical social hubs with various seating options, adjustable lighting and ergonomic designs.

Nurturing creativity in the workplace is key to success. Globally, 77% of senior company leaders recognition creativity as a vital driver for business growth (Artificial Intelligence for Business Creativity). Priorities design that encourages face-to-face interactions and collaboration without relying on digital tools. Use tactile materials and flexible furniture and incorporate analogue games, entertainment systems and crafting stations.

Urban isolation will drive demand for workplaces that generate a sense of community through shared facilities. Think beyond providing space to work side-by-side; include communal dining tables, shared lounges and open-plan layouts.

Design strategies

● Creative Refuge: immersive artist-designed installations present an opportunity to integrate brand values and dynamic social environments

● Transparency & Agility: open-plan, flexible social areas with minimalist design will encourage impromptu gatherings and interactions

● Grounding Wellness: address rising stress levels by designing nurturing, home-like interiors that promote quiet connection and relaxation through warm, intimate environments and communal experiences

● Analogue Play: priorities spaces that provide relief from digital saturation, fostering human connections and physical activity through vibrant environments that enable spontaneous exploration

● Nightclub Aesthetics: bring a sense of escapism into the office with moody and dynamic social areas inspired by nightlife

● Lube Hospitality: opulent third spaces will become anchor points and investments for offices, mirroring the style of high-end hospitality venues

Proof points

Happiness as a KPI: Combat loneliness through social recognition

Research shows that unhappy workers cost 9% of global GDP. Companies need to make their employees more content.

The Great Exhaustion: Refuel from corporate burnout

Corporate mental health services with flexible benefits and other tangible solutions such as flexible working and more face-to-face interactions will help counterbalance burnout.

Social connection in the workplace

Connections motivate people to go into the office. 24% of Gen Z and Millennial workers globally say increased social interactions with colleagues are the most positive asset of return-to-office mandates.

Workplaces are lacking in third spaces

Almost half of workplaces lack ambient third spaces. 49% of employees don’t have a place where they can recharge, energizer and work.

“When we think about creating our workspace, it is a lot less about maximization productivity and far more about how we are creating community”

Holly Barbacoa, Chief People Officer, Budgie, speaking to Steel case

A sculptural conversation space at the Colony co-working office in Kuala Lumpur	Daniel Arsham’s Snarkitecture studio created an immersive library, gallery and vinyl room at Jayaram Law
The Cultural Hub in the lobby of Toronto’s Mason Studio is a place for social and creative exchange, art installations and activations	Community art events transform Mason Studio into a space for social interaction	Hawkins/Brown’s London office has an “isolation hut” for creative reflection, designed by Richard Woods

Creative Refuge

Keep staff inspired and invigorated via sites for social and community interaction.

The concept: art interventions will become more than corporate investments or peacemaking and way finding tools. Immersive installations can articulate brand values and form an active part of the office design, providing creative respite or a space for connection.

Partnership opportunities: work with artists and architects to develop unique immersive environments, from intimate break rooms to galleries, libraries, listening bars and lounges that offer a visual counterpoint to focused work areas. Be bold with artist-designed furniture like Jamar Law in New York, use large-scale artworks like French fashion brand Jacques, or create conceptual installations that become organic gathering points like those at Mason Studio in Toronto.

Flexible seating and an open-plan layout at Tokyo’s Hardihood Gravity office	Jacques transforms the light staff dining room at its Paris HQ into an events space	Under-floor storage conceals pop-up seating options at JINS Holdings in Tokyo
Metal curtains wrap around a circular seating area with puzzle-like tables that can be reconfigured at The Independents in Shanghai	Curtains of varying opacity provide visual and acoustic screening between the kitchen, lounge and work areas at London co-working space Loom Club	A free-fl owing, open-plan kitchen-dining games area has a light, pastel colour palette at Tengbom’s Stockholm office

Transparency & Agility

Emphases flexible social areas that promote impromptu encounters and communal experiences.

Design details: workspace requirements include free-flowing, open-plan layouts primed for healthy ventilation. Create airy gathering spaces with access to natural light.

Make it easy to hold gatherings with adjustable scaffolding-style furniture and stools that users can stow inside flooring. See Fumiko Takahama Architects’ pop-up seating solution at JINS Holdings’ HQ in Tokyo.

Introduce agile furniture elements such as opaque or metal curtain walls, jigsaw-like tables and sofas for easy reconfiguration and modular seating. Make social areas feel natural, breathable and welcoming.

CMF: take a minimalist approach that prizes functionality over decoration. Use pastel and natural colours, as well as light wood, transparent and industrial materials to promote a functional atmosphere.

“The workplace of the future will not be a singular place. It’ll be a living, organic network of environments

that actively responds to the world around us. It’ll be more inclusive, more vibrant and more differentiated”

Joseph White, Director of Design Strategy, MillerKnoll

Grounding Wellness

Respond to growing rates of employee stress by creating spaces for quiet connection and relaxation.

The concept: provide a sense of safety and familiarity by designing nurturing and cocooning environments that feel like home, fostering calm and intimacy.

Design details: create warm, intimate and cosy social spaces. Include rustic kitchen and dining areas that encourage communal cooking and sharing meals.

Incorporate wellness-driven auxiliary rooms, like yoga studios and meditation rooms. Prioritise quiet rooms that act as refuges, especially for people recovering from illness or neurodiverse individuals. Use neutral colours, natural materials and soft lighting.

CMF: leverage organic, textured materials such as terracotta, clay, wood, linen and wool, as well as earthy, tactile finishes. Incorporate artisanal touches, such as bespoke carpentry, woven fabrics and handmade ceramics, in a cafeteria

Sustainable choices like reclaimed Norwegian wood, reused furniture and upcycled textiles bring depth to the Berg Ridge offices in Helsinki	Terracotta walls, handcrafted wooden furniture and Michoacán clay details create a nest-like feel at the reception/coffee bar of the GO offices in Mexico
The interplay of soft and hard materials mimics wellness design in the staff dining space at Chancery House in London	An employee yoga and wellness studio at the GO offices in Morelia, Mexico

Analogue Play

Prioritise play spaces that encourage faceto-face interactions to counteract digital saturation.

Design details: bright and captivating spaces should project energy and promote the benefits of spontaneous activity. Incorporate dynamic, sculptural furniture like climbing walls, lounge swings and interactive installations that invite physical exploration, creating a lively and engaging environment.

CMF: use vibrant colours like primary greens, yellows, oranges and blues alongside warm, natural materials such as wood, cork and textured fabrics. Create sculptural forms in furniture, including beanbags and oversized cushions, to invite spontaneous use and comfort.

Staff lounges at Genworth’s Chicago HQ have games tables to encourage connectivity and movement	A workout station in the atrium of Linktel’s Wuhan HQ promotes physical activity and productivity	Swing seating provides an opportunity to play in the break rooms at the Coca-Cola offices in Warsaw
At the Contentful offi ce in Berlin, a table tennis table converts into a meeting room table	Contentful employees have access to music equipment to nurture creativity	Video game developer Rare (UK) provides space for analogue games for creative pause

“The office is one of the few places left where we develop relationships with strangers. We want to design

social spaces that encourage people to linger and be themselves”

Mikhail-Vlad Stefan, Work Better Magazine