Research shows that innovative, even unusual, office designs create a work environment that promotes creativity. Perhaps it’s time to splash some bright paint on the walls.

People can be greatly affected by their physical surroundings, including their office environment. According to recent reports, people’s work spaces — be it open plan or a maze of cubes — greatly affect their creativity, productivity and mood.

“If you come into the office and everything looks uniform, gray, bland and boring, your thinking tends to be that way,” Alex Kjerulf, a Denmark-based business consultant, tells Entrepreneur Magazine. “If you come into a place that’s stimulating, your mind will become more creative.”

Indeed, even the color of walls can affect your creativity, a recent study by University of British Columbia researchers showed. In the study, 600 participants were tested to determine if cognitive performance varied when they saw red or blue, the New York Times reports.

Red groups did better on tests of recall and attention to detail whereas blue groups did better on tests requiring imagination. “Experts say colors may affect cognitive performance because of the moods they engender,” the Times continues. “Many people link red to problematic things.”

Due to that association, the study concludes that red makes people more cautious and detail-oriented. When participants were asked if they believed red or blue would improve performance, most said blue for both detail-oriented and creative tasks.

Design experts say that along with boosting creativity, having an inspiring office also boosts morale and, in turn, productivity.

In a special report on office design evolution, BizTimes.com cites a U.S. workplace survey that found 90 percent of office workers believe that better [office] design leads to better overall performance. Respondents said that they could increase work output by 21 percent if the office was better designed and another 48 percent said they would work more hours if given a favorable work environment.

Plus, change does not have to be a large-scale project, Kjerulf says. “Some people consider impractical costs as a reason against investing in a creative office, but the greatest barrier is really a mental one,” he adds. “Cool furnishings don’t have to cost more than regular ones. We’re talking some paint other than white or gray and some cool furniture. Or maybe every chair in the office doesn’t need to be the same model and color.”

Companies considering changing their office design to boost creativity are cautioned that one size does not fit all. Before tackling an office redesign, companies are advised to seek professional advice.

“[T]he bottom line of design is to enhance employee morale, foster creativity and increase worker productivity,” BizTimes adds. “The design of today’s workplace should accommodate three generations of workers — baby boomers, Generation X and Generation Y. While boomers value privacy, Gen X-ers and Gen Y-ers value social interaction, work-life balance and mobile communication.”

To accommodate the needs of all, Building Design and Construction (BD&C) suggests having a balance of open collaboration spaces with quiet work areas. “It isn’t about a creative desk or a creative conference room or bright paint. It’s about the whole experience of being in this workplace and thinking through every step of a daily routine.”

BD&C spoke with several leading architects about designing creative offices and offer the following tips:

Inspire but don’t distract. Reduce distraction in open work areas by enclosing a nearby meeting space. “A little noise is perfectly acceptable … it signifies the hum of excitement and creativity,” architect Johnson Chou says.

Create inventive collaboration spaces that allow formal, informal and spontaneous encounters. Chou cites the atrium he designed for Grip Limited that has versatile soft seating to encourage employees to stop for ad hoc conversations. Formal presentations are also given in the atrium.

Construct multipurpose centers that can serve as the hub of the office. “There are lots of things that make people have to go there, so it’s the perfect creative space because it allows impromptu interactions,” explains Cathy Bell, principal at Sasaki Associates. “You don’t want too many because the whole point is to provide chances to run into someone you wouldn’t ordinarily run into. If there are too many, you might never run into them.”

Provide visual stimulation to get people to see and think differently. These could vary from color to lighting to whimsical elements such as garage doors for conference rooms.

Clearly, there are many ways to add some pizzazz to office design, inspire workers and trigger creativity, that don’t have to cost exorbitant amounts of money.

“In general, I don’t think enough people link the design of space to business outcome,” Janice Linster, partner at design firm Studio Hive. “Encounters and activities that happen in creative spaces outside a structured environment are important and can spark ideas that can make a project more successful.”

Does your company dare to be different and unconventional when it comes to office space? Your workers’ creative output may depend on it.

Related

Kill the Cube (for the Company’s Sake)

Patterns of Innovation: Matters of Size and Style

Cubicle Personalization: Dos and Don’ts

Resources

Colour Boosts Brain Performance and Receptivity to Advertising, Depending on Task
University of British Columbia, Feb. 5, 2009

Reinvent Wheel? Blue Room. Defusing a Bomb? Red Room.
by Pam Belluck
The New York Times, Feb.6, 2009

Inspiring Offices: Office Design That Drives Creativity
by Jay W. Schneider
Building Design & Construction, March 1, 2007

Office Designs Continue to Evolve
by Scott Gierhahn
Biz Times, Dec. 19, 2008

Why You (Yes, You!) Need a Cool Office
by Jennifer Wang
Entrepreneur Magazine, Jan. 08, 2009

Office Surroundings Affect Performance, Says New Research
Morgan Lovell, Sept. 4, 2009