There’s a lot to consider when planning collaboration spaces within your floor plan – trust us, we’ve seen it all! We developed this checklist from our own experiences working with our customers. It is designed to help you evaluate your technology needs and prepare you to work with your furniture and audiovisual integrators. We hope it is helpful as a key part of your workplace planning process.
SIZE
- Evaluate the footprint required by each type of meeting space and possible opportunities to maximize your real estate.
- Offer a variety of meeting spaces, from small enclaves to larger meeting rooms, within your floorplan.
TYPES OF COLLABORATION
- Support different types of collaboration with appropriate technology:
- Generative (brainstorming)
- Evaluative (reviewing/sharing)
- Informative (coordinating/planning/training)
STANDARDS
- Assess your current standards and whether they are meeting your needs. Is this your only location? Do you have satellite offices? International locations?
FURNITURE HEIGHT
- Decide which spaces or rooms might feature sitting or standing height
- Provide lounge applications where applicable to offer employees choice and control.
- Assess proper flow for furniture
CONNECTIVITY
- Evaluate which locations where the technology will be wired or wireless.
- Assess platforms that are easy-to-use.
ACOUSTICS & PRIVACY
- Assess what kind of sound mitigation is necessary – does the space have acoustic challenges that can be remedied with sound masking, acoustic panels, or solid panels within demountable wall systems?
- Assess whether sensitive content needs to be concealed from passers-by, with a solution such as Casper Cloaking Film or with strategically placed solid panels
LIGHTING
- Create spaces that give occupants control over ambient light levels and deliver better illumination for video conferencing.
SIGHT LINES
- Position technology to ensure that content is readable and accessible to all participants.
- For video-enabled spaces, ensure that cameras are able to capture and track all participants.
FAR END EXPERIENCE
- Ensure the far end of remote meeting rooms are equipped with the same level of tools to maintain a high level of user experience.
SCHEDULING
- Assess how the spaces within your floorplan will be managed – whether that is bookable or available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
SPACE UTILIZATION
- Assess whether to monitor the utilization of your spaces to gain insight into occupancy, how users flow throughout the space, and the percentage of booked spaces that still remain empty.
SECURITY
- Evaluate the importance of security to your organization – should participants access the technology through wired, wireless or encrypted wireless connections to enhance security?
SERVICE
- Assess how to keep your technology optimized and functioning properly through a service and maintenance contract.
SITE PREPARATION
- Assess your current infrastructure – do your room(s) require a holistic space renovation or technology updates only? For example, do you need to upgrade from VGA to HDMI? Do you require USB connections?
As you plan your collaboration spaces, running through this checklist should help you avoid last-minute surprises!
Photo credit: PTC Boston Headquarters © Warren Patterson Photography