Whether you’re planning your return to the office soon or are already there, the workspace lives on with new changes to keep us safe! Safety signage tells us where to go and how to use our new spaces, and reconfiguring furniture and areas helps us keep 6-foot distances, but what about larger changes? In these rapidly changing times, spending the time and money to construct permanent walls and other fixtures turns into an expensive decision that will likely have to change again as time goes on, so what can you do that will help your space (and team) both now and in the future?

There isn’t one business or industry that’s been unaffected by COVID-19. Though some of us are already going back to the workplace and have adopted a bevy of new guidelines, others are still waiting and working remotely, and many are somewhere in between. To help our clients plan for their own returns and see first-hand just how this pandemic has affected workplace attitudes and work conditions, we launched a Return to Work Survey of working professionals, spanning all industries, sizes, and in multiple states, and the results are in!

COVID-19 has turned the traditional workplace on its head. As organizations around the world return to work, they’re seeing and planning changes for nearly every area of their space; from desk and workstation reconfigurations to common rooms, restrooms, and more, organizations are finding new ways to keep employees healthy, safe, and at least six feet apart from each other throughout the day.

Many of us have been working from home for the past couple of months. As states begin to open up and local governments release plans to return to the office environment, a lot of us have questions about what that looks like and what we need to do to get back into our spaces safely.

There are varying opinions by today’s workers about the “open office” environment. Multiple recent surveys of people in open workspaces found noise, distractions, and lack of privacy and personal space consistently cited as the biggest complaints in this new norm.

A great interior space considers both physical and human elements. A great interior design professional uses their creative eye to evoke physical emotions and harmonize elements within a space. These three trends are becoming more prevalent than ever, even if they may not be new!

Earlier this year, we announced an exciting multi-year partnership as the Proud Work Environment Partner of the Columbus Blue Jackets. This partnership is highlighted by the CO Lab, a creative collaboration center and modern meeting room created by our team at Continental Office.

If these walls could talk, what would they say? Transforming older buildings and repurposing them into something new, known as adaptive reuse, is the latest buzz-worthy renovation trend that is influencing how we look at design.

If these walls could talk, what would they say? The process of taking existing structures and turning them into modern facilities is the hottest trend in development right now. It's called adaptive reuse and it's changing the way we create meaningful spaces. Over the past ten years in the US alone, there's been more than 40,000 adaptive reuse projects.

Designing a new or remodeled office can be kind of a rollercoaster. First, there’s that long, stuttering climb toward a firm decision to take action. Then suddenly you’re on top in the sunlight, surveying the glowing possibilities spread before you like candles on a birthday cake.