When planning a new office space, workplace designers and their clients are faced with many challenges and questions. However, the working environment of the modern manager can be so incredibly varied, nuanced, and potentially compromised, maybe more than any other, their list of workspace ‘wants and needs’ require careful thoughts and consideration.

Far more than ‘just an office’…

It no surprise to find that many managers and supervisors need a certain degree of privacy and discretion in their day-to-day work… After all, there are many things in an organisation are highly confidential and it’s not always a good idea for everyone to know about them. For example, what does the Company balance sheet looks like? Will the business have a short-term need for borrowing? Which staff member will soon be facing a disciplinary hearing that could lead to a final written warning? Any one of these situations could at either embarrassing, potentially misunderstood, or both… At worst, they could lead to a severe breakdown in trust and staff confidentiality, or even expensive legal action.

This much needed requirement for privacy however has to be well-balanced and should be off set with the need for accessibility, with modern managers understanding the true value of being friendly, approachable, and available to speak to whenever necessary.

If you want (or need) a private executive-style office suite, the choices are vast, ranging all the way from relatively cost-effective functionality through to sumptuous luxury and opulence with deep-pile carpets, hand-finished veneer desks and storage units, leather sofas, and magnificent meeting tables. Over the last 30 years, we’ve worked with budgets of all sizes, with some client’s who’ve chosen to spare no-expense whatsoever, but we’ve also worked with some budget friendly, tastefully decorated spaces that have conveyed just the right level of hierarchy, without necessarily being considered too lavish or over the top.

By definition, ‘Manage’ spaces will often try and be ‘all-things to all-people’, but it can depend very much on your organisation’s, (and your own individual) management style. Whether your Company has a flat, modern-day management structure, or one that’s far more hierarchal in style, it still important to get the right balance for a manager’s office. If an office is furnished in a simplistic style, it might be considered unsophisticated, naïve, or even cheap-looking, whilst having an executive office suite can sometimes look too brash and ‘showy’ – especially if it’s overdone. Instead, choose an office style that’s designed from the outset to be understated and confident. With good quality furniture, classic styling, and a well-chosen colour palette, it will never look out of place.