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November 1, 2021 FOCUS: Office Space

Here’s what a post-pandemic office space design will look like

HBJ PHOTO | STEVE LASCHEVER Executives and employees at Connecticut Wealth Management show off the company’s planned office redesign, which is currently under construction.
By Terry Corcoran

You’re sitting at your office desk and your mind is wandering — perhaps to that less-than-stellar round of golf you shot last weekend.

But what if you could walk down the hall and take a few practice swings in the new golf simulator your company installed?

That scenario will soon become reality for the 45 employees of Connecticut Wealth Management in Farmington when the firm finishes renovating its roughly 11,000 square feet of office space in the building it owns at 281 Farmington Ave.

The renovations at CTWM will not only aim to make it a fun place to work — there’ll be a pool table in addition to the golf simulator — they’re also designed to foster collaboration and help recruit and retain new talent.

COVID-19 has changed the office workspace and companies like CTWM are enlisting architectural and design firms to devise spaces where workers will want to come and new recruits will want to stay.

“This space we’re creating is truly about collaboration,” said Denis Horrigan, partner and co-founder of CTWM. “How do we create an environment that fosters as much collaboration among team members as possible? This is going to be a magnet for people to want to come into the office so we can collaborate, share our ideas and thoughts. It will also make it a better place to pass along our culture to our newer employees.”

More shared spaces

HBJ PHOTO | STEVE LASCHEVER
Jeffrey A. Flaks, president and CEO of Hartford HealthCare, sits next to One Medical CEO and President Amir Dan Rubin, at HHC’s downtown Hartford headquarters to discuss the organizations’ new partnership.

The post-COVID office space involves more shared spaces and smaller work areas, said Jillian Tara, associate and senior interior designer at Phase Zero Design in Simsbury.

“We’re getting away from the idea of having a large open office with a bunch of benching systems because if you’re facing someone, you don’t have any privacy and it’s loud,” Tara said. “So having a little bit of separation is important. It’s about more shared spaces.”

COVID changed how we work and, in turn, changed the workplace, Tara said.

(Top photo) Construction crews work on Connecticut Wealth Management’s new office space design, which will focus on creating collaborative spaces. (Bottom photo) CWM employees look on at ongoing construction.

“We realized after the pandemic that we’re all productive in different ways, so whether you’re fully remote or hybrid and in the office a couple of days, it’s different for everyone and we need to start accommodating for those needs.”

Companies also want an office that won’t become obsolete in a short time, said architect Thomas Quarticelli of Amenta Emma Architects in Hartford.

“Businesses are at a point where they want to future-proof their space as much as possible,” Quarticelli said. “They don’t want to realize in six months to two years from now, there’s too much space or too many walls. The best way is an open flexible plan. Post-COVID, that’s how we’ll continue.”

The future office will be like the one CTWM is creating, Quarticelli said.

“You want the office to be a destination. You want those employees to be excited to go to work,” he said. “If we’re going to leave home and go to the office, it’s got to pull some of those things we have at home — the comfortable environment, warm, inviting furniture. When you put those things in the office environment, people will want to stay.”

Environment impacts culture

Tanya D’Addio, director of firm culture at CTWM, is a firm believer that work environment impacts company culture.

“We want the collaboration space to be technically savvy so we connect to our clients and connect efficiently with our team members as well,” she said. “And we want it to be aesthetically pleasing so you feel good about your environment.”

The CTWM renovation is being done in four phases. The first was completing second-floor work stations. The second phase currently underway is the collaboration spaces; the third will be the atrium near the front entrance; and the fourth, refurbishing a lower-level gym and creating a patio space just outside.

The renovation will also include a conference area where Horrigan envisions bringing in business experts to share advice with their clients.

“It’s about connection — connection with your team members, connection with clients, and having a hub virtually but also physically for people to build those relationships,” D’Addio said.

Flexibility is mandatory for the post-COVID office, including flexible furniture and spaces where two or several people can work.

“It’s being able to provide spaces where you can do a nesting table, flip it up if you need to, push it to the side if you’re having a smaller group,” Tara said. “For a larger group, it’s taking those tables back out and setting them up for a training area-type use.”

“We want collaboration and open spaces encourage it,” Quarticelli said. “But we still have to do some head-down, private work so you make the space flexible with simple things like movable partitions, curtains, things that offer privacy but aren’t walls.”

And sometimes it’s making use of what you’re given. Phase Zero Design’s Simsbury office was once a restaurant. When they renovated it, they kept the bar.

“We use it for entertaining or a conference space,” Tara said. “We took over a restaurant and made it our own.”

Still evolving

Jonathan Putnam, executive director in commercial real estate brokerage firm Cushman & Wakefield’s Hartford office, said the transition to the new office space is still evolving. He expects to see more companies look for new office layouts as their leases begin to expire, and some to seek smaller spaces as more people work remotely.

“Companies that have decided to not require everyone to be in the office five days a week are looking at it as more of a gathering space where people can come and interact with their colleagues,” Putnam said. “So they’re looking to make the space more flexible and, from a technical standpoint, a place where you may not have an assigned office or desk, but you could work from anywhere in the office without any technological bumps.”

Putnam said landlords are also aware that the perks companies like CTWM offer can attract tenants.

“That started pre-pandemic and continues,” he said. “Buildings can compete for tenants more effectively if they have a number of amenities.”

Putnam said technology is a top amenity but that companies like CTWM that provide golf simulators and a gym have the right idea. Among the perks he’s seen are outdoor basketball and volleyball courts.

Although COVID has changed how and where we work, businesses need to keep current and one way is through modern office design, Horrigan said.

“It’s important that we attract and retain young employees so we need to make this a place that is enjoyable, that’s fun to hang out with your coworkers, that promotes collaboration, and that gives people a sense that they have a long-term career here so they stay and continue to take care of our clients.”

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