‘The way we work and the spaces we use haven’t changed much over time. All this is a bit like riding a bike in the Tour de France, you did it with a bike in 1900 and you do it with a bike today, just better ones.’
Remi Versteeg is convinced that the basic concept of workplaces has changed little over the years. Of course, we have learned from the different approaches. – We have the Action Office to thank for sit-stand desks, telephone booths and lounge chairs. The office landscape brought informal meeting rooms, multifunctional seating and breakout areas – rooms that have no specific purpose but can be used in a variety of ways. The home office arrived with hybrid meeting rooms and virtual offices. – At its core, however, the office is still an office and will remain so for the foreseeable future.
However, now more than ever, companies face the challenge of making their identity visible in order to retain employees and attract new talent. Versteeg urged the audience not to respond by setting up company playgrounds and gyms. He firmly believes that these do not do justice to the function of the office and are almost always interchangeable. Nor does the use of corporate colours in interior design really help to create an identity. The co-founder of Beyond Space gave practical examples of how this can be made visible in other ways. Frequently used elements: art and materials with a reference to the company.
Photo: © Reinier van der Aart
