Your conference room is a place where many business transforming meetings take place. It’s here that you have the space to communicate and collaborate with your team or impress your clients. As a business leader, you’ll naturally spend a lot of time here, as will most of your employees. You’ll need to create a space that enables your productivity and creativity to thrive to the fullest heights. Here a few good ideas you can use to make your conference room a place where the magic happens allowing your business to flourish.
Video Conferencing
With the continued growth of technology, we’re able to access our business systems on-the-go in a way like never before. Businesses are taking advantage of the benefits of cloud computing to allow employees access from multiple devices while away from the office. It’s commonplace with such advancements to have more remote employees or freelancers. Many businesses will also have to find ways of efficiently communicating with stakeholders, associates, and clients. There will be times when you want to meet and they’re not physically able to come into the office. This is why so many companies are embracing video conferencing. There are many software programs available that offer video conferencing, screen sharing or interactive whiteboard options. Wherever you or your employees are, you can still join in on the collaborative experience and be an integral part of any meeting.
Design-wise
The design of your conference room can contribute to how efficiently you use the space. Productivity and motivation can excel if your space is designed right. You’ll need to ensure your furniture is chosen to facilitate collaborative work as much as possible. A wood conference table, that’s well designed and selected carefully to suit the space you have, can be the ultimate staple of a beautifully designed conference room. When you’re selecting furniture, you’ll need to make sure there will be enough space for everyone to fit. It’s also a good idea to think about the acoustics of the room, depending on how big or small a space you have to work with.
You’ll want to be carefully considering your color scheme depending on the image you want to portray. You may be wanting to create a sleek and minimalist look with a focus on black and white color schemes. However, perhaps you would prefer to design the room using the colors of your brand instead.
Bring in some nature
Some studies have indicated the presence of plants in the workplace can serve to boost productivity, enhance moods and also purify the air to make for a greener and healthier space. Investing in a plant or two for your conference room could be a very wise but inexpensive decision. Peace lilies, for instance, are beautiful and they grow in low lighting while also cleaning the air of toxins. Snake plants are also a good option for the office; their long spiked leaves create a bold-design feel.
Interactive whiteboards
Using interactive whiteboards in the conference room provides a lot of benefits. It allows for full collaboration because everyone in the room will be able to access the whiteboard via their own devices. You’ll also be allowing your remote employees to contribute too, which is vital as you want everyone who is a part of your business to have the same opportunities regardless of how and where they complete their work.
Keep It Flexible
Your ideal meeting space will likely depend on your type of company and your working styles. Allowing yourself flexibility when you’re designing your meeting room is critical. If your company branding and working style have a relaxed (yet productive) feel, then there’s nothing wrong with soft seats, open plan styles or even background music. You won’t want to create a conference space that contradicts your working styles, so keep this in mind.
If you are planning a redesign, the best thing to do is to brainstorm a few ideas between you and your team before you jump in. Close your eyes and imagine just how you want the conference room to be. Picture yourself meeting with your team there. Write down the must-haves along with a few style and color ideas and make your design concepts come to life. You’ll be setting yourself up to design a space that will allow for your team to be creative and innovative keeping your business moving forward. Here’s to YOUR success!
Carolyn R. Owens has over 25 years of proven experience and serves as a Career Strategist, Leadership and Life Coach. She is the Chairwoman and CEO of Infinity Coaching, Inc. where they help you up-level your skills so you can up-level your income. Infinity Coaching, Inc. provides one-on-one and group coaching, organizational training, and personality assessments. Carolyn is certified to give both The Energy Leadership Index Assessment and Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Assessment. You can find out more about both assessments and other products and services at https://infinitycoaching.net.
