Make the most of your outdoor workspace

What's the purpose of an office if not to bring colleagues together? After several months of a worldwide pandemic, we realized the true value of the office after our absence from it: togetherness.

Sure, the office needs to provide the tools and technology for productivity, but leading companies worldwide are realizing the value in an organization is derived from its people and their ability to co-create and collaborate. Sometimes it's the inspiration you didn’t know you needed from a casual collision with a colleague during a coffee break that sparks the next big idea.

“A long pale grey outdoor worktable with integrated benches sits on a covered terrace, styled with laptops, a monitor, notebooks and coffee, overlooking a green field.

A woman works at a grey Marina outdoor table with a monitor, notebook and coffee mug beside a white vertical divider screen on a sunny terrace.

As we return to a new normal in the office, the spatial design will change but human nature will not. We will seek new, better ways to be together and this is where Extremis always starts the design process - by observing the interaction between people and replicating that behavior in a new design.

Part of the new office will be expanding it outside the four walls of the building - and into nature. With an outdoor workspace you offer a healthy and natural extension to the traditional office, a true asset to every workplace.

Whether you’re creating a safe place for lunch gatherings or offering a healthy spot for working in the open air, consider the following elements to create the ideal outdoor workspace (scroll down).

Two women work outdoors at a long pale grey table on a covered terrace, with a white slatted divider creating a partial screen beside them.

Three colleagues sit and talk on modular outdoor lounge seating under a large flat white shade beside floor-to-ceiling windows and potted trees.

Beautiful boundaries

Nobody likes to work in a huge open space. We like to have furniture, plants or at least some colleagues with a fresh coffee nearby. It creates a lively space, and a cozier environment to be productive in. So, in order to concentrate on the job, you’ll need some boundaries. Creating a somehow private, yet inviting space is easily done with Sticks. Space dividers with a natural feel, providing us that secure cocoon to easily tackle your exploded inbox, one by one.

Read more about Sticks

Creating Shade

Parasols are perfect for creating a spot of shade. Working outdoors has many benefits, but looking ridiculous while constantly eye-squeezing during your next ZOOM meeting isn’t one of them. There are numerous models to consider, from round or rectangular designs to cantilever-style structures.

Discover all Extremis parasols

The office of the future will reach outside the four walls of the building - right into nature.

“Three coworkers sit apart outside a brick office façade on compact outdoor seats, with one working on a laptop and two others talking with notebooks in hand.

Several different postures for seating

Providing several different postures for productivity will stimulate employees to take their work outside without costing efficiency. Whether it’s a long table & height-adjustable chairs for a few hours of responding to emails or a collaborative setting for group meetings, explore various postures for the outdoor office to offer variety & choice. This will break typical unhealthy office routines. And let us tell you, that’s something we all benefit from!

Discover all the different Extremis seatings