Multi-tenant offices are currently the number one solution for office construction in Finland. It is not an improved version of an open-plan office, but its whole operating logic is different. A well-designed multi-storey office provides its users with an excellent environment to strengthen the sense of community within the organisation, share tacit knowledge within it and offer a wide range of workplaces from teamwork to focused individual work.

A multifunctional office must be designed for people and their work

Multi-space offices, as the name suggests, offer a wide range of spaces: open-plan office-style workspaces, quiet spaces for concentration, telephone booths and meeting and conference rooms of different sizes. The basic idea is that employees can choose their own workspace depending on the task at hand. The design should always start with the person and their work.

The different areas of a functioning multifunctional office

The area of open interaction
An area of open interaction is often a customer service area for both internal and external customers. This is a public space open to all, where opportunities for encounters and collaboration are good, but opportunities for concentration are relatively poor. In addition to shared spaces, this area often includes workstations for private customer service.

Intensive cooperation area
In the area of intensive cooperation, tasks are carried out where it is beneficial and helpful to be close to other people. This area often consists of various meeting and conference centres where the focus can be on cooperation without disturbing others around.

Intensive individual work area
The Intensive Individual Work area allows for varying degrees of concentration and single-task work. This area is characterised by telephone booths, various retreats and, for example, quiet rooms for both work and rest.

Short-stay area
The short-term drop-in area comprises those spaces and places where people, usually members of a company or organisation, spend short periods of time moving from one facility to another and from one task to another. These inputs include lobbies, coffee machine environments, copy rooms, office supply depots, etc.

When designing a multi-space office, it is worth considering:

Find out what you want from a multi-storey office
It is important to define what is expected of a multifunctional office and why people are moving to a multifunctional office. Whether it is more people-to-people encounters and innovation, or flexibility to accommodate varying numbers of staff.

An effective multifunctional office plan is always based on carefully considered strategic objectives.

Involve your employees in the planning
It is important that employees can participate in the design of their workspaces. If not all employees can be involved, at least representatives from all staff groups using the facilities should be involved.

Participation can mean, for example, workshops or answering questionnaires. These should look at the needs and working patterns of employees now and in the future: what are the company's employee profiles, how many are always on site and how many are mobile? Who works closely together? Who needs a quiet workstation at all times? How much space is needed for external clients? What other activities are organised in the office?

When designing the space and considering how it will be used, it is also important to make the space as easy to navigate as possible, so that employees and customers can easily move around the premises. It is also important to take into account the peace of mind of the employees.

Ergonomics of the premises
Ergonomically sound premises increase work efficiency and employee well-being. A variety of furniture solutions that support active work and working postures create a pleasant acoustic environment.

Common rules for the use of premises
At its best, a multi-user office supports collaboration, interaction and information flow. Some well-functioning MCOs also have jointly defined rules on how to use the space, which contribute to greater peace and consideration for others.

TOP 3 solutions for a functional multifunctional office

1. Quality phone booths
In a multi-room office, you need a space where you can have phone conversations in peace and quiet, without disturbing others. However, there are differences in the quality of telephone booths, and in some workplaces they are not used because of poor soundproofing.
POD PHONE phone boxes are in quality class A of the standard SFS 5904 ”Acoustic classification of spaces in building”. More importantly, the Speech Transmission Index (STI) of our phone booths has been measured at normal speech sound between 0.10-0.15. This means that speech intelligibility outside the POD is poor. When speech intelligibility is unclear, speech variation (single syllables, words and sentences) is difficult to understand. This ensures the necessary privacy.

2. Storage space
Even in a multifunctional office, storage space is important for employees. Papers, computers and other office supplies need somewhere to go, for example, during lunch.
FOCUS is a workstation for private work. Not only is this handy wheeled workstation sound-friendly and visually protective, it also has a lockable space where employees can leave their personal belongings while away. The curved baffle surrounding the Focus acts as a good diffuser of the speech sound reflected from around the Focus.

3. Meeting rooms
The central idea behind the multi-space office is to make space for people to meet.
POINT sofas are sofa modules in different sizes, which you can combine to create the meeting space that best suits your needs. All our sofa pieces are designed with ergonomics in mind: for example, the seat height is the same as a standard office chair, the backrest is slanted backwards to ensure the best sitting position, and although the sofas are soft to sit on, they are stiff enough to sit on for longer periods without sore muscles.

+ 1 bonus solution
TOP LIFT adjustable auxiliary table adapts to the height you need. These desks are just the right size for small office desks, but also work as temporary computer desks or collaboration desks. All TOP desks are sleek and graceful, but built to be durable and sturdy, and won't fall over with even the biggest jostle.