How to choose an office design consultant for your business

Jeremy Poole

As a business owner, it is important to understand the importance of creating a functional and inviting office space for your employees and clients. However, designing an office space can be a daunting task, especially if you lack the necessary skills and expertise. That’s where office design consultants come in. They can help you transform your vision into a reality by designing a functional and aesthetic office space that meets the needs of your business.

Choosing the right office design consultant can make a significant difference to your employee’s productivity levels, which can ultimately impact the growth and success of your business.

Before deciding on your office design consultant, here are some essential factors that you should consider:

1. Experience and Expertise

When researching potential office design consultants, look for designers who have extensive experience and expertise in designing office spaces. A quality office space should create a positive atmosphere for employees and boost productivity levels; a competent design consultant would only suggest the best choices to optimise these areas.

Prior to making any permanent decisions, ask for references, and look at their portfolio to see examples of their previous work. If there is a case studies section on the website, this is always a good sign. When browsing their previous work, make sure to consider their style, creativity, and attention to detail to make sure the workplace strategy they implement will likely align with your office requirements.

At Building Interiors, we have been collaborating with clients and offering our workplace strategy services for over a decade meaning we have a wealth of experience in the industry. You can browse all of our previous work on our case studies page, here: https://www.buildinginteriorsgroup.co.uk/our-work/

Office blueprint and layout plan

2. Understanding Your Business

A good office design consultant should understand your business needs, brand identity, and culture. They should be able to incorporate these elements into the design of your office space to create a functional and inviting environment.

At Building Interiors, we make it a priority to visit your offices as early as possible to get a full understanding of your business, your requirements, and your future goals to make sure we implement an effective workplace design strategy that will optimise the way your staff work.

Our 3-step process includes:

1. Analysing your business – We start by understanding your needs and goals as a business and take into account any other factors that could influence your workplace strategy.

2. Utilising your space – When it comes to your space, we consider your proximity, privacy, and permissions to create a workplace design strategy that encourages collaboration between your staff.

3. Including your people – The final factor we consider in your workplace strategy, and arguably the most important, is your people. We consider the working style of your staff in the workplace and whether we can adapt your design strategy to help support your staff and their individual working modes.

You can learn more about our process on our workplace strategy page: https://www.buildinginteriorsgroup.co.uk/workplace-strategy/

3. Communication and Collaboration

Communication is also crucial when working with an office design consultant. It’s important that you choose a consultant who is open to your ideas, listens to your needs, and communicates effectively.

They should also be able to collaborate with your team and other professionals involved in the project to create the best possible outcome for you and your staff.

4. Budget and Timeline

Choose an office design consultant who can work within your budget and timeline. Be upfront about your budget and expectations for the project.

From this, a good consultant should be able to provide you with a detailed proposal that outlines the costs and timeline for the project. If you find that certain workplace consultants are known for late deliveries and going over budget limits, their operations may not be reliable and cause you issues further down the line.

It is also important to note that the cheapest quotation won’t necessarily be your best deal. Sometimes, a cheaper cost can mean low quality materials and labour, which can actually cause

you more problems in the future if features need to be replaced sooner than planned.

5. Problem-solving Skills

Finally, choose an office design consultant who has strong problem-solving skills. They should be able to anticipate potential issues and come up with creative solutions to ensure the success of the project.

Workplace Strategy with Building Interiors

Choosing the right office design consultant is crucial for the success of your project. Consider the consultant’s experience, understanding of your business, communication skills, budget, timeline, and problem-solving skills when making your selection.

With the right consultant, you can implement a quality workplace design strategy and create an office space that not only meets your business needs but also inspires your employees and impresses your clients.

Get in touch

If you’d like to discuss our workplace strategy services, along with any of our other design & build services you can contact one of our friendly team on contact@buildinginteriorsgroup.co.uk | 0113 388 6522

Our team will be happy to help!