Cost-Effective Workplace Designs Support Mental Health, Movement and Nutrition

This two-part series discusses a range of health and wellness features that vary in terms of time commitment and cost so tenants can select design approaches that align with their culture and budget. Part one introduced well-being certifications, cautioned against “well washing” and outlined modifications (ranging from minor to robust) that tenants can make related to air quality, thermal comfort, water, lighting and acoustics. The second article, below, provides a range of changes employers can make to support mental health, movement and nourishment.

One third of Americans now show signs of clinical anxiety and depression. Whether it’s something employers feel comfortable discussing or not, employee challenges related to mental health are becoming a greater part of business operations. A key shift that has occurred during the pandemic has been a renewed appreciation for and focus on personal passions, family life and social connection — priorities that “workaholic” Americans want to continue to prioritize in the post-pandemic future. Employers can invest significant sums of their design budget or make modest adjustments to create spaces in the workplace that support employee mental wellness.

Significant changes supporting mental health. Beyond the sensory and stimulus control items listed in the companion article, the most significant remaining spatial tool that can support mental health and balance is biophilic intervention. In design, biophilia — or the need to connect with nature — typically begins with the installation of plants and water features in interior spaces. But other natural elements should also be considered when creating indoor spaces, such as spatial layouts, materials, air movement and lighting patterns.

For example, most open-plan offices or multistory atria provide the “prospect” aspect of biophilia (from our ancestors’ desire to have an open plane to easily monitor for threats at a distance) but lack its critical partner, “refuge.” When surveying that open vista, it’s important people feel shielded from behind — and sometimes above — so they have a limited plane to monitor. Ensuring that floor plans and desk placement provide this “cover” is important in making employees feel safe in the office, so they are not startled or blindsided by approaching colleagues.

The natural environment provides much more dynamism in air movement and lighting patterns than the typical hermetically sealed building. Outdoors, few people would elect to spend the day under the hot sun in a clearing with no shade or breeze. Indoors, the preferences are similar. Most people look for the equivalent of a spot in the dappled and diffuse light under a tree canopy, with a cool breeze on a hot day, or a cozy, sheltered, sun-warmed rock in cold weather. Radiant heating and cooling, a range of thermal environments, glare control (for both natural and artificial light) and a varied lighting scheme that incorporates indirect sources can all help simulate this experience in an office environment.

Repurposing what may be, in the new era, an overabundance of personal workspace into “well-being” spaces such as quiet zones, nap spaces, areas for reflection, or social lounges of varying shapes and sizes will help bring some of the comforts found in the home into the office. These spaces might include lounges that resemble a hotel lobby more than a corporate conference area, replete with coffee and juice bars, as well as comfortable couches and lounge chairs with ottomans, throw rugs and lamps. Partially-walled nooks, with superior acoustic barriers surrounding them, can provide a place to make a private call or just regroup for a moment.

Modest modifications supporting mental health. Setting employee policies and creating workspaces that facilitate and enable them are effective ways to achieve the healthful benefits discussed in this article. However, some budgets don’t allow for modification of physical spaces. In those cases, simply examining certain policies can yield healthful benefits for employees.

Mental health first aid training fosters an understanding of how to respond, in both crisis and noncrisis situations, to help individuals suffering find appropriate care. Providing education about common mental health conditions and communicating candidly about them is also helpful. In general, promoting mental health awareness through signs, newsletters and seminars is a good start.

However, integrating mental health practices into the daily operations and culture of an organization is another matter altogether. To take this next step, suggestions include implementing processes for requesting alternate workspace arrangements, designating workday quiet areas or times and creating employee-generated operational change plans to mitigate work process stressors.

Organizations should also take the time to review travel policies to ensure that red-eye flights and fast-food lunches are not a necessity and review the company healthcare policies rigorously to ensure they provide parity between physical and mental health coverage.

One problem that is widespread across many exhausted employees is a lack of healthy hours. Communicate clearly and in writing that there are no expectations for employees to correspond outside of business hours. Additionally, consider measuring employee results rather than time on site, on the phone or at a desk. Firms specializing in change management offer platforms like ROWE (Results Oriented Work Environment) that help businesses move toward measuring meaningful deliverables rather than time and location metrics.

If an employer can, they should provide child care, elder care and even on-site pet care services. These are all amenities that can be incorporated into a new facility or worked into an existing location.

Another concept to consider is "universal design” which looks to the myriad physical, mental, financial, cultural and other differences among human beings and frames them as alterations that help a variety of users, not just one target group. For example, while the gender-neutral bathroom debate often focuses on transgender individuals, it also helps generate more privacy for many in public restrooms. It can solve for practicalities such as a single parent taking their opposite-gender child or elder to the restroom.

The range of postural positions taken throughout the workday — whether in office, retail, industrial or other settings — is very limited. In manufacturing locations for example, many employees spend most of the workday on their feet along an assembly line, conducting repetitive motions. While it’s currently popular to say that “sitting is the new smoking,” it’s been known for some time that too much standing can damage the musculoskeletal system. As with most things in life, moderation and variety are key to better health.

Significant changes to facilitate movement. Employers can be intentional about the locations they select, choosing properties near walking paths in suburban areas or close to amenities in urban locations. A nature stroll or visit to a farmers market sometimes make for a better pick-me-up than a cup of coffee.

Inside the workspace, there are furniture modifications that can promote movement. Employers should provide informal lounge furniture so employees can change positions beyond a desk, a task chair or the assembly line. Also, consider an exercise room for yoga, meditation or light exercise inside the company premises. With regard to chairs, get the best you can afford. Commercial office offerings are exceptionally designed and ergonomically superior to those from the local office depot.

A “sit-to-stand” desk is now standard issue in office environments. In addition to increasing motion, this enables correct posture for anyone that is shorter or taller than “average.” Desks that allow the entire workspace to rise and fall are preferable for better access to all working materials than just computer stands that move monitors and keyboards up and down. Additionally, if workspaces are unassigned, a variety of station types can be provided throughout the office to suit a range of postures and working modes.

Modest modifications to promote movement. Interestingly, standing work can be done without adjustable desks. Many existing workstations can be raised to standing height by facilities staff or a furniture vendor. For seating, swap out chairs for taller task chairs with a foot ring. Stacking items like books and boxes can provide a standing height surface for laptops or monitors and keyboards. Even some basic education on how to set up your desk for ergonomic excellence can be a huge boon. Similarly, an introduction to NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis) can provide simple ideas about ways to vary movement.

As with more costly plans, achieving more movement requires that employers focus beyond just personal workspaces. Collaboration areas, from formal conference rooms to informal kitchens, should display a range of seating types. Conference rooms present unique opportunities for modest changes that promote movement which some employers are just now beginning to implement. Consider standing-height conference tables with or without chairs, as well as conference areas with lounge seats. During meetings or training sessions, provide permission, with senior staff modeling the behavior, to move about the space.

Significant support for nutritional health. Nutritional health starts at site selection. Tech companies recognize that in high-intensity workplaces the processing power and self-control required to make good food choices is low at best, even if healthy food options are right in front of employees. This can be exacerbated if workplaces are located in food deserts, or areas where fresh foods are not available.

When evaluating locations, if quality food options in the vicinity are limited, several options can supplement them. On-site cafes, farmers markets in lobbies or on grounds or even plots for on-site gardening can provide the opportunity for access to, and a healthier relationship with, a range of nutritional options at work and at home. These amenities can be offered in publicly accessible locations to strengthen an organization’s connections to and relationship with the surrounding community.

Education is also a valuable option — consider hosting quarterly, or more frequent, cooking classes to boost the available repertoire of cuisine consumed by office occupants beyond what their current cooking strengths afford.

Moderate food-related modifications. Building management can help make food-related modifications so employers need not go it alone by providing restaurant-level on-site nutrition to support employees. For those that have never tried it, the amount of goodwill afforded by providing a simple array of healthy snacks can be surprising. Employees appreciate the availability of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seltzer water and more in a quick grab-and-go style. And in terms of costs, employers find that the cost-per-person for a twice-weekly snack delivery is negligible, especially in comparison with (ever-rising) healthcare costs.

If hosting a farmers market is not feasible, an employer can still arrange for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) drop-off at the workplace or coordinate one with building management. While the space and funding for on-site culinary courses may not be available, an employer can still provide online access to cooking courses or healthy cooking websites.

Lastly, the simple provision of a comfortable and attractive place to eat in the workplace should not be overlooked. While the “sad desk lunch” is all too common, eating with friends can provide a boost of camaraderie over a home-cooked meal that is often far more nutritious than what is found at the corner shop.