Skip to main content
Facilitate Magazine: Informing Workplace and Facilities Management Professionals - return to the homepage Facilitate magazine logo
  • Search
  • Visit Facilitate Magazine on Facebook
  • Visit Facilitate Magazine on LinkedIn
  • Visit @Facilitate_Mag on Twitter
Visit the website of the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management Logo of the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management

Main navigation

  • Home
  • News
    • Comment
    • People
    • Reports
    • Research
  • Features
    • Analysis
    • Features
    • Round Tables
    • Webinars
  • Outsourcing
    • Contract Finder
    • Contracts
    • FM Business Models
    • Interviews
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Opinion
    • Procurement
    • Trends
  • Know-How
    • Explainers
    • Legal Updates
    • White Papers
  • Jobs
  • Topics
    • Workplace Services
      • Hospitality
      • Catering
      • Cleaning
      • Front of House
      • Grounds Maintenance
      • Helpdesk
      • Mailroom
      • Manned Guarding / Security
      • Pest Control
      • Washroom Services
      • Disaster Recovery
      • Specialist Services
    • Professional Performance
      • Behavioural Change
      • Continual Professional Development
      • Education
      • Management
      • Recruitment
      • Training
    • Workplace Performance
      • Benchmarking
      • Health & Wellbeing
      • Operational Readiness
      • Procurement
      • Security
      • Workplace User Experience
      • Workplace Culture
    • Compliance
      • Health & Safety
      • Risk & Business Continuity
      • Standards
      • Statutory Compliance
    • Building Services
      • Architecture & Construction
      • Asset Management
      • Building Controls
      • Building Fabric
      • Drinking Water
      • Fire Protection
      • HVAC
      • Landscaping
      • Mechanical & Electrical
      • Building Security
      • Water, Drainage & Plumbing
    • Technology
      • Building Information Modelling
      • CAFM
      • Data & Networks
      • Document Management
      • Information Management
      • Internet of Things (IoT)
      • Software & Systems
    • Energy management
      • Energy Management Systems
      • Electricity
      • Gas
      • Solar
      • Wind
    • Sustainability
      • Environmental Quality
      • Social Value
      • Waste Management
      • Recycling
    • Workspace Design
      • Agile Working
      • Fit-Out & Refurbishment
      • Inclusive Access
      • Lighting
      • Office Interiors
      • Signage
      • Space Planning
      • Storage
      • Vehicle Management / Parking
      • Washroom
    • Sectors
      • Corporate Office
      • Education
      • Healthcare
      • Manufacturing
      • International
      • Retail
      • Sports & Leisure
      • Regions
  • Buyers' Guide
Quick links:
  • Home
  • Sections
  • News
  • Comment
Sections

We can learn from pub design

Open-access content Thursday 6th April 2017 — updated 2.38pm, Tuesday 5th May 2020

11 April 2017 | Nigel Oseland


I'm training to be a beer sommelier and also part-own Haresfoot Brewery, so I receive regular updates on the industry's activities from the Morning Advertiser - the pub trade newspaper. 


I was interested in a recent article, 'Top pub interior design trends for 2017'. I have always thought that the pub offers so much more that can influence office design. 


Traditionally, pubs had several rooms - a public bar, lounge, family room, or snug. Each was differently arranged and furnished for different purposes. Pubs now tend to be open-plan yet they still offer a range of distinct spaces - stools at the bar or around a large 'kitchen table', or secluded nooks with semi-privacy created by screens. The lighting is also selected to enhance each type of space. Raised floor levels, mezzanines and balustrades create zones without partitioning the space. 


The Danish term hygge is gaining traction in workplace design. It refers to comfort and a warm fuzzy feeling. Hygge design can promote well-being, help to re-energise workers and foster social interaction. Pubs offer this and as well as a range of drinks and food, which along with open fireplaces supports our inclination to share.


I've had some of my most creative ideas down the pub. A relaxing eclectic social setting promotes behaviour quite different from that in the sterile corporate world. I know of a few organisations that offer a beer to their staff on a Friday afternoon. It's usually a mix of education and socialising - and both knowledge sharing and social interaction help build trust - a prerequisite to collaboration. 


So it's not surprising that co-working spaces like WeWork offer free beer to members. Co-working spaces are on the increase, but pubs have always provided such space. And co-working in pubs is more appropriate now that just drinking coffee in them is acceptable - and most offer free Wi-Fi. Just choose a nook or snug if you want to work solo or work in the more open areas to network.


Nigel Oseland is is founder of the Workplace Change Organisation and Workplace Unlimited

Also filed in
Comment
Content

You might also like...

Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linked in
  • Mail
  • Print

Today's top reads

 

Latest Jobs

Head of Facilities

Norwich
Market competitive salary with excellent benefits package
Reference
59397

Deputy Director of Estate Services

Newcastle-under-Lyme
£75,000 per annum
Reference
59396

Health and Safety Manager

London (Central)
£50,000
Reference
59394
See all jobs »

 

 

Sign up to our newsletter

News, jobs and updates

Sign up

Subscribe to print

Sign up to receive our bi-monthly magazine

Subscribe
Facilitate magazine cover, June 2020
​
FOLLOW US
@Facilitate_Mag
Facilitate Magazine
Facilitate Magazine
CONTACT US
Contact us
Tel: 020 7880 6200
​

IWFM

About IWFM
Become a member
Qualifications
Events

Information

Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy
Think Green

Get in touch

Contact us
Advertise with us
Subscribe to Facilitate Magazine
Write for Facilitate Magazine

General

IWFM Jobs
Help

© 2023 • www.facilitatemagazine.com and Facilitate Magazine are published by Redactive Media Group. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part is not allowed without written permission.

Redactive Media Group Ltd, 71-75 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JQ