Many smart & creative ways to use office booths on your floor…

Creative ways to use booths in your office – tl;dr

• A hybrid video meeting space. 76% of companies see upgraded video conferencing as a technology priority. With hybrid meetings now a staple, a pod like hushHybrid that is furnished and equipped specifically for video calls is the all-in-one solution needed.

• A “virtual nature break” space. Digital restorative environments have great potential to support wellbeing, stress reduction, and relaxation. Spending just 15 minutes in a personal, secluded environment like an office pod watching waterfall videos or listening to birdsong can promote serious recovery from work-related stress.

• A game room. Play positively influences creativity. And while the productivity benefits of leisure time are considerable, too, play’s boost to company profitability is exceptionally so. A large acoustic booth like hushAccess.L makes a super recreation space because it insulates all noise inside, preserving the office floor’s quiet, while letting employees kick back completely within, unworried about disturbing others.

• A conversation space. Small talk enriches positive emotions, heightening organizational citizenship behaviors, and raising well-being, while watercooler chat can democratize collaborative conversations by fostering more reciprocity. A pod or booth is a wonderful location for organic chit-chat.

• A one-on-one meeting space. Nearly half of all meetings are 1:1s. Could there be a better environment for intimate correspondence than in a secure and cozy office booth such as hushMeet?

Multifunctional acoustic office cabins — work, meet, and relax

Pods and cabins accommodate many needs beyond strictly work-related ones. They are a professional meeting room as well as a quiet den to decompress. Consider our hushPhone call booth as a model of versatility, functioning as well for calls as it does for immersive work or quick video meetings.

Read more: What tasks is an office phone booth suited for?

Whether hosting team or solitary work, pods improve the office’s soundscape for everyone.

They cater to a range of purposes, all the while enhancing workplace ambiance for everyone’s benefit. For a pod traps all noise made inside, curbing the sheer volume of sound on the office floor. And at the same time, it isolates the user in a quiet oasis, strenghtening their concentration.

Acoustic pods make terrific focus spaces.

A focus space is a space which is quiet and low-stimuli, with minimal auditory and visual happenings. Within it, one can relax totally, uninterrupted. A sound-insulated pod or booth is an impeccable focus space by design.

Employees need focus spaces for intensely concentrative work.

Employees prefer cell-like spaces to open ones for focused efforts, as excess auditory and visual stimuli stresses cognitive functions — working memory, dual-task coordination, etcetera. In extreme cases of sensory overload, both health and performance suffer.

Busy, communal offices, while conducive to certain types of work, hinder task-absorption for the average employee wherever deep focus is required. The struggle of mismatch between workspace and cerebral needs can diminish one’s sense of wellness, their confidence on the job, and, ultimately, their capacity to do the day’s work. This is why office pods and booths present as an effective way to evolve any open-concept office, further realizing its potential. They give an open layout more privacy and calmness, functioning as modernized versions, mobile, prefab, and flexible, of cell-type offices that employees like for deep work according to the research

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

A small booth like hushMeet is a meeting space of the highest caliber.

The data shows that global meeting room demand is up 73% from 2020. Compact team booths like hushMeet make perfect solutions to satisfy this demand, for they are carefully sized and furnished to host a specific number of people comfortably without wasting any square feet.

It is estimated that conference rooms are unused 55% of the time.

Positively, meeting booths make attractive alternatives to conference rooms. They give the privacy and hush expected of a conference room but are quicker to install, mobile and, therefore, adaptable, and more compact.

Booths meet all the important criteria. They are acoustically faultless, giving users a peaceful atmosphere where focus comes easily. And they are private, affording premium speech protection for classified matters. Booths also have a homier feel than conference rooms, which matters at a time when the New York Times deemed conference rooms “the least loved space in the modern office” in a recent article. Its author keenly predicted conference rooms to become smaller, squarer to facilitate a more democratic table with no head, more modular, cozier, more technologically-equipped, and more sound-proofed. Perfectly, these specifications outline a Hushoffice booth exactly

– says Mateusz Barczyk, Senior Brand Manager, Hushoffice.

Studies indicate every generation favors pods to conference rooms, for different reasons.

Traditionalists appreciate their professional look and pure privacy while baby boomers love the personal sanctuary. Gen X revels in the independence a booth gives while millennials favor the “resimercial” feel, Gen Z, the casual quality, liking layouts that suggest transparence.

Read more: What does each generation want from the office?

A Hushoffice booth is a prime place to meditate and de-stress.

Knowledge workers need breaks. Just 20 minutes outside can drop cortisol levels markedly. But when time is tight, the short virtual nature break is a worthy option — 15 minutes in a private, contained space (like an office pod) to watch rainforest videos or listen to a babbling brook.

Virtual nature breaks in the calm atmosphere of a pod can enhance stress recovery.

Interestingly, sessions with both video and audio are most beneficial according to research. And a booth like hushHybrid offers all the amenities needed for such a session as it is delightfully quiet, cocooning, and can be outfitted with a monitor set at the apt height for comfortable viewing.

Private office cabins make excellent breakout areas, too.

Access to breakout areas is strongly related to ease of communication, higher job satisfaction, and improved well-being. Thus, these areas should be incorporated into any open plan to better the employee’s experience. And they can be made into the very best shape, size, and style to serve your team.

A breakout space is an informal area in the office with no set purpose.

In other words, it can be anything, from a game room to a creative studio. Though undefined, a breakout space is in truth one thing universally: made for employees to use it however they see fit. Let’s take a look at a few ideas which pods and booths realize.

A game room…

“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” Indeed, the science linking play to creativity and output is sound. In one study, work recreation increased job satisfaction by 92%! And if the productivity benefits of leisure time weren’t compelling enough, boosted company profitability certainly is.

Large acoustic booths and pods like hushAccess.L make great recreational spaces.

HushAccess.L sound proofs all noise inside. So it protects the broad office floor’s precious quiet while letting employees inside truly kick back. Unworried about being too loud, teammates can reap the research-backed, needle-moving benefits of true play in such a large booth.

A zone for rest and friendly socialization…

Small talk enriches positive emotions, heightening organizational citizenship behaviors, and raising well-being. And watercooler chat is shown to democratize collaborative conversations by fostering more reciprocity. Today’s office evidently needs laid-back spaces for these varied forms of chit-chat.

What makes a good conversation space? Privacy.

A private space such as a hushHybrid pod lets employees speak with entrusted confidence. Physically shielded and acoustically sound, both parties can speak freely, no longer held back by a risk of being watched or eavesdropped on.

A creative studio for the introverted artist…

Seclusion is a pillar of creativity. Contrary to expectations, solitude does enrich creative work, as time spent unplugged in a peaceful spot can sharpen one’s focus on the task. A pod or cabin is the place for anyone in a bustling open-concept office to go for this peace thanks to perfect sound-engineering.

A video meeting space or presentation recording booth…

A 2022 CBRE survey indicated that 76% of companies see upgraded video conferencing as a top-three technology priority. As hybrid meetings have become a staple, pods like hushHybrid — fully furnished and equipped for video calls — have become the all-in-one solution for hybrid working.

A consultation point with colleagues or managers…

Nearly half of all meetings are 1:1s. And notably, direct reports with more frequent and effective 1:1s with a manager are more engaged than their counterparts. Is there a more appropriate place to hold an intimate discussion than in a private, comfortable office booth?

A comfortable place to host webinars…

Webinars can outperform every other sales outlet in conversions due to their interactive personalized, real-time nature. An acoustic cabin like hushHybrid is just the hushed and secluded environment needed to effectively host a virtual event, with zero interruptions for optimized attention.

A small training room for new (and veteran) employees…

63% of employees cited “no opportunities for advancement” as the top reason they quit a job in 2021. Most employees even see lack of growth as worse than poor pay or flexibility. Thus, the office should have a training space like a hushMeet booth where people can upskill and progress, staying happy.

So what do you think? Are you seeing new, creative ways to use booths in your own office space?

Creative ways to use booths in your office space – summarized

• A hybrid video meeting space. 76% of companies see upgraded video conferencing as a technology priority. With hybrid meetings now a staple, a pod like hushHybrid that is furnished and equipped specifically for video calls is the all-in-one solution needed.

• A “virtual nature break” space. Digital restorative environments have great potential to support wellbeing, stress reduction, and relaxation. Spending just 15 minutes in a personal, secluded environment like an office pod watching waterfall videos or listening to birdsong can promote serious recovery from work-related stress.

• A game room. Play positively influences creativity. And while the productivity benefits of leisure time are considerable, too, play’s boost to company profitability is exceptionally so. A large acoustic booth like hushAccess.L makes a super recreation space because it insulates all noise inside, preserving the office floor’s quiet, while letting employees kick back completely within, unworried about disturbing others.

• A conversation space. Small talk enriches positive emotions, heightening organizational citizenship behaviors, and raising well-being, while watercooler chat can democratize collaborative conversations by fostering more reciprocity. A pod or booth is a wonderful location for organic chit-chat.

• A one-on-one meeting space. Nearly half of all meetings are 1:1s. Could there be a better environment for intimate correspondence than in a secure and cozy office booth such as hushMeet?

Office booths – frequently asked questions

What is a meeting booth?

An office meeting booth is a prefab, mobile, and fully contained structure designed for effective meetings in an open-concept workplace. It is acoustic and typically furnished and complete with power outlets and other accessories, making it as easy as possible for employees in an open office to meet privately. Check out the Hushoffice line of booths and pods for more.

What is a sound proof pod for offices?

Sound proof pods for offices come in many sizes and styles but universally provide two things: quietude and privacy. Check out the Hushoffice line.

What does an office pod look like?

A small office pod such as hushPhone for calls looks like a modern telephone booth while larger ones such as hushMeet for gatherings of four people look more like miniature rooms.