Creative Workspaces Research Articles

Creative works areas in a Design Studio for the return to use of area after the pandemic situation, Case Study: Interior Design Program, Walailak University

The global higher education design studios in the past have been similar in terms of functionality, both the teaching process and the usage area format, including furniture or supporting equipment. The question is whether the physical appearance of the studio still meets the behavior and needs of users after returning on-site after the COVID-19 pandemic? How should the space arrangements for creative work or design projects be adequate according to the classroom problems? This research was conducted in the context of learning design at the higher education level in Thailand, and therefore the user behavior and requirements of interior design students and instructors were surveyed. The result showed that there were 2 essential patterns of behavior, namely "Creative work-related behaviors" and "non-creative work-related behaviors", which were related behaviors. The study found that before pandemic and post-pandemic spatial needs were not different, as teaching methods and user behaviors remained the same, but there was a clearer need to create suitable environments. When designing creative workspaces within studios, consideration must be given to the layout of the space that supports the behaviors and needs of users, both students and teachers, which may vary across different educational settings or curricula.

Creative Workspace Design as A Form of Local Creative Industries Collaboration in Suryatmajan Tourism Kampong

Pariwisata dan industri kreatif merupakan penggerak ekonomi lokal yang saling berkaitan di Yogyakarta. Pengembangan industri kreatif lokal di kampung wisata Yogyakarta berpotensi memajukan perekonomian masyarakat/komunitas. Kampung wisata Suryatmajan merupakan destinasi wisata baru di kawasan Malioboro, Yogyakarta yang berfokus pada promosi kolaboratif melalui pariwisata kreatif. Penelitian ini mengidentifikasi potensi industri kreatif dan kolaborasi di antara masyarakat dalam creative workspace di kampung wisata Suryatmajan. Selain itu, penelitian ini juga mengusulkan untuk mengeksplorasi peran industri kreatif dalam membentuk jejaring relasi kepedulian dalam kerangka Tourism Social Entrepreneurs. Kajian ini terfokus pada desain ruang kerja kreatif untuk mendukung ekosistem kreatif. Data kualitatif dikumpulkan melalui observasi, wawancara, dan diskusi kelompok. Sementara itu, konsep desain Suryatmajan creative workspace dikembangkan secara kolaboratif dengan menggunakan pendekatan Tourism Experience Design. Hasil evaluasi desain secara konseptual mengusulkan relasi dan posisi creative workspace untuk mempromosikan industri kreatif lokal melalui pengalaman wisatawan dalam konteks pariwisata kreatif. Kata kunci: Industri Kreatif, Kampung Wisata, Ruang Kreatif, Suryatmajan, Yogyakarta

“More than meets the eye”: Unveiling the full potential of creative workspaces in modern organizations

Providing adequate workspaces for employees is now considered crucial for organizational innovativeness in light of evidence that the work environment influences creative behavior. It is unsurprising, then, that companies increasingly seek to implement modern workspace designs based on what is often referred to as “New Work” to support employee creativity. However, designing, planning, and implementing a modern and creative workspace is highly complex. Existing studies report the multiplicity and interplay of organizational variables affected by such changes at the level of the individual employee (e.g., creativity), the team (e.g., communication) and the organization (e.g., culture). To explore whether and how organizational changemakers take account of these variables when designing creative workspaces, we interviewed 20 experts from companies that have recently implemented creative workspace designs and asked them about the objectives and consequences of their new workspace designs. On comparing their answers to findings reported in the existing literature, we found that these organizations were not fully aware of the organizational impact of such changes and failed to consider creativity enhancement as an explicit goal. Concluding that much of the potential of modern workspace design remains untapped, we propose avenues for further research.

Saw the office, want the job: The effect of creative workspace design on organizational attractiveness

Attracting talent is key for every organization. This research introduces a novel way to attract talent: creative workspace design. In two studies with complementary samples and methods, we examine whether, when, and how a firm's creative workspace design enhances organizational attractiveness. In Study 1, we use an experimental design to examine the attraction effect of creative (vs. conventional) workspace design from the applicant's perspective. First and foremost, we find that creative workspace design has a positive effect on organizational attractiveness. Second, our findings reveal two underlying mechanisms that help to explain this positive attraction effect: perceived climate for creativity and perceived innovation ability of the firm. Moreover, findings show that this attraction effect is stronger for highly creative (vs. less creative) individuals and attenuated for high-value (vs. low-value) workspaces. In Study 2, we validate the positive attraction effect of creative workspace design from the firm's perspective by using international survey data on a firm level. Taken together, this work sheds new light on how workspace design influences organizational attractiveness, elucidates why and when applicants are attracted by creative workspace design, and provides actionable implications for practice.

Spatial design factors associated with creative work: a systematic literature review

AbstractThe term “creative space” describes a relatively recent phenomenon of innovative workplace design. Such creative workspaces are becoming popular in industry and academia. However, the impact of specific spatial design decisions on creativity and innovation is not yet fully understood. This paper provides an overview of state-of-the-art research on creative work and learning environments. We conducted a systematic literature search within the Scopus database and identified a total of 73 relevant sources discussing creative spaces within academic, practice, and other innovation environments. Among the included sources are 51 academic publications and 22 sources from company research and illustrative coffee-table books. We analyzed the sources using three lenses of interest: (1) the types of theoretical and practical contributions that are provided, (2) the spatial characteristics that are suggested to be beneficial for creativity and innovation, and (3) the discussed potential of new technologies for designing or researching creative spaces. The results provide in-depth insight into the current state of research on the topic of creative spaces. Practitioners, educators, and researchers can use the presented overview to investigate the possible impact of creative workspace design and identify research gaps that can be filled by conducting further research in the field.

Open creative workspaces impacts for new product development team creativity and effectiveness

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to further explore the relationship between new product development project teams and their workspace regarding the impact of the physical (space variety, indoor environmental quality, large meeting room, workstation) and sociotechnical environments (project commitment, IT environment) on their creativity and effectiveness.Design/methodology/approachThe authors gathered data on an enterprise’s ten multidisciplinary teams operating in diverse workspaces by four means: over 40 interviews and four months of observation, secondary data and a survey with 645 responses.FindingsFor teams co-located on site and abroad, employees express that proximity in open space is paramount even considering the augmented density. The relationship between team effectiveness and team creativity is strong and bidirectional (correlationβ = 0.40****), but the patterns of relationship between these two variables and certain dimensions of the physical and sociotechnical environment are different. There is a positive and direct impact on team effectiveness, but to a lesser degree on creativity which, in turn, positively influences team effectiveness. Moreover, creativity intervenes (mediator variable) between project commitment, satisfaction with large meeting rooms and the IT environment on their relationship with team effectiveness. When the authors added a direct link between the variables and team effectiveness, the model explains 47.1 per cent of the variance.Research limitations/implicationsThe scope of the data is somewhat limited by the time that the company and its teams could allocate to this paper.Practical implicationsThe arrangement of space reinforces employees’ sense of belonging to their team as measured by project commitment which along with satisfaction with the large meeting rooms and IT environment influence both team effectiveness and creativity. Managers could consider these three elements as levers for action. Space variety (or balanced layout) is also a way to support team creativity.Originality/valueEven if open spaces are frequently used, the literature on creative spaces is dedicated mainly to an individual. This paper delivers some results and evidence on the concrete and simultaneous impacts of the workspaces on creativity and effectiveness of multidisciplinary new product development (NPD) team.

Creative Space: A Systematic Review of the Literature

AbstractThis paper provides an overview of the state-of-the-art research about creative work and learning environments. We conducted a systematic literature search within the Scopus database and identified a total of 70 relevant sources discussing creative spaces within academic, practice, or other innovation environments. Among the included sources are 48 academic publications and 22 sources from company research and illustrative coffee-table books that are discussed separately. We analyse the academic sources regarding their theoretical contribution, as well as regarding their scope. Finally, the included sources are categorized according to three areas of interest: (1) the addressed space types for different creative activities, (2) abstracted requirements for creative spaces, and (3) concrete characteristics and configurations of a creative space. The results provide an in-depth insight into the current state of research on the topic of creative spaces. Practitioners, educators, and researchers can use the presented overview to investigate the possible impact of creative workspace design and to identify research gaps for conducting further research in the field.

An Inventory of Creative Spaces: Innovative Organizations and their Workspace

AbstractCreative workspaces are becoming popular in many organizations. They are believed to support innovation efforts and creativity among employees. This paper presents spatial evidences of creative work environments from real-life organizations, based on an exploratory multi-case study in 18 institutions. The found workspaces were mapped and categorized according to the qualities they might provide for affecting creativity. The resulting inventory of creative spaces contributes to the emerging interest on creative workspace design by presenting inspiring best-practice examples. The shown examples provide the readers with a better understanding how a creative space could be designed in order to provide an environment for an innovative organisation. Related literature was added to explain the possible impact of specific spatial configurations.

The spatial context of organizations: A critique of ‘creative workspaces’

AbstractThis paper examines office design as a spatial context of organizations. Organizations increasingly invest in designing workspaces to support employee creativity, foster company innovation and communicate a positive company image. This paper takes a critical view of this ‘hype’ by describing and analysing images of the headquarters of allegedly ‘creative workspaces’ published on the internet across a broad range of industries and corporations. Our analysis shows how their design follows standardized or stereotypical approaches to nurturing creativity: playfully or artistically designed open spaces, environments reminiscent of home, sports and play, nature, past/future technologies, or culturally aligned symbols. We discern underlying connections between office spaces and creativity, suggesting that creativity flourishes in happy, relaxed and playful communities within close-knit teams. We then identify three contradictions in relation to the existing literature on creativity and workspaces: individually versus collectively produced creativity; professionally designed workspaces versus workspaces created through participation; and planned versus emerging creativity.

Creative workspaces – a fad or making real impact?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the current trend of designing workspaces to foster creativity. The paper brings forth themes that seem to be connected with the so-called ‘creative workspaces’. The paper discusses how the findings relate to recent theory and research. Finally, the paper develops propositions to further elaborate the issue.Design/methodology/approachThe paper adopts an inductive and social constructionist approach. In all, 40 internet pictures of workspaces claimed to be creative among a broad range of industries and companies which were analyzed through an aesthetic lens and compared to what theory and research about organizational creativity and space inform us.FindingsThe designs of ‘creative workspaces’ follow a rather standardized and deterministic assumption of what kind of spaces are considered to produce creativity: open offices, happy, playful communities of close-knit teams and spatial arrangements that resemble home, symbols and memories, sports, technology and nature. This view of creativity and workspaces remains a management fad unless a more balanced approach to the issue is assumed.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample is not to be representative and the findings generalizable as such, but to bring forth the phenomenon. This exploratory and inductive approach calls for a systematic study to prove the propositions in a more controlled research setting and with a bigger sample.Practical implicationsThe paper makes a few suggestions of what companies should pay attention to when building workspaces to improve organizational creativity – and to overcome the fad.Social implicationsThe proposed end-user perspective may ultimately save costs, if people can voice their needs on the space arrangements from the beginning and throughout the building process, not only after the spaces are fully complete, as is typically the case.Originality/valueThe paper provides a critical view on the trend of building work spaces to purposefully enhance organizational creativity. It brings forth themes that are connected to creativity and workspace designs and suggests that more nuances are involved in the issue.

Editorial

Editorial