Tips for Choosing Conference Room Furniture and Lighting for Boardrooms
According to F. Scott Fitzgerald, "No grand idea was ever born in a conference, but a lot of foolish ideas have died there." (brainyquote.com, 2017 ¹). No grand ideas perhaps, but boardrooms play an important role in any office-based work environment. Having well-equipped and aesthetically appealing conference rooms has a lot of advantages, such as impressing potential clients and guests, improving the work culture amongst employees, and providing an environment for making work plans and taking decisions.
To achieve this, it is important for business owners to follow some tips regarding the design and layout of their conference rooms. Most of these factors revolve around aspects such as conference room furniture, room lighting, aesthetics, etc. Some of these tips are outlined below.
Conference room furniture
The first thing businesses need to keep in mind when it comes to board room furniture is space. Before setting up furniture, it is necessary to take the available space into account and buy the items accordingly. For example, if only a small room is available then, instead of rectangular conference tables that take up a lot of space, businesses can choose to invest in round or oval-shaped tables. The latter can help save a significant amount of space, which can then be used for other conference room necessities like lecterns and storage cabinets.
With regard to the seating arrangement, businesses must ensure that they provide ergonomic chairs. These chairs can provide added comfort to their users and help to decrease the strain on their bodies caused by sitting for long hours in the same position. Being comfortable can contribute towards the participants being proactive in conference and meetings.
Conference room lighting
As well as conference room furniture, businesses also need to consider whether they have the right conference room lighting. Harsh and bright lights can cause strain on meeting attendees’ eyes, which can make them uncomfortable to work or take part in the meeting. Thus, businesses should install soothing lights in conference rooms so that appropriate illumination as well as comfort is provided. The mantra that businesses need to keep in mind is that the lighting should not be too bright or too dull (myvmc.com, 2017 ²). The light intensity should be optimal for the attendees to read any texts and see properly, without the brightness causing too much strain.
Apart from the factors described above, there also are other aspects such as storage components, accessories, aesthetics, etc., that need to be considered. Following any tips associated with these factors can help businesses create a board room that will inspire their staff to contradict F. Scott Fitzgerald and come up with a grand idea!
Sources
- Brainy Quote (2017), "Conference Quotes" [online] available from: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/conference.html [accessed May 2017]
- MYVMC (2017), "Office Ergonomics: Preventing Eye Strain" [online] available from: https://www.myvmc.com/lifestyles/office-ergonomics-preventing-eye-strain/ [accessed May 2017]