Workplace Branding: How to attract employees back to the office through experiential spatial design

Workplace branding brings together a company’s brand, culture, and physical premises into an engaging, experiential whole. In the era of hybrid work, the office needs to offer added value that a home office cannot replace: a sense of community, sensory-stimulating spatial design (biophilia), and optimal conditions for concentration. Research shows that workplaces supporting wellbeing and a connection with nature increase employees’ willingness to work from the office, improve employer brand perception (eNPS), and increase creativity by as much as 15%. 

Forcing people back doesn’t work: Why returning to the office requires an engaging experience?

In the post-pandemic era of hybrid work, companies are struggling with the same question: why would an employee travel to the office if the same knowledge work can be done from home?

Sterile rows of workstations, artificial lighting, and noisy open-plan offices are no longer enough to justify the commute. If the office offers nothing more than the same screen and keyboard as a home workstation (but with less peace and quiet), the workplace undermines the employee experience instead of enhancing it.

Successful organizations are responding to this challenge with workplace branding. The office is transformed into a place that engages the senses, supports wellbeing, and physically communicates the company’s values.

What is workplace branding and how does it manifest itself in the physical space?

Workplace branding does not mean painting a logo on the wall of a meeting room or buying a ping-pong table for the break room. It is strategic spatial design in which the physical environment supports employees’ everyday experience and wellbeing. 

1. A sensory and restorative environment (Biophilic design)

• Human physiology has not changed even though the way we work has become digital. According to the biophilia hypothesis, named by evolutionary biologist Edward O. Wilson, humans have an innate need to connect with nature.

  • Workplaces designed to support concentration and recovery make use of authentic natural materials, natural light, and living plants.
  • According to the Human Spaces study, people working in spaces containing natural elements report being 15% more creative and 6% more productive than those working in sterile office environments.
  
  
  

2. Health and physiological performance

The office should offer better working conditions than home. Dry indoor air and chemical emissions (VOC compounds) can cause brain fog, headaches, and fatigue.

• Maintaining a natural humidity balance (ideally 40–60%) and clean air activate the parasympathetic nervous system.
• Studies show that exposure to living plants and improved indoor air quality lower resting heart rate and blood pressure (Lee et al., 2015) and reduce the release of the stress hormone cortisol (Hunter et al., 2019).

3. Flexibility and acoustics

An office becomes more appealing when the space can adapt to different phases of the working day:

• Meeting and social spaces: Lounge-style areas that support community and ideation.
• Focus areas: Acoustically controlled spaces for work requiring deep concentration. Plants and green walls act as natural sound absorbers within the space.

How can you create an attractive office effortlessly?

Creating an engaging and health-supporting workplace does not require extensive property renovation.

Active smart green walls bring living nature, purified indoor air, and natural humidity into the workplace. They serve as visual landmarks that communicate to employees and visitors that the company is investing in genuine wellbeing.

Maintenance-free moss walls are the easiest way to add authentic nature and comfort to any space.

Soil-free potted plants are a classic choice for improving the comfort and atmosphere of a space.

• No maintenance responsibility: Naava’s Nature as a Service offering includes spatial design, installation, and regular professional maintenance.
• Scientifically proven effectiveness: An active Naava smart green wall circulates air through root-zone microbes, combining biophilic spatial design with effective biological air purification.

Discover our customers’ experiences!