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Corporate Interior Design

Aesthetic and Functional Planning

Corporate interior design is the aesthetic and functional planning of the workspaces of a business. This includes offices, boardrooms, reception areas, and other locations used in the day-to-day operations of companies. As with other areas of interior design, corporate interior design creates spaces that facilitate efficiency, while also being safe and aesthetically pleasing. These environments reflect the unique ethos of the company, while also meeting the needs of the employees and clients. Simply put, this can be crucial for the success of the business, so when it comes to business interiors, the stakes are high. Whether you’re looking to redefine your corporate identity, or are looking to emerge as a competitive professional organization, it’s essential to choose an experienced and skilful interior designer that specializes in this demanding field.

Heidi H. Core, RID, IIDA has an immense range of expertise, and over 25 years of experience working closely with her corporate clients to ensure that their needs are met, and expectations surpassed. To learn more about how Heidi Core Interior Design can transform your space and business, contact her Birmingham, Alabama offices. Call (205) 259-8780 or fill out this convenient online form.

Business Interiors and Corporate Interior Design services in Birmingham AL

Why Corporate Interior Design Matters

There’s a lot going on in your offices. Business isn’t just a transaction. The physical environment in which you do business not only impacts how well you are able to present and deliver your services, but also how they are perceived. This extends to the physical and emotional health of employees and the confidence and commitment of clients and investors. A successful business interior design creates a positive experience for all involved stakeholders.

 

Image Is Everything

Regardless of your industry, today’s business climate is competitive. And among the usual suspects of price point, quality of services, delivery speed, unceasing innovation, and technological advances, corporate image is now vying for a spot as a chief consideration. (1)

Your place of business is an essential part of your corporate image. Corporate interior designers are tasked with interpreting what makes your business unique and parlaying that into an appealing and functional environment. Heidi Core spends time with clients learning the values, beliefs, and abilities of the company so that everyone who interacts with your completed interiors is able to walk away with an accurate perception of your corporate identity and confidence in your services.

Choosing a Corporate Interior Designer

It’s worthwhile to remember that interior design firms are also businesses, and the importance of a well-established corporate identity also applies to the field of corporate design itself! When choosing a corporate interior  designer, the image the design firm projects is just as important as:

  • An impressive portfolio of previous projects
  • Experience across a wide array of industries
  • Proven track record of completing projects on time and within budget
  • Ability to interpret and represent the company’s culture in a way that highlights its assets

Heidi Core has completed interior design projects that include both boardrooms and boutiques. Her ability to successfully design across corporate, healthcare, commercial, and hospitality interior design sectors not only shows her versatility and talent but her dedication to showcasing what makes her clients unique.

Value, Satisfaction, and Corporate Identity

Customer satisfaction is one of the many factors that can make or break a business. Your corporate identity plays a large part in how customers perceive the quality of your services, and ultimately decide that doing business was rewarding and will be worth repeating. Business interiors should create an environment that conveys your professionalism while also highlighting what makes your business unique. Setting expectations is just as important as exceeding expectations.

Cognitive theorists and psychologists have studied how customers perceive and expect the quality of services, and how it ultimately influences their satisfaction. One of the leading theories of how this occurs is called the disconfirmation-of-expectation paradigm.

As more and more businesses move away from supplying tangible products and towards information and other intangible services, customers must increasingly base their expectations and perception of value on cues that don’t result from an actual product, but rather how the product or service is being presented, and how those offering the services present themselves- ie. corporate identity. Corporate identity thus becomes the cue that influences how customers assign predictive value, or the quality that they can expect. It also influences confidence value, which is how well the customer believes that they can reasonably expect, and have accurately gauged, the quality that they expect. (2) Having a clearly communicated corporate identity creates the expectations of value that once met, ultimately lead to customer satisfaction.

Workplace Well-Being

Interior Designers have many obligations, and ensuring the safety and well-being of the end-users of their projects is one of the most important. In fact, the Council for Interior Design Qualification administers a three-part exam each part of which is focused on public health, safety and welfare. It considers these the moral and ethical responsibilities for interior designers and candidates must pass this exam before earning certification.

Keeping talented employees feeling happy, healthy and valued is essential for optimal productivity, and corporate culture. Today’s employees place value on the overall experience of working with a company, rather than just their salaries. With the ongoing transitions from in-office to remote work and back again, a welcoming work environment is more of an asset than ever.

Corporate interior designers study how individual employees and entire departments interact in order to create layouts for space that enhances well-being and productivity. A well-designed work environment creates avenues for personnel to alleviate workplace stress and fosters collaboration and productive social interaction. And there’s certainly the research to back this up. Job demand-resource theory, and attention-restoration theory are just two of the models that behavioral psychologists use to explain how interior spaces impact performance.

A well-designed workplace eliminates stressors that place additional physical and emotional demands on employees, and would otherwise lead to an exhaustion of their resources and burnout.(3) This could mean including spaces designed for relaxation and socializing, or just ensuring that lighting and noise control contribute to an ambient atmosphere and productive environment. Natural elements such as atria or other plant features have been proven to lower stress, and improve well-being and concentration. In fact, this is the basis of biophilic design, which has become an important part of healthcare interior design today.

Designing for the Future

Space is a considerable expense for businesses, and a corporate interior designer can help utilize space efficiently so that every square foot is able to be put to use without the space feeling cramped or unsafe. Choosing to redesign a corporate space is an investment, but studies have shown that the returns on this investment can be staggering. Designing for sustainability can help reduce operating costs, and both employees and customers appreciate a smaller carbon footprint.(4) A corporate interior designer not only works to meet the current needs of a business, but anticipates future needs, creating a space that can adapt as necessary to accommodate the corporate interest for many years to come.

Your consultation appointment is the first step in getting your corporate design project off the ground. It’s also the first, but certainly not the last opportunity for Heidi Core to gather the information necessary to begin the many phases of planning that every design project requires. Undertaking a corporate interior design project involves a detailed understanding of the day-to-day operations, corporate identity and culture, and the long-term goals of the business. This also includes the needs and number of clientele and employees that will ultimately be interacting with the space, as well as insight into the limitations and opportunities that the space itself offers. The allocated budget and timeline required for completion also determine the scope of the project.

If you’re ready to make an investment that will impact the future of your business, schedule a consultation with Heidi Core. Call 205.259.8780 to contact our Birmingham office and get started.

After your initial consultation, the design process begins:

  • After extensive research, the interior designer determines and analyzes needs, goals, and relevant safety considerations. She then utilizes knowledge of interior design to determine how these requirements can be met within the space.
  • The interior designer will create preliminary design concepts that are aesthetically and functionally appropriate, while also reflecting the client’s desires and meeting building codes and standards.
  • After implementing client feedback, the designer develops the final design recommendations for approval.
  • Once she’s received approval, she then prepares working drawings and plans for any interior construction and space planning, including lighting, and any other equipment or technologies that your workplace requires. During this phase, she’ll also begin to put together the specifications for interior finishes, while focusing on the materials, furnishings, and fixtures that contribute to the client’s preferred aesthetic. All aspects of the design are chosen and implemented to comply with accessibility guidelines and all applicable codes.
  • Once all the elements of the interior have been approved by the client, sourced, and ordered, Heidi Core will work with a contractor to organize construction and installation. She’ll ensure that the project is kept on schedule and within budget. Once installation is complete, she’ll ensure that everything is up to standards and ready for occupancy so that you can get back to business.

The redesign of your corporate space is the result of extensive research, planning, site visits, and presentations for approval. The client’s input and approval are invaluable resources throughout this process. Heidi Core has a proven track record of interiors that are functional while also being aesthetically pleasing, and contribute to the well-being of the end users and to the corporation.

FAQs

The cost of your corporate design project will depend on the scope of the project, which is ultimately determined by the budget. Working with an experienced interior designer ensures that funds will be used in the most efficient way possible, while stile adhering to codes and satisfying the client’s aesthetic preferences and professional needs. Heidi Core works closely with clients to ensure that these goals are met, and can assist you in determining an appropriate budget for your project during an initial consultation.

Interior designers create spaces that are designed to meet the needs of the people that interact with them, create an aesthetic that promotes wellbeing, and ensure that everything meets safety and accessibility codes. They also coordinate the interior construction and installation of design elements. Corporate interior designers take the needs of a workplace into consideration while also reflecting the corporate identity and culture in the essential elements of the design.

Interior renovation projects begin with a consultation meeting and end once the completed space has been given the final walkthrough. The length of time that this will take depends on the scope of the project, and the time it takes for preliminary design concepts to receive approval.

References

  1. 1.Kyurova, V., & Yaneva, D. (2017). Research on the Impact of the Corporate Image on the Competitiveness of Interior Design Enterprises. CBU International Conference Proceedings, 5, 495–498. https://doi.org/10.12955/cbup.v5.973
  2. Wallin Andreassen, T. and Lindestad, B. (1998), “Customer loyalty and complex services: The impact of corporate image on quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty for customers with varying degrees of service expertise”, International Journal of Service Industry Management, Vol. 9 No. 1, pp. 7-23. https://doi.org/10.1108/09564239810199923
  3. Colenberg, S., Jylhä, T., & Arkesteijn, M. (2020). The relationship between interior office space and employee health and well-being – a literature review. Building Research & Information, 49(3), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/09613218.2019.1710098
  4. FRIEDRICHS, E., & FAIA, F. (2002). Growing a profession. Interior Design handbook of professional practice. New York: McGraw-Hill Education, 4-25.