Suppose that the crisis ended and the economic recovery has set in. It’s time for the enterprise to make a feasibility plan to refurbish the office and to make its new appearance a good match with its brand and cultivate strong confidence in customers and staff, who will benefit from the new well-facilitated working space.
REPLACE THE OLD DRESS WITH A SPENDID CLOAK
Of course the replacement of the old dress with a splendid cloak there must be a vigorous body. The first thing that the investor has to take into consideration is to make a feasibility plan for the replacement. There are three important factors that should be taken into account:
Labor force: The enterprise has to define the necessary labor of the increase or slimming down of the labor force after the crisis will be the critical mass of data for the enterprise in order to determine whether to rent more space or to return the there would be no slimming down of labor force after s crisis. In the previous articles, we also suggested that during the crisis, the per capita space was about six square meters per person and it would be better if the ratio was about 10 square meters per person – the standard for a luxurious office.
Budget: The enterprise has to define the supplementary budget for the upgrade. This is a primary important factor.
Priority: Last but not least is to define the order of priority of the areas that need to be upgraded.
Among these factors, budget and priority are closely interrelated with one another.
As for as the budget is concerned, during the crisis, the enterprise could invest 130-150 USD peer square meter. It was not exceptional that a foreign company or a big corporation could invest 350-1,000 USD per square meter. Therefore, to upgrade an office, the financial capacity of the enterprise is the primary condition that the designers need to know.
The experience of one interior design company, which has provided design solutions for 1,700 top-ranking foreign companies indicates the following index:
Most of companies focused on upgrade of the boardroom. It consisted of the extension of the space, the restructure and the decoration of ceiling, the replacement of partitions with new ones, which are made of high quality materials, and the replacement of the old lighting system with a more modern and multi-functional one to create an airy and well-lit meeting room. The old carpet was replaced with a luxurious one to reach a sophisticated combination of color with other appliances as indicated by the corporate culture.
Many other companies focused on the upgrade of the reception area, which is considered the face of a company. The upgrade of this area might lead to the removal of other less important departments to create more space. The next was the decoration of the ceiling with a luxurious lighting system and eye-catching moldings, with generated impressive embellishments and shed more light on the logo of the enterprise and the reception counter. The old carpet was replaced with a new and expensive one. Some of companies even replaced tiled-floor with granite marble or wood. The last was to replace the old sofa with a new and modern one to make the reception area trendy and good looking.
The area for staff was one of the first priorities that concern foreign companies the most. The upgrade of this area began with the replacement of the old carpet with the new expensive one, the extension of the space, and supply of more new cupboards, shelves and partitions. The space would be more beautiful with bonsais, landscapes and posters. All chairs were recovered with expensive material with colors matching other furniture. Stationary items were also replaced so that the new appearance of the office would be more impressive.
The overhaul of the office of enterprises after the economic crisis is presumed to replace its old dress with a splendid cloak. But it should not be known as just to change the appearance. It reflects the revitalization of the enterprise and injects the adrenalin of pride in its brand and prestige into the staff.
The crisis will pass by. Tomorrow will be a nice day. It’s necessary for enterprises to upgrade offices to male them distinctive, luxurious and multi-functional to meet the requirements of the their business boom in the post-crisis period

English version by Hong Trang