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Meetings come in all shapes and sizes and so do the conference rooms that host them. Thoughtful design and careful planning ensure you make the most of every gathering in your conference space. Here are answers to top conference room design questions: 

Is Effective Conference Space Important?  

Comfortable and effective conference space impacts how productive meetings are—and meeting productivity is likely a top concern of many of your employees. According to Forbes, poorly organized meetings are a top ten office annoyance, with more than two in three office workers surveyed citing it as a pet peeve.  

Too often, workers are forced to convene in cluttered spaces that are not set up to contribute to productive work. Simple fixes—from including appropriate seating options, to the appropriate number of seats around the table and taking things like storage, hospitality, tech integration and room features that facilitate ideation—can better support using meeting time productively.   

Our experts have prioritized a budget-friendly approach to make your conference space an incubator for productive meetings.  

How do I design a conference room on a budget? 

There’s not a one-size fits all approach to conference room design: What team needs to make conference rooms high-performing spaces varies. Budgeting for your conference room refresh should be driven by what you need the room to accomplish. A simple in-person ideation space versus a video conference destination come with different costs. 

Where should you spend vs. save when outfitting your conference space? 

We recommend starting with what your room needs to accomplish and using that to drive your design and budgeting approach. That said, there are some key areas our customers tend to appreciate spending a bit more and some key areas where we help identify opportunities to save: 

Spend: 

  • Outfitting your space with high-quality; durable options: Your conference space will be a high-traffic area. Ensuring you select commercial-grade options that will continue to look polished and professional over time. Conference spaces tend to show wear and tear faster than other office spaces.  

  • Storage: Adding storage will help encourage employees to keep the room organized. Keeping remotes and cords stashed minimizes the clutter. 

  • A food and bev service area: Including items like a laminate credenza will double as storage and serve as space for a coffee center or buffet lunches. Adding hospitality goes a long way in creating a place where employees feel productive.   

  • Tech integrations: Conference tables with integrated power and wire management will minimize disruptions and keep people powered-up and ready to check off meeting agendas. 

Save: 

  • Buying appropriate conference seating: Don’t over-outfit your conference room with seating. Save the fancy ergonomic features for desk seating. The ideal conference chair is comfortable but not super adjustable because occupants are not often sitting there for very extended periods of time.  

  • Conference tables made from delicate materials: A stylish wood-grained laminate table can provide the warm, residential look and feel and be durable to look great over time in this high-traffic space.  

But the No. place to focus your spend is on seating. Giving people the appropriate conference chair will go a long way in helping them stay focused and productive while in the conference room. 

What are top conference room design mistakes to avoid? 

A top conference room design mistake is overcrowding the space. Squeezing too many chairs around the table likely will hinder meeting participation and effectiveness. Here are some guidelines to help make sure you’re giving conference room users room to do their best work: 

  • How many chairs fit around a conference table: The rule of thumb here is that the table length dictates the number of chairs. A 6-foot table can comfortably seat 6 people; an 8-foot table, 8 people. This holds true for rectangle, racetrack and boat shaped conference tables. 

  • How large should a conference room be: You generally want at least 3-4 feet between the table and the walls on the sides of a conference table. You’ll want more space at the head of the table if the room is meant to hold presentations. You’ll want 5 feet of space for the speaker/presenter.  

How do I design a conference room for video conferencing or virtual meetings? 

Effectively connecting with virtual meeting participants is a top consideration of our customers. Additional considerations for these spaces includes: 

  • Pushing the conference table against a wall to form a collaborative half circle 

  • Including mobile TV stands  

Learn more about conference room design with our Conference Room Planning and Measurement Guide, Collaborative conference room ebook and post on wire management for your conference room. 

 

Conference Rooms
Design & Innovation
Tips

More From NBF

A Safe Return: Conference Rooms

Collaboration and innovation thrives in group settings. Whether it's a discussion amongst executive leadership, strategic team meeting, new hire training, vendor presentation, or a conversation between departments, conference rooms are a central meeting place within any office setting. No matter if it's big or small, modern or minimalist-- your conference spaces may be varied throughout the office or perhaps custom-tailored to fit a myriad of meetings. Whatever the case, a slew of important changes are necessary to make these as safe as possible as you return to work.

National Business Furniture Conference Rooms

One of the primary issues that NBF employees faced at their former headquarters location in Milwaukee, WI was that there were never quite enough conference rooms to house the company’s ever-growing number of workers. In Milwaukee, NBF had four formal conference rooms—one main conference room that was large enough to seat up to 14 people around a 14-foot-long table, and three smaller rooms with enough space to seat six people each. With more than 100 employees working for NBF and that number growing more every year, this just wasn’t enough. And what’s the solution when you need to meet with your team members but there’s nowhere to go? Most employees resorted to meeting at one another’s desks where privacy was at a minimum, or worse—not meeting at all.

Game of Conference Rooms

Game of Conference Rooms

According to a recent article in The Wall Street Journal, the conference room is no longer just a place to hold meetings and take conference calls—it’s a battleground.

Why? A lack of space. With private office space continuously dwindling, meeting rooms are now being utilized more than ever by more individuals. Many meetings used to take place in private offices, which isn’t an option in most modern-day workplaces where private offices are a thing of the past. 

Instead, the conference room takes the place of the private office. With more individuals using these conference rooms, conflicts come in the form of double booking conference rooms, going over your meeting time slot, and having to boot coworkers and superiors who go over time out of the space. This results in unneeded tensions in the office and confusion—both distractions from work that needs to be done.

So how do we solve the battle over the conference rooms? 

Clearly Define Conference Room Rules and Etiquette

A code of conduct for conference room usage can go a long way to dispel unneeded tensions and distractions. It may feel stilted, especially in a company with a more laid-back culture, but it’s an effective method nonetheless. 

Ensure that everyone knows the constraints and how they are expected to act. You can share this information as a company-wide email or a quick meeting detailing the issues and the new rules established to solve them. For example, making it clear that meetings should not go over the reserved time can help people avoid clashes and force more productive meetings. Constraints can be powerful motivators—knowing they only have a half hour to get everything done can keep people focused during meetings.

Create More Space for Meetings

The most obvious way to solve this problem is to add more conference rooms. In some instances, this may be all that is needed. Perhaps there is an unused office that you can easily convert into a meeting space by adding the appropriate furniture items. 

However, we understand that adding another conference room is not a simple prospect for most businesses. Space comes at a premium, and most of it is probably in use. If that’s the case, it’s time to think creatively about how you can use the space you currently have.

Think About the Office Building Beyond Your Floor 

Some office buildings have general conference rooms available for use. Some even offer these spaces free of charge—you simply have to sign up. Consider if this is an option for your company. 

Many furniture options allow you to create separate office spaces. Using dividers and partitions allows you to section off a designated meeting space that teams can use when the other conference rooms are booked. Dividers don’t have to be boring; LOFTwall creates incredibly stylish ways to divide and section off spaces.

Add Collaborative Functionality to the Breakroom

In most companies, the breakroom is occupied for only a few hours each day. This means it stands almost completely empty for most of the day. Outfitting your breakroom with multipurpose furniture will allow teams to use it as a meeting space without disturbing anyone. Consider multifunctional furniture that includes couches and adjustable height tables. With such products, employees can choose how to best use the furniture to suit their needs, whether collaborating or resting.

 

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Karl Boehm

National Business Furniture’s team of experts is dedicated to helping you create a better space to work. We’ll help you find the best information. From office planning and furniture guides to sustainability and workplace trends, we’re here to help.