Challenge #39 – Designing Workspaces for Diverse Personalities

Many different types of people make up the fabric of a workspace community – from freelancers to remote workers, entrepreneurs, and corporate employees. It’s estimated that up to 25% of the global population is neurodivergent. Unlike neurotypical people who thrive in open-plan spaces and often have no limit to their social skills, neurodivergent people can feel overwhelmed in busy and loud work environments. 

This might impact an individual to the extent that they withdraw from your workspace entirely, making them feel excluded from your community. 

As coworking spaces exist to nurture their community’s productivity and well-being, it’s worth exploring how far your coworking space is inclusive of your neurodiverse community.  

What is a neurodivergent-friendly workspace?

A neurodivergent-friendly workspace accommodates the needs of the neurodiverse community. It may be a space with multiple workstations for different personalities, including semi-private quiet or focus areas away from the hustle and bustle of the main, open-plan workspace. 

Applying a sensory design philosophy to workspace design evokes feelings of calm, making a space more accommodating for neurodivergent individuals. This involves bringing in neutral colour tones, and natural materials, such as wooden floors, walls, and desks. Comfortable soft furnishings that absorb background noise, and sound-proof materials in booths. Artificial lighting doesn’t have the same mood-boosting qualities as natural light, for greater overall wellbeing. 

Exploring neurodiversity through solutions

This month’s challenge focuses on designing workspaces for diverse personalities. Design is a costly exercise, but there’s no harm in making small changes to your workspace to improve accessibility and inclusivity. 

To explore this further, I’m actioning you to facilitate a co-design workshop. This involves: 

• Learning more about the needs of neurodiverse people, and the environments that help them thrive. As a starting point, Neuroinclusion at Work Report 2024 is a good resource on this topic. 
• Engaging a task force group made up of your community and stakeholders. The co-design workshop (or series of workshops, ideally) involves facilitating space for discussion in a physical or virtual capacity with this group. Prompt your community with questions but generally hand autonomy to them during discussions. 
• Giving space to your neurodivergent community, and making sure everyone feels seen, heard, valued, and respected during group conversations.   
• If you can, make this session interactive by bringing materials to initiate play and problem-solving between participants. Or use digital tools, like a Miro board or interactive whiteboard so everyone can share their thoughts in a central place.
• The co-design process doesn’t have to end. Don’t be afraid to facilitate these sessions as often as you like, this allows your workspace to evolve as your community does. 
• Have fun with the process! Together, you can explore accommodating your workspace for neurodiverse people.

Lucy McInally is an industry writer for the coworking sector and author of The Inclusive Coworker blog, opening up a dialogue around the inclusive and community-oriented nature of the coworking industry, shaped by her own coworking experiences. Lucy joined the coworking industry after completing a Master’s degree in interior design at the Glasgow School of Art, where she explored co-design practices and placemaking in the context of urban design.