Why Workplace Design and Technology Need to Work Together
Squaredot’s acquisition by SPOR Group has been featured in Inavate, highlighting the coming together of Squaredot’s evidence-led interior design expertise with SPOR Group’s workplace technology and AV capabilities. The coverage reflects a wider shift in workplace design: creating effective environments increasingly requires the physical space, technology and user experience to be considered as one connected experience.
The workplace is more than the space around us
When we think about interior design, it is easy to focus on the visible elements of a workplace: furniture, finishes, lighting, colour, materials and spatial layouts.
But the way people experience a workplace extends far beyond what they can see.
Technology has become an integral part of how people communicate, collaborate and work. Meeting rooms rely on video conferencing. Screens support presentations and information sharing. Digital systems help people navigate buildings and spaces. Connectivity underpins almost every aspect of the modern working day.
This means workplace design can no longer consider technology separately from the environment it sits within.
Technology should support the design, not compete with it
One of the challenges with introducing technology late in a workplace project is that the space has already been designed around other priorities.
Equipment then needs to be accommodated.
Screens need somewhere to go. Cameras and microphones need to be positioned correctly. Power and connectivity need to be accessible. Meeting rooms need to work acoustically as well as visually.
When these requirements are considered from the beginning, they become part of the design rather than something added afterwards.
The result can be a more considered environment, where technology feels intuitive and supports the way people use the space.
Designing around behaviour
Good workplace design starts with understanding people.
How do employees actually use the office? Which spaces encourage collaboration? Where do people need privacy and concentration? How often are meeting rooms used? What happens when teams need to work with colleagues remotely?
These questions are just as important when considering technology as they are when developing the interior design.
For example, a meeting room designed for hybrid collaboration needs more than a screen. Its layout, acoustics, lighting, furniture and technology all influence whether people can communicate effectively.
Likewise, a flexible workspace needs technology that can adapt to different ways of working without creating unnecessary complexity for the people using it.
The technology is therefore part of the workplace experience, not simply an installation within it.
Evidence-led design meets workplace technology
At Squaredot, our approach to workplace design is rooted in understanding how people and organisations use their spaces.
Our work combines workplace strategy, space planning and interior design to create environments based on evidence rather than assumptions.
Bringing this approach together with specialist workplace technology creates an opportunity to consider the entire experience more holistically.
It means asking not only “What should this space look like?”, but also:
How should people use it?
What technology will help them work effectively?
How can technology be integrated without compromising the design?
How flexible does the space need to be?
What will the workplace need to support in the future?
How can the physical and digital experience feel consistent?
These conversations are most valuable when they happen early.
Designing for the workplace of tomorrow
Workplace expectations continue to evolve.
Hybrid working has changed how organisations think about meeting spaces. Collaboration technology has become a standard part of the office. Employees expect workplace technology to be intuitive and reliable, while organisations need spaces that can adapt as their requirements change.
This makes flexibility increasingly important.
A workplace should not simply be designed for how an organisation operates today. It should provide a platform that can evolve with changing teams, technologies and working behaviours.
That requires design thinking and technology thinking to happen alongside one another.
A more connected approach
The coming together of Squaredot and SPOR Group provides an opportunity to bring these complementary areas of expertise closer together.
Squaredot's experience in workplace strategy, space planning and interior design can sit alongside SPOR Group's expertise in workplace technology and AV, creating a more connected approach to workplace projects.
For organisations planning a workplace transformation, this can mean engaging with design and technology as part of the same conversation from the outset.
Because the best workplace technology does not simply work technically.
It works within the space, for the people using it and in support of the organisation's wider objectives.
And that is ultimately what good workplace design should do too.
We've pulled together what we're seeing across the market right now, how organisations are actually using their space, where hybrid working is heading, and what's shaping smarter workplace decisions, in The Dynamic Workplace 2026 Report.
It's a useful benchmark whether you're at the start of planning a project or just want to see how your current workplace stacks up.
