Great company: Northern Ireland firm leads the charge in post-pandemic office design with people-centric and the rise of 'resimercial' design

As office environments continue to evolve in the wake of the pandemic, a Northern Ireland company is at the forefront of these workplace changes.

Fitout firm, Calibro, based in Antrim and Belfast, has played a key role in some of Ireland’s most significant office refurbishments.

Led by managing director Ronnie Crawford, Calibro has witnessed significant shifts in office design and culture over the last nine years, from the rise of remote work to the new emphasis on wellbeing and inclusivity.

Speaking on shifting trends in the workplace, Ronnie explained: “We saw a huge shift in how businesses approach their offices after the pandemic. Trends emerged from people working from home, and those trends continue to impact workplaces today.

"People came to like certain features of their home environments, which are now being replicated in office spaces. In the industry we call this ‘resimercial’ design.

“Wellbeing and inclusion also moved to the top of the priority list in office design. Leaders had to ask themselves: how do we create a comfortable, relaxed environment that fosters collaboration and community, and makes people feel good about coming to work? Bringing residential elements into commercial spaces to create a more homely, welcoming environment is absolutely part of that reprioritisation.

“We were already designing spaces like this but a lot of these wellbeing-focused features weren’t as paramount or considered by companies before Covid. The attitude of companies looking for a new or refurbished office space used to revolve around fitting in as many people as possible and making those people productive. That isn’t the case in 2025.

“Calibro’s vision and ethos are driven by employee wellbeing – both for our clients and internally. Clients come to us to make their workplace an attractive proposition for staff as they prioritise wellbeing, diversity and inclusion. I certainly believe that this will only continue to grow in 2025, despite talks about companies scaling back on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies.”

Ronnie and his team have always advocated that the old format of placing staff behind a desk for eight hours a day and applying a one-size-fits-all approach to productivity is out, and prioritising the experience people have in the workplace is in. This, however, comes with its own challenges.

He continued: “A big challenge that comes with this shift is that company owners are not always prepared to listen to their staff, and they also don’t take a realistic approach on timeframes. If employers don’t listen to their staff, and apply tight timeframes, they’ll not have the time to engage their workforces, and this has knock on impact on wellbeing, staff retention and attraction. By taking a ‘traditional’ approach to the design of the workspace, employers will continue to impact the commercial performance and productivity of the business going forward.”

Calibro’s approach to office design puts people at the forefront of the design process. The team provides in-depth surveys and wellbeing audits that will draw out from both managers and staff what they need to not only work productively, but to feel cared for at work.

Ronnie explained: “The biggest difference with Calibro’s approach to office design is that people are key to designing the space. We spend 70% of our lives at work – we simply have to consider what people want. That’s the beauty about our design process; by starting off with the information gathered from our wellbeing audits, we’ve got the content we need to influence our design.

“That being said, we do also look at the forward projections of the company and design for the future as well as the right now. That way, we can design spaces that are flexible, making structures moveable so you can segregate areas and create neighbourhoods in the space, rather than building walls that may need to be taken back down again.”

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Another aspect that the company takes into consideration is neurodiversity. Current reports indicate that over 15% of the UK population are neurodivergent, however, this statistic only reflects those who have a formal diagnosis. Research by Zenbusiness says 53% of gen-Z workers now identify as neurodivergent.

With millennials and Gen Z making up 38% of the global workforce – a percentage that’s expected to rise to 58% in 2030 according to PWC – Calibro looks at the workforce of their clients and will take this assumption forward even when it’s not part of the brief. Ronnie says: “When you cater to the needs of neurodivergent individuals in the workplace, it benefits everyone. There’s no negative to catering to people’s needs.”

So, what should companies prioritise when redesigning their offices in 2025?

“It’s all about wellbeing. It goes beyond the office. We believe that creating a positive and welcoming office environment is key to every aspect of the business and will have a knock-on effect for years to come,” Ronnie added. “When people are cared for and enjoy their work environment, great company culture follows, and businesses will thrive.”