Making the Workplace Sound Better: Why Your Office Design Needs a Volume Strategy

As organisations scale or plan a new office fit-out, the question isn’t whether your workplace looks great; it’s whether it’s intentionally designed to support performance and productivity.

Even today, one of the most strategic (and most overlooked) levers to achieve that is acoustics in workplace design.

Welcome to The New Soundscape: a design trend that’s not about eliminating noise, but about controlling sound in the workplace. For growing businesses rethinking their office environment, this isn’t just a design feature, it’s a business-critical investment.

Why Poor Acoustics Are a Risk to Your Business

Where for years the home is a space where people work comfortably, every day or many days a week, the background noise/chatter has disappeared. It was prevalent before the pandemic era, but today people aren’t used to it anymore. 

Modern offices are designed to be collaborative and agile, but if not acoustically balanced, they become a source of frustration and distraction, simply because people aren’t used to it anymore. Without a considered acoustic office layout, growing teams face real risks:

Lost productivity: 

Constant noise leads to focus fatigue and mistakes. Poor acoustic conditions can reduce productivity by up to 66%. (Leesman Index)

Burnout and attrition: 

Just 8 minutes of disruptive office noise can drain mental stamina by 25%, making top performers more likely to check out—or check out entirely. (The Conversation)

Digital silos: 

Noise-heavy spaces force employees to retreat into messaging apps, even when they're a few feet apart. 70% of employees say office noise harms collaboration. (IFMA)

If you're moving offices or planning a new workplace design, it’s time to treat acoustic comfort as a strategic advantage, not an afterthought.

Designing Offices with a Volume Button

Leading organisations are embracing what can be called a volume strategy in office design—treating the workplace like a soundboard that calibrates noise levels to support diverse work styles and activities. This strategic approach recognises that modern work requires zones of sound tailored to different needs.

Here’s how to translate it into a tactical workplace acoustics strategy.

1. Define Your Company’s Unique Acoustic Profile

Before getting into details of acoustic design, such as pods & panels, leadership should understand the workstyle-sound relationship of their team. Ask:

• What exactly contributes to noise on the open workfloor?
• What % of your workday involves quiet focus vs. team collaboration?
• Where are the pain points related to office noise today?
• Do your employees spend significant time on video calls or creative ideation?

Tactical Action: Conduct a Workstyle + Acoustic Audit before any office relocation or renovation. Use observational studies, employee surveys, and utilisation analytics to map the acoustic rhythm of your workplace. This data forms the foundation of a smarter office acoustics plan.

2. Create Tiered Acoustic Zones—Not Just ‘Quiet vs. Loud’

One-size-fits-all layouts fail in modern workplaces. Instead of adding a few phone booths to your open plan, design a layered acoustic environment that enables different work modes. 

Here’s a sample tiering model:

Buzzing Zones Where energy meets exchange	Creative Hubs	Ideal for brainstorms, ideation, blue-sky thinking	Design cues: Open layouts, writable walls, vibrant accents, and acoustic zoning for creative flow
	Workcafés & Pantries	Ideal for casual chats, serendipitous connections	Design cues: Durable finishes, ambient lighting, and social seating pockets
	Informal Collaboration	Ideal for Semi-Formal meetings - ad hoc & scheduled that don’t require privacy	Design cues: Meeting tables with semi-private partitions, writable surfaces, TC screens & charging points
Work Zones The engine room of productivity	Technical Workstation Zones Individual Workstations	Ideal for heads-down work, teamwork side-by-side	Design cues: Ergonomic desks, task lighting, acoustic screens, and layout-driven zoning
	Project Scrums / Creative work Zones / Sprint Zones	Ideal for agile collaboration, team rituals	Design cues: Modular, fully Ergonomic furniture, writable surfaces, semi-enclosed with sound-absorbing walls
Quiet Zones For focus, flow, and deep thinking	Focus Pods	Ideal for deep work, private calls	Design cues: Enclosed pods, high acoustic ratings, and occupancy sensors

Tactical Action: Use decibel zoning when planning your workplace layout. Assign square footage to each acoustic zone based on workstyle data, ensuring conflicting sound levels (like silent and social zones) are separated by sound buffers.

3. Prioritise Materials That Support Acoustic Performance

Acoustic workplace design relies heavily on material selection and layout strategy. Focus on controlling reverberation, minimising sound transmission, and managing background noise.

Key elements include: Having some softer materials in every space or room. All spaces with hard surfaces alone will add to echo & reverberation

• Ceiling and wall panels: Acoustic baffles, PET panels, or perforated wood treatments.
• Flooring: Choose acoustic carpet tiles or rubber flooring in key zones.
• Furniture: Opt for soft finishes, high-backed seating, and modular dividers.
• Layouts: Use enclosed nooks or sound-absorbing features to interrupt noise pathways. Understand the travel path of noise when designing layouts for layout finalisation 

Tactical Action: Make acoustic ratings a core filter in your design-build RFP. Engage your contractor and design partner early to ensure that acoustic planning is baked into the workplace blueprint, not patched in later.

4. Integrate Technology into Your Acoustic Strategy

For hybrid and tech-savvy teams, poor audio quality in meetings is a huge pain point. Sound technology can make or break the experience.

Enhance your acoustic environment with:

• Sound masking systems for large open-plan areas.
• Smart acoustic glass that switches from transparent to sound-controlled.
• Noise analytics platforms to monitor sound levels and guide future layout tweaks.

Tactical Action: Align your acoustic technology plan with your IT and hybrid work strategies. Ensure meeting rooms and open areas alike are optimised for both in-person clarity and virtual sound quality.

5. Build Acoustic Culture, Not Just Acoustic Space

Even with a perfectly designed office, user behaviour can make or break acoustic balance. Leaders must cultivate a workplace culture that respects shared sound norms.

Examples:

• Set meeting-free focus hours each week.
• Use signage to reinforce quiet zones vs. conversation-friendly zones.
• Encourage breaks or social interactions in designated social hubs, not workstations.
• Include noise etiquette in onboarding for new hires + regular comms/reminders for mindfulness

Tactical Action: Establish acoustic policies and rituals aligned with your office layout. Reinforce them during town halls, team offsites, and employee onboarding.

6. Design for Neurodiversity with Sound in Mind

More companies today are committing to inclusive workplaces, and sound plays a big role. Many people with ADHD, autism, or sensory sensitivity find it hard to function in loud or chaotic environments.

Tactical step: Include private nooks, quiet pods, and predictable sound zones to create a more supportive, equitable workspace for all team members.

The ROI of Office Acoustic Design

Treating office acoustics as a design priority results in:

• Increased focus and productivity
• Better hybrid collaboration and meeting experiences
• Greater employee satisfaction and retention
• A workspace that feels aligned with your company’s values

Most importantly, an acoustically balanced workplace becomes a platform for high performance, not a source of cognitive drain.

Sound Is the New Productivity Layer

For companies planning an office relocation, expansion, or full-scale redesign, one truth stands clear: bad acoustics sabotage good strategy. In 2025, investing in office acoustics design is not just smart—it’s a strategic imperative for growing businesses.

When rethinking your next workplace, don’t just ask “How should it look?”

Ask: What should work sound like?