Category: Organisational Aesthetics

I visited a beautiful training room this week but it was hiding several problems. The issues found made me want to share some tips on training room design for architects, interior design team, facilities managers.

The beautiful training room I visited had fancy comfortable seating, very nice wide desks on wheels, natural looking carpet all the modern technology with two big screens in the front that I could can easily log onto. There were also two beautiful side cabinets storing other trainer’s accouterments like post it notes, marshmallows. There was even room for me to store my coat and bags to keep the room tidy.

Style over substance: The impractical training room layout

However one thing I noticed about the room, even though it was large, was the lack of circulation space. The session was originally booked for 14 max but they thought they’d squeeze another two people in. This meant that arranging tables in a U shape pinned everyone to the walls leaving a large expanse of space in the middle. This is not conducive to group working because no one could move around easily.

Style over substance: Training room walls that would not stick

This beautiful training room had deep sage green walls stylishly painted up to seven eights of the wall with a coordinating ivory colour for the last eighth and the ceiling. It reminded me of a beautiful cosey shaker style kitchen. But when it came to me sticking full flip charts up to remind learners of the points we had covered so far it could not be done because the walls seemed to be anti tack. I guess somewhere in the building’s history the facilities manager got fed up of trainers using blue tack to stick things on the walls.

Why training room walls are important

Having anti tack walls is understandable if you have previously spent loads of time and resources getting the cleaners to remove blue tack using the recommended direct heat like a hairdryer on the blue tack itself.

But having anti tack walls creates a corporate learning & development and organisation development problem. You see we trainers need the walls to showcase learning. To show case learning is to have a tangible artifact of ideas generated in the session and that is more than one flip chart stand can do.

How corporate trainers showcase learning

We show case learning in the corporate training room in various ways. We typically (display gallery style) the completed flip charts that everyone has done. Learners throughout the day then reread what some of the ah ha’s and moments of epiphany are within the room at moments that suits them. It helps to reinforce diversity in learning & development.

We also show case collaborative working through the post it notes that get stuck on the walls.

We use the wall to display analytical and creative thinking when working in a group. Walls help to magnify the writing space. Walls expand the written canvas from the individual’s perspective out to the group’s perspective.

Therefore a training room festooned with used flip chart pages and written on post it notes from brain writing sessions, or creation activities or problem solving sprints serves as visible and physical evidence of the individual and group learning work that has gone on in that room.

The Future Design of Corporate Training Rooms

I’ve seen great examples of corporate training rooms as I travel around the world delivering leadership and management development . The more advanced training room decor takes account of trainers/ instructors needing to use the wall by replacing the inner walls with glass panels and providing white tack for the rest of the walls. .

Glass walls are then perfect for sticking sticky flip chart or post it notes to the walls. I’ve also seen other kinds of vinyl decor panel used. Learners can even write directly on the glass walls, which support creativity and enhances the problem solving process.

But ultimately it would be great if corporate office training room designers could consider installing more white boards and screens so that opportunities to showcase learning is on all four walls, without the need for desks.

Leadership and management development consultants/instructors and trainers are now in an era where, we no longer want to get managers in a room where they just sit and stare at one square light at the front of the room for six hours.

We no longer want executive development shaped by the the training room’s limitations. Indeed some of the problems that companies face with with building inclusive working, collaboration or the depth of thinking that is required might be down to the amenities of the training room. The training room is a visible cultural artifact subtly symbolising “the way we do things around here”.

How professionals can make training rooms add value

We now need interior designers and architects of corporate headquarters, campuses and head offices to show deeper consideration of the design of the corporate training room. See my top 10 tips as a summary of this post.

10 Tips to Improve Training Room Decor & Design

1. Room aesthetics are important but should not devalue function
2. Create a room with a view of nature
3. Design in glass panel walls to showcase learning
4. Plants are nice for oxygen and neuro-aesthetics
5. Cabinets could be built into walls so they don’t get in the way of circulation space needed for group work
6. Integrate screens on three walls
7. Install whiteboards on three walls (if no glass walls)
8. Design, plan and build writable four walls
9. Enable table or desk free room for management development suites and executive development zones
10. Always consider how the training room acts to symbolise the desired culture

Please follow for more. Each week for the rest of 2024 I shall be visiting corporate training rooms of all shapes and sizes up and down the UK. I will post more ideas about best practice and ideas for improvements to corporate training room design, decor and space planning, in the weeks to come.

Comment below on your good or bad experience of corporate training room decor.