Design space, sofas, art and nature. These are the components that the most modern offices in the Czech Republic cannot do without. In the sixth year of the Office of the Year competition, the expert jury selected ten winning spaces where work is done well.
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“Fortunately, last year’s fears of leaving offices in the Czech Republic were unfounded. In contrast to foreign employers, domestic companies have mostly returned to their offices, while global companies have jumped on the partial principle of attendance. Despite the jury’s original concerns, this year was as strong as the previous year – with 70 entries across ten categories and with a high quality of implementation, “says Radek Procházka, founder of the Office of the Year competition and Managing Partner of Prochazka & Partners.
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Indeed, domestic and multinational corporations are increasingly looking at office design and equipment from the perspective of social responsibility and the carbon footprint of the materials supplied. “We regularly encounter the requirement of larger companies that the materials taken have either the smallest possible carbon footprint or be directly produced from recycled materials. ESG issues (Environmental, Social and Governance is an assessment of how companies work for social, environmental and societal goals, note. red.) thus necessarily penetrates into architectural designs and the related selection of materials, or their manufacturers, “says Petr Zahálka, business director of ProInterier and a member of the expert jury of the Office of the Year competition.
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Take a look at the winning offices in 2022:
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Winners of individual categories of the 6th year of the Office of the Year competition
- WPP (Offices of the year over 5000 m2, author: BDG Architects, TaK Architects)
- Zebra Technologies (Best Regional Office of the Year, author: Kyzlink Architects)
- ČSOB (Hybrid Offices of the Year, author: Projektil architekti)
- Poetizer (Small offices of the year, author: Tomáš Císař, Johana Sedláčková Vamberská)
- Adastra (IT offices of the year, author: Holub architekti)
- Allen & Overy (Innovative offices of the year, author: Studio Reaktor)
- Shipping room (21st Century Offices, author: Vrtiška & Žák)
- Clubco (Hub & Co-working offices of the year, author: Studio acht, Vos Interieur)
- BET (Employee friendly office of the year, author: Aulík Fišer architects)
- Socialsharks (Start-up of the office of the year, author: Prochazka & Partners)
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The imaginary next eleventh category is the special Jury Prize, awarded across all entries. Its goal is to appreciate the exceptional contribution to architecture and design. This year, this award went to the Partnership Foundation (author: Projektil architekti).
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This year’s big topic was also the so-called hybrid offices, where the trend of teleworking was accelerated by the ongoing pandemic.
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“From the point of view of function, design, but also office equipment, this creates a larger number of meeting places. The employees then require them to resemble a designer living room or a popular café with their equipment. On the other hand, the number of jobs is declining by 10–20%, ”adds Jiří Zavadil, Managing Director of Vitra and jury member of the Office of the Year competition.
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About the Office of the Year competition
The Office of the Year competition was established in 2016 and is now in its 6th year.
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The expert jury evaluates the interiors in terms of uniqueness and design of the premises, innovations (technological, material, practical), the atmosphere of the environment, and especially the quality of the working environment.
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