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22 design features for an inclusive workplace

In planning a new space or overhauling an existing one, incorporating these design features will help create an inclusive culture and physical environment that works better for everyone.

  1. Provide a wide variety of spaces – some for socializing and others for semi-private or private concentration.
  2. Create active zones and space that encourage movement.
  3. Place work points in low-traffic areas.
  4. Offer dedicated quiet rooms to accommodate intense concentration.
  5. Consider using dividers in appropriate areas to block and reduce noise.
  6. Design acoustically sensitive environments that generate white noise.
  7. Use acoustic dampening materials around loud equipment or noisy areas to alleviate crossover sounds.
  8. Provide work spaces that are not over-lit and that have adjustable lighting levels or areas with varied lighting levels.
  9. Avoid fluorescent lighting and poor-quality LED to reduce flickering.
  10. Ensure access to daylight.
  11. Incorporate natural elements into spaces to create a calming effect.
  12. Provide work spaces that are well-ventilated.
  13. Create non-stimulating color schemes intermixed with areas of high stimulation.
  14. Mitigate stress by avoiding chaotic patterns in work areas.
  15. Prevent sensory overload by creating an ecosystem with different settings and microenvironments that enable people to find the right level of stimulation, be it visual, auditory or physical. For those who are under-stimulated, provide spaces that have hands-on tactile elements and sensations that can assist with focusing.
  16. Design space that is intuitive to navigate and has a sense of order.
  17. Use color strategically to help with orientation and wayfinding.
  18. Emphasize wayfinding cues through repetition of signage as well as consistency and clarity of message.
  19. Create spaces that enable visual connections.
  20. Include distinct, memorable spaces.
  21. Consider providing nourishment stations to help all staff maintain healthy blood sugar and hydration levels.
  22. Consider providing areas for doodling/drawing in collaborative areas.


This is an excerpt from the HOK report “Designing a Neurodiverse Workplace”. You can download the full report here.