In any office environment meetings are going to be a common occurrence. Planning projects, meeting with clients, conducting interviews or resolving issues, meetings have a variety of purposes and tones, which is why your meeting spaces should be as versatile as possible.

Office design specialists Penketh Group explain how the right meeting spaces can change the way your business interacts with staff and customers.

A boardroom setting

If you’re having an important management meeting or trying to impress an important client a professional meeting space can be crucial.

A proper boardroom set-up can create a professional work focussed impression. Coupled with the right technology, such as interactive whiteboards and screens to help with presentations and highlighting information, you can create a room designed to impress and help convey the right information to the right people at the right time.

A boardroom doesn’t have to be dull, but it should be clear in its function. Geared towards presentation and more formal meetings as opposed to relaxed sessions and collaboration.

Aside from larger meetings a boardroom provides enough of a formal setting that it could be used for any HR issues, not only to continue the air of professionalism but also to emphasise the importance of the discussions taking place.

Internal, informal meetings

Sometimes a stoic boardroom setting doesn’t work, for an internal meeting something more relaxed, that allows for more effective collaboration and idea sharing is key.

An informal meeting area or break out room is a great addition to any office. Not only does it provide somewhere for staff to get away from the hustle and bustle of a busy office in order to focus on a task, it also provides the perfect space for relaxed discussion and idea sharing.

These rooms are perfect for a team to sit away from the main office to discuss and plan a project without running the risk of disturbing other team members hard at work elsewhere.

As with a boardroom technology plays a huge role in making a room as effective as possible. Power outlets and screens allow people to work uninterrupted. While a round table or more relaxed seating can be huge difference-makers when it comes to promoting a more relaxed atmosphere, perfect for more creative and collaborative thinking.

Interviews and smaller meetings

Interviewing a potential new hire is an opportunity to present your business as you want people to see it. A meeting space that reflects your brand and lets people see the positive sides of your business is a great way to impress an interviewee and help them relax into an interview.

This could be a reception area with a small breakout space included, or a staff canteen that allows people to get a feel for the tone and personality of a business.

Small informal meeting areas are a great inclusion for any business, allowing meetings to take place without taking up an entire boardroom or monopolising a breakout area. Smaller meeting areas are more intimate, and allow for frank discussions. This is perfect for an interview or if a line manager needs to speak with a member of staff in a one to one format, either to discuss an issue or provide feedback and training.

Related: 5 ways to make sure you’re heard in meetings

Different meeting spaces have different uses, adapting the space you have in your office to reflect the sorts of meetings you have means you can make as effective use of your office as possible.

The right seating, technology and spaces can work wonders for productivity and help drastically improve the efficiency of your business, promoting not only stronger collaboration, but also helping you to present the right image to clients, perspective hires and potential new business.