Recently, I've been in touch with Nook Wellness Pods. David O'Coimin, Founder Director asked me if I would like to visit one of Nooks coworking partners here in Dublin to see them in action. So, I went to Talent Garden at DCU in Glasnevin, and now I want to share my thoughts on how they perform as a tool for engagement and inclusivity.

Returning to the office

One of the great things about working from home is being in your own space. Being secluded from your colleagues, if you want to focus on a particular task such as writing or developing slides you can do it, in your own time. However, when you’re in the office, it’s a lot more difficult. You get pulled into conversations, hear one-sided conversations on calls, loud typing from colleagues and the general hum of conversations. All of this results in a lack of focus and reduced productivity for employees, especially people who have challenges around over-stimulation and distractions.

In my opinion, Nook Pods creates the possibility to have a home-like feeling no matter where they are. The Huddle Pod (for two or more people) lets you get away from your desk and have time to yourself to complete the tasks away from distraction. While the Solo booth (for one person – like a phone booth) gives people an enclosed space so that they can focus on their task.

Neurodiversity in the workplace

Autistic people or those with ADHD can often find working in an open plan office difficult. This can be a major barrier to the workplace. It could be one of the reasons that the unemployment or underemployment rate for Autistic people is close to 85%.

In my experience, Nook Pods allow neurodivergent employees to improve their concentration, by offering a space where the employee would be able to focus on the job at hand and be able to stim (regulate themselves) if needed. The Pods can act as a quiet space in the office if they need to de-stress. The Pods can help Autistic employee avoid a build-up of stress or help them to recover more quickly if stress does occur, without drawing attention.

Privacy & GDPR

This is a key aspect of the Nook Solo booth. Every company must comply with GDPR. If there is an employee taking a call, discussing sensitive information and there is no office space available, the Nook Solo booth allows the employee to have a call and discuss sensitive information in a secluded soundproofed space. This makes it the perfect option to improve GDPR for sensitive information.

Audio quality

As you can see from this video from the CEO of Nook Wellness Pods, the sound quality when you are in a Nook Wellness Pods versus outside the Pod is remarkably different. The Huddle Pod allows for greater audio quality due to its panels and fabric, while the Solo booth allows for greater audio quality and recording of voice over work.

This would include podcast recording and allows employees to listen to audio or video if they don’t have headphones, so that they don’t interfere their colleagues’ concentration.

Meeting anxiety

Often being called to a manager’s desk or called into a senior management's office can be a scary prospect for any employee, but particularly for junior employees. The Nook Huddle Pod allows for the employee to have a chat with a colleague, a manager or senior management, in a neutral space, where they won’t be as anxious as stepping into a manager’s office.

Impromptu meetings

Similarly for all employees (not just new, or more junior employees), the Nook Huddle pods allow employees to have impromptu meetings with each other to discuss an idea or proposal, without having to step into office rooms or standing, talking to each other. This allows for greater creativity, innovation and bouncing ideas off each other. This drives ideas and innovation.

Sustainability

Sustainability has been at the heart of the Nook Pods since their creation. All materials used in the creation of the product are reused, recycled, or remanufactured. The responsibly sourced materials increase the life span of the Nook, and the inbuilt solar panels make the unit self-sustaining in terms of producing its own energy. The lower weight of the Nook Pods allows for greater fuel efficiency in transit and all elements of Nook products are easily replaceable.

Affordability

Compared to the alternatives, Nook Pods are relatively affordable ($3,000k-$6,000) and feel like great value for money for offices and education due to their usefulness, flexibility, and longevity.

Customisable

The Nook can be branded in the company’s logo, with adjustable lighting, seats and panelling and every Nook can adapt to the space. This gives the employees of the organisation that purchases the Nook, greater options to satisfy the needs of their own users.

Portable

In addition to being customisable each Nook is also portable. So, it doesn’t need to be in the same place. If you’re in an office with multiple floors, The Nook can be moved to another location if needed.

Downsizing the need for office space

Since the pandemic, a lot of businesses are downsizing their office space, moving offices, or having a smaller office with more of their staff working from home. The Nook Pod allows those in the office to create more office space, as you can have more informal meetings in the Nook while still having specific office rooms for the more formal meetings

Timely delivery

With the current disruption to the supply chain, the fact that there is only a 10-week lead time (at most) means that the efficient delivery of the Nook can coincide with the return to  education or the  workplace.

Increased credibility 

Whether it’s in the area of design, furniture solutions, innovation or in the area of autism resources, the Nook Wellness Pods have won several awards from across Europe and the US. Their products were praised for their inclusiveness, engineering, and their innovative use of space.

Added extras

All Nook Wellness Pods come complete with an adjustable light that can be changed to any colour if needed, and a triple plug to plug in any electronics you may need. In addition, there is a table to rest your electronics on and in the Nook booth, there is a QR code that you can scan to give any feedback that you have.

In general, I thoroughly enjoyed my day in Talent Garden, experiencing the Nook Pods for the first time in all locations and get feedback from others who were using the product. The main positives I took from my day were:

• The comfort levels within the Nook: I have severe back pain at the moment and I’m very sensitive to how soft or hard certain seats are. I was able to spend the day in the Nooks with no issues with my back.
• The increased concentration for tasks: This leads to increased accuracy for spelling and grammar etc.
• I learnt from feedback from staff in the Talent Garden that they are now recommending anyone who needs a private room to use the Nook because it means they can have privacy while not taking up an entire office.
• My marketing mind started taking over and seeing all the uses that Nook could have. They could also be used in libraries for quite reading zones, in hospitals, in schools at study or exam time, or in any modern office space where it could lead to increased collaboration, concentration and productivity.

I’d hugely like to thank everyone at the Nook Wellness Pods and everyone in Talent Garden for giving me the opportunity to experience these amazing products.