The big topic of conversation around the proverbial water cooler this week is… drumroll… whether our company is going to invest in a jungle gym. It seems that adult-sized climbing frames are hot on the heels of slippery dips as the latest in covetable office infrastructure, and will mark us as both an innovative trendsetter and sought-after place of employment.

It sounds pretty good to me, to be honest. Despite my cynical inclinations, I can see how this could potentially be of benefit. I often feel a need to stretch and move at the office, and there a limits to what can be done in at toilet cubicle. Adding something like this encourages casual bouts of creative physical activity in a sanctioned and contained way.

Not that I’m any kind of expert in the art of the custom office fit out. Melbourne workspaces have, in my experiences, tended towards the conventional, often picking up on trends but rarely starting them. To my knowledge, this would be a fairly innovative step into the design stakes, and one that I could actually get behind – definitely moreso than that whole beanbag workstation fad. I need more movement in my workday, not less.

What are your thoughts on designer office interiors, Melbourne office dwellers? Specifically, what do you think of the way workspaces are evolving away from being purely utilitarian to being more – dare I say it – fun-oriented? I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if some people saw this trend as a step in the wrong direction – a mere distraction from making actual improvements to working conditions, like enabling genuinely flexible hours or more realistic workloads in high pressure jobs.

The only thing I’m not sold on about the jungle gym idea is putting it in the main meeting room, and placing a ball pit underneath it. That, to me, is a step into the realm of distraction. By all means, have the thing in plain sight and encourage people to use it, but perhaps limit its use during client meetings. We’re a law firm, for crying out loud.