The Home Office at Work

Like many people who work from home, Claudia Sutherland began by putting a desk in an unused room, adding some storage, and calling it a home office. But the international culinary consultant, who started her Twin Cities home-based business When the Mood is Food in 1990, knew from the start that she needed significantly more space. Her firm works with food and restaurant companies, including Cargill, Schwan’s, and General Mills, Inc., to develop recipes, market products, design kitchens, and more.

In 1998, Sutherland hired Hansen Hometech, a remodeling firm based in Chanhassen, to remodel her entire home in several phases. The first project was renovating and expanding the kitchen, which Sutherland uses for recipe development and testing.

The kitchen expanded into the dining room and now comprises three separate work areas. The adjacent family room became a great room, which is used for brainstorming sessions with clients. The bedrooms on the main level became guest rooms for the chefs who often come to work at Sutherland’s house. The next major project was the addition of a second level, which now houses Sutherland’s living quarters. In 2005, Hansen Hometech started on the lower level.

The space features a fitness room, research library, and an elaborate teleconferencing and video center. Clients can sit in the stadium-style seating for eight and watch live video—on the 106-inch movie screen—of focus groups or cooking being conducted upstairs. Also on this level is a contemporary office for Sutherland and her part-time assistant, which leads to a patio with a restaurant-style grill for outdoor cooking and dining.

Although Sutherland’s home-based business is out of the ordinary, it showcases the capabilities of today’s home office. Whether you want a space to conduct after-hours work or are hoping to start working from home full time, builders and designers can tailor offices to meet any need.

Space Planning

Although the concept of a home office might not be new, the space’s uses and design have changed. In particular, technology has been the biggest driver behind the home office’s evolution. “One of the interesting things about technology is how pervasive it   has become and how it affects our lives,” says Craig Plekkenpol, owner of Plekkenpol Builders, Inc., a Bloomington remodeling firm. “A higher use of PDAs, docking stations for the iPod, laptops, and other devices that require less space allow for more flexibility for different tasks.”

Home offices are usually located wherever there is space—converted lofts, spare bedrooms, lower levels, and even formal dining rooms. Three common types of home offices have emerged: a “command center” for the entire family, a separate room used for evening and weekend work and children’s homework, and a space that serves as a full-time office.