The Executive Desk

As the name implies, an executive desk is for an executive. As a result, executive desks are usually large, regal looking, of high quality, and have tremendous functionality.

While the typical desk is usually 6 feet wide and 30 inches deep, this would be a very small executive desk. Executive workspaces are typically eight to nine feet wide and can be as wide as ten and a half feet or more. The depth is usually around 40 inches. Executives have a lot of work and many responsibilities and the larger workspace gives them room to spread all the necessary paperwork out to see the whole picture. An average size desk used by other employees could be limiting to an executive who needs to view multiple reports to make decisions. In addition to the workspace, a larger desk has a bigger personality and can give the executive an edge when meeting others in his office. I would recommend that an executive get a desk as large as can comfortably fit in the office space available.

In addition to size, other attributes of the executive desk give it a regal and strong presence including the materials used. Executive desks are usually made with real wood veneer. You would think that solid wood would look better than a veneer, but the opposite is often true. Because of the way the veneer is cut you can often get a much more beautiful pattern out of the wood than if you used solid wood pieces. In addition, solid wood boards can warp and split with changes in humidity and a veneer covered medium density fiberboard, or MDF will not. Veneers for executive desks are often made from hardwoods and exotic woods like cherry, walnut, maple, ash, oak, sapeli pommele or birds-eye maples. You can choose the wood depending on the color and personality that you want your desk to have.

Because of the use of MDF rather than particleboard and hard or exotic woods for the veneer, executive furniture is usually of high quality. To add to the quality there are usually top coats on the desk surface than will protect the desk from absorbing moisture and even to prevent scratches or marks being put into the desk by metal or heavy objects.