Whether you are the CEO of a financial powerhouse, or a small entrepreneur running their art store, you must feel that the outlook and interior of your workplace matters. Your office design undeniably affects your employee’s morale and managers often tend to overall their office while struggling to keep up with different clients, state regulations and maintaining budgets. Maintaining your office and designing your workspace entails much more than simply hiring a facility manager and a cleaning drains service – it entails a regular and conscious effort towards making your office facilities ergonomic and comfortable for your employees.
1. Have open and flexible workspaces
Long gone are office spaces that featured cubicles for employees and huge air-conditioned cabins for their bosses. The modern workplace is characterized by open office and co-working spaces which essentially feature comfortable chairs and workstations that can be used by any employee at any given time during office hours. The concept of soulless and cold cabins that differentiate between bosses and employees is long gone and has been replaced by open office spaces that maximize floor space and communicate a culture of openness and collaboration.
2. Have dedicated places where employees can relax
In addition to open workspaces, your office should also feature a silent pod – where employees may retreat to in case they need some peace and quiet, multiple meeting and conference rooms, a seating area, a canteen and a nap corner. Most offices in Japan feature nap corners or sleeping rooms where employees can take a timed nap in case they feel too tired or too overwhelmed to work. Not only does this allow the employees to rest if needed, it also allows them to relax their mind.
3. Provide storage solutions
Your employees should have access to well thought storage solutions, and shouldn’t be forced to resort to storing everything on their desk. An overstuffed desk makes it difficult for employees to focus on the work at hand, and causes them to misplace documents more frequently. Your office should feature storage furniture, drawers under desks, cabinets, cupboards and lockers in dedicated spaces to ensure that your employees’ desks are clean and all their paperwork and documents are well stored.
4. Bring the outside in
Our proximity to nature is essential in determining our well being and our overall mood – it is human nature. Certain elements of nature such as natural lighting are proven to improve productivity in employees and hence your office should have plenty of natural sunlight shining through. exposure to sunlight helps regulate circadian rhythms in the human body, improves productivity, and positively affects their mood. Similarly, you should add green plants around the office as many researchers report how greenery improves levels of concentration in employees.
5. Use technology around the office
technology is an integral component of every office setting and it ensures that all employees have required connectivity in order to fulfil their daily tasks. interactive whiteboards, ERP software, communication and management applications such as Slack and Google Workspace are some of the essentials that you need around the office to ensure that your employees have a well-equipped workspace and enough to function smoothly throughout their workday.
6. Use ergonomic furniture around the office
Ergonomic furniture essentially refers to furniture that is designed to support bodily functions and be comfortable for extended human use. It reduces the risks associated with muscle and skeletal problems, joint pain, neck pains, arthritis, etc. Offices should only use ergonomic furniture as employees tend to spend a lot of hours in the office using the furniture, and if the furniture is not ergonomic it could result in health problems and loss in productivity. Ergonomic furniture boosts employee productivity, focuses on their wellness, reduces any back pains they may have, and overall makes them feel cherished and valued.
7. Focus on the color theme
Your office’s color theme is essential to boosting employee morale and communicating work culture. For fun and creative workspaces, the offices should feature a pop of color here and there to instill a culture of creativity and craftiness. If the workspace is for a business in a mature industry such as law, and features a lot of clients and visitors, the offices should be sleek, sophisticated and feature neutral colors such as white, beige and granite.
