Whether you are managing a factory floor or managing a busy office, being able to create a positive place for your employees to work will have a huge number of benefits. Not only does it help your team to be more productive when the office or workspace is set up in the right way, but it also helps to create a space that will help employees to want to come to work. When the set up of their workspace is in disarray or isn’t conducive to help them to achieve their work goals, then it can be so frustrating for employees. So it really does make good business sense to have a workplace that will be fit for your employees to do their job, to do it well, and be happy that they’re there.
With all of that in mind, here are some of the ways that you can create a better environment where you work, for all involved. It can make a big difference, so spending some time investing in it is going to be a good idea.
Talk To Your Team
There can be design trends that you think might be quite easy to follow, or tends in office culture. Think about the recent minimalist looks, as well as getting more plants for the office, or changing the layout of the office completely, as well as things from articles online like Modern Office Spaces In 2018: Everything You Need To Know. But you need to decide what is going to be right for your office, your employees, and for your brand. The Google type of office isn’t going to work for every office, as it will depend on the kind of people you have working in your office, as well as what kind of business your business is.
While you as a manager may have an idea about how you want things to look, it can be a really good idea to speak to your team; what are their preferences? Knowing what they would like, as well as the vision that you have for the workspace, can really help as you bring the ideas together. What kind of things will be best for the office? Does the team want more of a change to the layout, or is it that they’d rather have more team events or social outings? You’ll get some good ideas about the changes that you can make, as well as helping your employees to know that you do value them and want their input.
Adopt Healthy Habits
When you want a business to run well, you need to think about the things that you are doing to help your employees to be healthy and happy. The happier and healthier that your team are, the more that they will be able to be at work and do their job. If sickness is rife, or things like back pain are a common complaint within your workplace, then it is time to make some changes. You can’t have a productive workforce if you are unable to have a full team regularly because of sickness.
There are things that you can do to make the workplace better for employees, though, with adopting some healthy habits. Having desks that are adjustable and proper desk chairs that can also be adjusted help you to eliminate posture complaints or issues with back pain. You could even offer something like the option of standing desks. It won’t be for everyone, but could be just the thing for some of your employees.
Encourage Regular Breaks
Just under half of employees were reported to eat lunch at their desks in recent studies. But how can that be good for the team or even for business? When regular breaks aren’t taken, it can lead to burnout, and even a level of resentment from your team because they feel like they are overworked. And there are studies that show that when people are feeling burned out, it isn’t a good way to help them to be productive. So encouraging your team to take breaks is important. It can be good for their health, as well as being good for business, as everyone will be able to work more productively and get their work done in a timely manner.
Relaxing Space
On a similar note, when you have got space to rest and relax, then it will help with the regular breaks. When there is a space that they can sit at, away from desks, it will encourage them to take a lunch break, rather than trying to power through. It can also be a good place for employees to rest if they are feeling like they’ve got a headaches, or need to take a private call, for instance. It can be hard to find the space in a lot of offices, as the space can be at a premium, but it can be worth finding the space somewhere, even if it used to be used as a meeting room, for instance. For employee happiness and wellbeing, a place to rest is important.
Back To Basics
In order to make sure that you are creating a working environment that is going to help them to thrive and keep your business going, then it is a good idea to go back to basics to make sure that you are allowing your team to work in a safe place. Is the space up to date with fire regulations? Do you have staff trained in first aid or even things like a first aid kit in the office? What about fire alarms? From there you can then assess the things like the heating and air conditioning, to make sure that your team can work at the right level of comfort, at all times of the year. Having one person to check or oversee the building as part of their role could be good to implement, as you’re likely to be unable to do so. Cover the basics and the rest will all fall into place.