When you're looking for the perfect office space, you take into consideration the location, the square footage, the overall layout and the amenities as you decide whether or not spaces will work for your company. What you may not take the time to think about is how the office space will affect worker productivity, and that can be a big mistake.
Offices can greatly affect how productive your team is because:
1. Collaboration is Key
Decades ago, most office workers did the majority of their work independently, but working styles have changed dramatically since. A study conducted in 2010 found that 80 percent of office workers' daily tasks involve collaboration with others in the workplace. The right office space can facilitate cooperation and collaboration to help workers complete their job duties and special projects more quickly and efficiently. Open floor plans that allow for easy conversation or shared common spaces in an office can facilitate teamwork for an overall boost in productivity.
2. Environment Affects Morale
Productivity can plummet when employee morale is low, and while many factors contribute to the prevailing attitude in the workplace, environment plays a big role. Offices that have an open feel and that provide ample light through both natural illumination that comes in through the windows and electric lighting can have a positive effect on mood. The temperature and air quality of an office space can affect how comfortable workers are while they work and can boost or detract from employee morale.
3. Quiet Time is Sometimes Needed
While collaboration is key to productivity, your employees won't always be working with others during the day. There are often times when employees need a quiet space to concentrate on work and finish it accurately and in a timely manner. Work of a sensitive or confidential nature, such as employee reviews and strategy sessions, may also require more privacy than an open floor plan provides. As a result, office spaces must have shared conference rooms and smaller focus rooms that give teams and individual workers a place to work when the need arises.
4. Technology is a Must
It's virtually impossible to get through a work day in a modern office without using technology. Because more and more workers are on the move throughout the office and on the road during the day, companies are increasingly shifting to the use of laptops and tablets in place of conventional desktop PCs. An office space must be capable of supporting the use of these gadgets, so that workers can be productive and complete their work at their desks, in common spaces and in focus rooms and conference rooms.
This means that offices must have enough electrical outlets to accommodate charging devices and that these fixtures are placed in easily accessible areas. Ethernet ports for wired connections to the Internet are also beneficial. You'll also need to ensure that there is optimal WiFi and 4G cellular coverage throughout the office space, so that workers don't find themselves in dead zones where they can't use their devices.
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