Considerations for Maximizing Office Space Productivity
Ensuring that your office space layout is conducive to high productivity requires consideration of many factors including the nature of the work, the corporate culture, and the management level of the people. While the optimal workspace can vary among the different types of employees, there are a number of considerations that universally apply to all situations.
Concentration Versus Collaboration
Some companies believe in knocking down barriers between people and that working spaces should be optimal for freewheeling interaction between workers. They believe that creativity springs from environments that encourage the free flow of ideas. In contrast to this, other companies believe their workers should focus on their job without interference and interruption so that they can work at peak efficiency. It turns out that both are right. The wrong solution is to impose either one of the two environments on everyone. Workers often engage in both types of activity.
When concentrating, people require quiet and freedom from interruption. The brain works best at focused activity when its resources aren’t busy processing other inputs such as noise and distractions. Unfortunately, the traditional cubicle often fails to provide this type of environment because it doesn’t effectively block out noise and its lack of a door invites visitors. One solution is to designate quiet rooms for workers who want to concentrate.
Collaboration requires the opposite type of environment that encourages engagement and interaction. It requires a shared work area with the proper tools and resources such as plenty of whiteboards. Collaboration is a necessity for most types of workers whether they are sales, marketing, technical, or management people. Whenever there is a need to share results, to brainstorm, or reach a decision among peers, the collaborative environment is most appropriate.
Logistical Considerations
Resources should be arranged for optimal productivity. This means that tools and resources should be located near the workers who use them so that foot travel is minimized. While this seems obvious, this isn’t always the case. For example, printers and copiers are sometimes located in areas remote from the workers that use them because that’s where the power outlets are located. This sometimes occurs as the result of an oversight or as a quick fix to conflicting requirements.
Employee Options
Provide as many work environment options as possible for employees. This allows them to choose how or where they work in a way that best suits the task they are doing. For example, allowing an employee to leave their usual work area in favor of a quiet room to perform a high concentration task only makes sense.
If you are looking for office space that best suits the needs of your business, contact us today.