For any industry, the success of a business can largely be measured by its employees. When its team is on task and productive, the chance of success is higher and when they are not, the chances lower. In an office environment, the comfort of your employees has a lot to do with their ability to remain productive. Make sure you're creating an environment that is conducive to work.
Create a Good Layout
It's wise to focus on the layout of the space, as a good layout can minimize distractions and keep your employees on task. For starters, try to avoid placing desks or cubicles near high traffic areas, such as the walkway to a bathroom. In these areas, the constant flow of traffic is more likely to distract an employee. Make working areas separate. It's also important to place a reasonable number of bathrooms in the building.
For example, if an individual has to travel a distance to use the bathroom, this will cut down on the amount of time they're productive when you think about the number of trips they have to make in a day. Even if it takes 4 minutes for an employee to get to the bathroom and back, if they're going four times a day, that's nearly 20 minutes of lost productivity.
Choose the Right Furniture
Furniture is more than just an aesthetic enhancement in an office space; they are highly functional pieces of equipment. Furniture must be conducive to the work the individual is doing and promote comfort in order to keep your team productive. For example, when it comes to chairs, always select adjustable office chairs.
The height requirements of each person are different, and if you give a person a chair that is too high or too low in proportion to their height and the height of their desk, they are more likely to have to strain and stretch to use the computer and perform other tasks on the desk. The result of this exerted effort is a strained back that won't just alter their ability to focus while at work, but it could even lead to missed time from work. Choose your furniture selections with functionality and comfort in mind.
As the business owner, it is important for you to understand the impact you have on the overall feeling of the work environment. Make sure you are making purchases and taking steps to create the ideal space for productivity.