Whether you start a new business or relocate your existing one to a new location, keep in mind that the workplace can directly impact your employees’ overall performance. For that reason, you should try to find ways to design your office for maximum productivity. The environment you work in can significantly influence how you work and your ability to focus. So further in this article, we’ll reveal several simple design tricks that will help you boost productivity in your office.
Ways to Design your Office for Utmost Productivity
The physical environment is one of the most significant factors determining one’s ability to focus and work hard. Even though many believe that AI will take over most the jobs, until and if that happens, you need to take care of your employees and find ways to inspire them to do their best. Here’s how you can do it.
Think about layout
Before you start working on designing your new office space, make sure to thoroughly think about all the challenges and needs of you and your team, as well as your business. Also, you need to consider your company’s culture, different personalities, and, most importantly, your budget. Although it might sound like too much to think about, it’s still the most efficient way to determine the best way to design your office.
For instance, open-plan offices were a massive hit for years. However, studies on this topic have shown that private offices influence employees’ productivity and overall happiness at work in a better way. The good idea is to talk to your employees and ask for their feedback. After all, they’ll know the best in what kind of environment they feel up to the task the most.
Choose right colors
To design your office for utmost productivity, you need to think about colors, too. Each color has a significant effect on our emotions and productivity.
To help you choose, here’s how different colors influence our psyche:
- White – It might come as a surprise, but white should be avoided in an office. As it’s commonly associated with cleanliness, you can use it for the kitchen or open space.
- Black – If you use black too much, it can give your office a sinister feel. However, if you use it as a complementary accent, you can make your office space look luxurious.
- Green – Associated with nature and growth, green is known to improve creativity.
- Blue – Often linked to relaxation and intellectual thought, blue is one of the colors that boost productivity the most. It’s great to implement in your office space.
- Red – A very emotionally intense color is better suited for social areas or pieces of furniture in the office. However, avoid painting the walls red.
- Yellow – The brightest color of all promotes positivity and happiness and could be an excellent choice for your workspace.
Get rid of clutter
Clutter can negatively influence your employees’ mood, creativity, and focus. Overall, it can do a lot of damage to their performance and productivity. Therefore, if you are opening a new business, enforce a “no-clutter rule” and ensure all employees keep their desks organized. They will all appreciate it in the long run.
On the other hand, if you are about to pack your office and relocate to new office space, make sure to declutter before your move. Prepare the entire inventory you want to take with you and get rid of unnecessary things. This will also make packing much easier, and you probably already know that it’s the most tiring part of the moving process.
Invite nature in by improving natural light and adding plants
It goes unless saying that no one can work well if they can’t see properly. Poor lighting can also harm your employees’ physical and mental health. For instance, insufficient light can cause eye strain, fatigue, headaches, stress, and various other issues. So one of the simplest things to do to help your employees work better is to improve the lighting.
The good and the cheapest way to go is to boost natural light. This way, you will help your employees sleep better, which will also positively affect their productivity. A survey published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine confirms this.
Of course, if it’s not possible to install more windows, you can amplify the natural light you already have by adding reflective surfaces such as mirrors or glass furniture pieces. Another way to achieve this is to purchase full-spectrum lightbulbs as they can mimic natural light.
Adding plants is also the best way to influence productivity in the office. They are known to reduce sickness, stress, and noise levels. It might seem like too much of a hassle to take care of them, but there are many low-maintenance plants you can find.
Designate office zones
A good idea for boosting your employees’ productivity is to create different spaces within the offices dedicated to specific tasks. For instance, consider creating collaboration zones such as a break room. There, your employees can relax and talk while exchanging ideas at the same time.
Think about adding a fun zone. Everyone needs some time duration to relax and reset, so a game room could be an excellent way to enable this for your employees. They’ll surely appreciate the gesture. Also, think about dedicating space for a quiet zone where your team can rest and enjoy some peace and quiet. Or, you can even consider creating a private area where employees can do their most important work without being disturbed.
Good word spreads around quickly, so this is a great way to attract a quality workforce and show that you offer good employment opportunities by taking care of your employees’ well-being.
The bottom line
We hope we were able to motivate you to design your office for maximum productivity. Remember, your employees’ well-being and happiness are essential for their performance. By taking care and ensuring they work in a quality and healthy environment, they’ll pay you back with outstanding results.
