Quantcast
Channel: Administration Site » aaders
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 71

How More Choices Can Fuel Workplace Satisfaction

0
0

Flexible schedules and remote working are just two employee benefits that employees love that are becoming more common as the workforce becomes more mobile. To the list of unusual workplace perks – such as game rooms, catered lunches and gym access – you can add the standing or height adjustable desk.

Why would a piece of office furniture be considered a perk?

Because choice matters.

In a recent ebook from Office Depot – A Quick Guide to Collaborative Workplace Design, which explores how creating the right office space can lead to increased employee satisfaction and productivity – the experts agree that offering choices, even regarding mundane issues like chairs, desks and personal items, leads to increased morale, employees who report feeling healthier and even like they’re getting more work done.

Choice 1: Personalizing the Workspace

Allowing employees some choice in how a workplace is personalized can positively affect morale. Holly Bohn, Founder of See Jane Work, offered expert insights to the guide, including the example of a boss who let her assistant organize using See Jane Work products. The results led to increased morale throughout the office, and the boss admitted to wishing she had allowed the change sooner.

You can see a correlation to this idea in real estate: Realtors like to stage houses that are on the market because staging makes the house look more inviting and feel like someone lives there. When it looks like no one lives (or works) in a place – or at least someone who hasn’t paid attention to aesthetics or the wellbeing of the people who occupy the space – who wants to be there?  This thinking applies to not only your existing staff but future employees, as well.

According to Bohn, “a trend-forward company, pushing the envelope, thinking outside the box – with a workspace that reflects those values – naturally attracts people who are forward-thinking. It can be a great tool for attracting and retaining the right talent and right people.”

Choice 2: The Height-Adjustable Desk

More companies are offering the sit/stand environment – that is, bringing in standing desks (or even treadmill desks) to allow employees to switch from sitting for 8 hours every day to alternating between sitting and standing. There is evidence that appears to indicate that sitting for several hours every day, for weeks and months and years, can have adverse affects on your health and even increase your chance of certain health risks (poor circulation and a bad back among them).

James R. Jutz, Project Specialist with 3M, offered his insights to the guide; he refers to 3M’s work environment as a “strong healthy living model.” 3M, like many other companies, understands the potential connection between the so-called “sitting disease” and the static work environment and strive toward a workplace that is comfortable and designed to help increase productivity.

One method that 3M is utilizing is to install height-adjustable (HA) desks at every workstation. You need to change your posture periodically throughout the workday. Having the permanent solution of the HA desk, asserts Jutz, “allows the employee to choose how much to sit and stand each day.”

Like Bohn, Jutz believes paying attention to such details helps with worker retention and attracting younger talent: Employees and potential employees notice when a company understands the importance of health and the value of choice and how those things may contribute to the satisfaction and productivity of the workforce.

Choice 3: Taking Charge of Your Health

In the 1980s, discussions about workplace setup focused more on ergonomics – on issues like proper posture and adapting the workspace to the human worker – because carpal tunnel and other computer-related injuries were new and becoming more prevalent. In the guide, Thomas Barnidge, Marketing Manager for 3M, explains that today the discussion has switched focus to asking, “How do I help the employee be more productive?”

Many people today are interested in living a healthy lifestyle. If health-conscious people believe there’s a connection between health issues and sitting for hours every day, it makes sense that those people will want to use standing desks, or at least have the option to. In Barnidge’s experience, people who use standing desks tend to feel more focused and alert and that in turn makes them feel more productive.

It’s also possible that employees who believe they’re making healthy choices actually feel better (perhaps a psychosomatic response) – and therefore also feel more focused and more productive.

Before you embark upon a major redesign of your offices, take stock of your current culture. This new guide has useful tips that can help you bolster morale and improve productivity. But you want to make sure you’re taking the right steps that make sense for your organization.


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 71

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images