Every employer wants his or her employees to be engaged, motivated, productive and efficient. But, did you know that the working environment that you create for them has a lot to contribute in achieving such a workforce?
Well, a healthy working environment allows the employees to enjoy a good quality of life at work. They are happy and satisfied with their jobs, which positively influences their commitment and engagement to their roles. They give their best to record high performance and productivity.
When it comes to an ideal working environment, however, a lot of things are involved. You not only think of the physical layout of the workplace. The atmosphere, how people relate, the work culture among other aspects matter as well. You need to work on all these aspects to ensure that they all come together to create an ideal working environment for your employees. Here are four tips you can use in this area.
1. Create a comfortable physical atmosphere
The physical environment around where the employees work needs to be ideal for the employees to be comfortable when working. If they work in a space where they keep straining their eyes, a place that is overly hot, or on a chair that hurts the back, the quality of their work can go down tremendously.
In this case, ensure that the furniture in the workplace obeys the ergonomic rules. Your employees should be as comfortable in their chairs as possible since they spend most time in them. You can also think of investing in standing desks as well as different types of furniture to ensure that your employees have alternatives. In addition, ensure ample natural lighting and the right temperature in the office. For those who work at night, ensure that the lighting is enough. Consider also the décor at the workplace. For instance, opt for inspiring colors that spike creativity and positive emotions. You can also work with indoor plants that are known to improve any environment.
2. Allow different working conditions
As you are laying out the workspace, it is paramount that you put in mind that different people work well in different conditions. For instance, if your office has an open space setup, there are people who can find it difficult to work in such an environment. The noises from colleagues, the printer, phone conversations and the like can make it difficult for people who like a quiet place to concentrate.
You can think of providing a few closed rooms where such people can work from when they need the quiet. Alternatively, you can allow such people to go out and find an alternative working environment – coworking spaces make an ideal choice. For instance, if you are located in Denver, you can allow your employees to work from one of the reliable coworking spaces in Denver. A different environment can spark a different perspective in a difficult task and increase creativity. Besides finding the quiet, you will notice that employees who often use coworking spaces improve their performance.
3. Offer flexible schedules
One of the biggest struggles the modern worker has to deal with is balancing between work and personal lives. They often find the two colliding or one of them suffering. And, when one side suffers, it can easily affect the mental stability of the individual. We all know that it can be very hard to perform when something is going wrong in life.
If you are to influence happiness among your workforce, you can’t ignore the aspect of your employees finding a better work-life balance. Give your employees a flexible schedule so they are able to take care of issues in their personal life. For instance, you can allow half or full days off within the week so that employees can work in the hours that they feel most productive. You can also think of allowing remote working for those roles that suit the arrangement because digital transformation is a proven solution that more and more employers are embracing.
4. Create team-building spaces
When it comes to an ideal working environment, the emotional well-being of your workers matters as well. It can be difficult to work in a place where team members don’t like each other and are always conflicting among themselves. It is important that you create an environment of cohesiveness and peace. Your employees need to relate well if they are to be good team players. Finding a mentor for them would be helpful, as they would be the go-to person for any possible conflict in the work office.
You can achieve such an atmosphere by creating a space where employees can relate with each other outside the work environment. A breakout room, for instance, allows all conversations to be held. Employees can relax over coffee or lunch and just bond with each other away from work. You can also think of other team-building activities outside work to bring everyone together.
Conclusion
Creating an ideal working environment involves incorporating aspects that can bring out a happy and satisfied workforce. Ensure that you eliminate things that are bound to bring frustrations in your employees and make sure that you know when will COVID-19 forbearance extensions end. A good place to start is to conduct surveys at work and listen to the suggestions that your employees provide.
