Nibletz Staff
The workplace is an asset to your business. Yet it’s one that often goes underestimated by those who don’t put much thought into it. Many business owners don’t pay as much attention to how the environment affects the staff working in it. They ignore the needs that the workplace must fulfill and the benefits it can provide. However, we’re not going to ignore them. In this article, we’ll address how the workplace can really benefit both your staff and your business.
Safety at all levels
No matter the workplace, it needs to be thoroughly assessed for any risks to the health of the employers. In office buildings, checking elements like asbestos, fire and electrical risks is crucial. If your employees are working at great heights, then you need to consider how to implement things like fall arrest. In any business, ergonomics matters, as well. Nowadays, repetitive strain injury is known to be just as much as a risk in the workplace as any kind of falling accident. Safety needs to be a real priority for any business. This means scheduled risk assessments on every level of the business and proper training of employees. From fire safety to equipment handling.
Productivity
There’s a view in some businesses that productivity is all down to the individual. It’s widely accepted nowadays, however, that this view is just plain false. Nowadays, people realize that it’s the processes of the business that can have the biggest effect on productivity. Naturally, that means the environment can have an effect as well. In the workplace, it’s all about the different kinds of space you can offer. There are few spaces that fit all roles. Instead, you need to think about what people need for an individual job. Do they need privacy so they can focus on their work? Do they need a communal space to work on a group project? A diversity of spaces is what’s needed in most modern job roles. It also promotes that people move around the workplace, which is better for their health. If your workplace is a more static one, you can still improve productivity. For instance, reordering desks and resources to fit a map of the workflow. Removing physical obstructions from one part of the job to the next.
Motivation
It’s not just the physical layout of the space that matters, too. You need to consider how it affects employees mentally. For instance, good lighting isn’t just a safety concern. It’s been well shown that sterile, unnatural lighting is a lot worse for motivation than natural lighting. Communication is a vital part of motivation, as well. That’s why, as economic as it might seem, the cubicle crush form of workspace has fallen out of favor.
More consideration must go into how you’re using your workspace. First, how you mitigate any risks it might pose to your employees. Then how it can help them do their work better and even help them communicate better as a team. We hope the points above help you create the workspace you and your people really need.
