Office Design Problems
Is your office energising or stifling? Does it inspire creativity for your staff or provoke frustration? The environment we work in has a huge impact on how we work, yet many businesses underestimate the role of their office design in their performance.
If you’re having widespread staff-related issues with performance, from recruitment to communication then your office is likely part of the problem. However, you can make it part of the answer.
In this article, we’ll go through 5 of the toughest HR and leadership challenges companies in the UK are currently facing, and how workspace design can help resolve them. By the end, you’ll be able to understand the impact of these issues on your business, and you’ll know how to resolve them through your office design.
Low Productivity
It’s no secret that staff productivity is a crucial component of company performance. However, UK staff productivity has actually fallen 3-6% over the last 3 years. The single most important element that determines an employee’s ability to focus is their environment. No matter an employee’s role or seniority, their workspace is crucial.
According to research by Gensler, effective office design can improve staff productivity by 21%. This is a huge improvement that could have a transformative impact on your company. By creating a space that matches the way they work, encourages them to collaborate, and inspires them to be creative, you will get the best out of your people. To learn more, read How to Maximise Staff Productivity with Office Design.
Poor Collaboration
To truly unlock the potential of productive staff, you need to enable them to work together effectively. This is where collaboration comes in. Collaboration is much more than getting people together for a meeting. It’s about working effectively as a team.
By analysing the way your teams work together, you can create spaces to enable that. Informal collaboration spaces for teams of 2 or 3 people have become far more important in recent years. These types of spaces match the way people work in teams. Learn more by reading 5 Ways to Improve Collaboration with Office Design.
Disjointed Culture
Company culture is one of the most intangible yet important challenges that company leaders grapple with. It's very hard to measure and improve, yet it has a jor impact on every part of your company. As the place where your staff come together, it plays a major role in shaping your culture as a company.
So how can office design help mend or improve your culture? Again, making sure your workspace matches the way your people work is essential. By providing spaces that help staff become productive, the atmosphere of your office becomes more energetic. Making sure that the colours and features within your space match your brand will improve culture by giving your staff constant reminders of what your company is about. To learn more about creating an office tailored to your culture, read this article.
Poor Staff Wellbeing
Staff wellbeing has become a serious problem for many companies in recent years. Workers in the UK lose an average of 30.4 working days a year due to sickness or illness-related underperformance, costing the economy £78bn. Unsurprisingly, your office has a huge impact on the physical and mental health of your people.
Redesigning your office can improve staff wellbeing in several ways. Modern offices maximising biophilic design have reported a 30% decrease in sickness-related absences. Ergonomic furniture creates a 45% reduction in staff health issues. To learn more read 9 Ways to Improve Workplace Wellbeing with Office Design.
Poor Talent Attraction and Retention
Making sure you are keeping your best people and hiring the best available people is crucial to the long-term success of your business. Your office plays a crucial role in attracting the best staff to your company. A survey of 1,000 UK office workers found that almost half of respondents agree that the room where they were interviewed would influence their opinion of whether or not to accept a job offer.
Retaining your top staff is just as important as attracting the best people. If your office is a frustrating and unproductive place to work, your best staff will have no shortage of options to change jobs. They can easily work for a company that provides them with the workspace they need.
By providing a unique and enjoyable workplace experience, your top staff will feel appreciated. For staff recruitment, providing a great first impression is essential. Learn more by reading 4 Ways a Great Workspace Can Help Talent Attraction and Retention.
Improving Your Office Design
If you are having any of the issues we’ve just gone through today, then your office will be a key part of resolving them. By creating the environment your people need to thrive, you are setting your company up for success. Creating a great office design can not only help to fix some of the challenges you are currently facing. It can also create a significant return on investment.
To take the next step toward creating an office design that maximises the performance of your people, download the Definitive Guide to Office Design. You’ll get answers to all your key quotes about office design from costs and process to timeframe and outcomes. Get your Office Design Guide here.
To learn more about the impact of your workspace on your company, explore 11 Ways Office Design Can Improve Company Performance, How Your Office is Harming (or Helping) Your Company Growth, and 5 Ways to Unlock Performance Through Your Office Design.