5 easy tips to improve your office

We can all agree that the corona pandemic should end soon and that it is limited how much good it has actually brought. However, it can be argued that it has accelerated a development that perhaps should have started earlier.

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The office has been reconsidered

The coronavirus pandemic has caused many workplaces to rethink their offices. The increase in working from home may have left desks empty in the office, as not all employees are coming into the office every day. This could be an opportunity to remove some desks and perhaps create a cozy common area.

This is something that marketing agency Nordic Social, among others, has done. In our upcoming report on the office's development due to Corona, Head of People Caroline Alhof says:

"We've just moved office, so right now it's just walls and black furniture. It's not very cozy, and that's something you can feel from our employees. One of the places we've really settled in is in our reception, which we've turned into a lounge area with a nice big sofa, where it's just a bit more cozy, and that's where people go."

Creativity requires good surroundings

In a workplace like Nordic Social, where the majority of employees are young creative minds with a passion for marketing, the appearance and service of the office has a big impact on employee satisfaction. Caroline's ambition is for the office to be inspiring.

"We are a creative agency, so we believe that being inspired by your surroundings means a lot. So we actually sent everyone home between Christmas and New Year and fixed up the office in the meantime to try to make it more inspiring."

5 easy tips for office improvements

1. Water bottles as swag

Whether you use old-fashioned water coolers, a fridge or a fancier machine to keep your team hydrated, place them in different locations around your office and build a culture around drinking water often. An easy trick is to give employees refillable water bottles as swag.

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2. Put plants everywhere

Look around your current office, are there enough plants? Probably not. As you may know, research has been done on the effects of plants on humans and plants in the office help reduce stress, reduce sickness and absence rates and increase productivity.

3. Create varied workspaces

Different teams in your company will have different tasks and goals, and as a result, different "work styles" will emerge. Some teams will be more talkative than others; some will come into the office later and stay later. Especially in this era of hybrid workspaces, free seating and open floor plans, it can be impossible to provide optimal conditions for every workgroup, which can lead to tension.

Therefore, spend time building or designating certain areas of the office as "quiet" or "collaboration" spaces outside of everyone's individual desk space. People who need to speak up to get their work done can use these areas without feeling like they have to disturb their teammates.

Breaking up the office with cozy communal areas - couches or long tables in the lunchroom - also gives people a ch ance to work in a variety of environments without leaving the office.

4. Organize your space with natural light in mind

In fact, research shows that people who sit closest to windows are more likely to show up to work than those who sit further from natural light. Crazy right?

People aren't meant to spend all day indoors, so the least we can do is increase employees' exposure to light - especially exposing the office to as much natural light as possible.

If well-lit areas in the office are "premium spaces", treat them as such: They shouldn't be reserved for private offices, but used to illuminate your collaboration and common spaces instead. Whenever possible, use glass rather than solid walls to allow light to filter through to other parts of the office. And keep your windows clutter-free - don't let supplies or deliveries pile up on the frames.

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5. Make the office easy to read

Finally, in your efforts to equip your office with the latest technology, games, lounge areas and snacks, don't overdo things to the point where there is no clear demarcation of where certain parts of the office end and others begin. It's important that the office doesn't "flow" together too much. It should be easy for employees to "read" where an area such as the quiet area starts and ends. Office "legibility" improves employee focus and gives them a sense of being valued, so make sure it's easy for people to find others, that social spaces are separate from workspaces, and that each space is used as intended.

The fact is, you don't always need expensive solutions such as meeting booths when your office needs an upgrade. However, start with these easy and cheap 5 tips and see how easy it can be to boost employee happiness with small tweaks instead of big changes.