Stressed staff. Work left incomplete. Things lost. Documents disappear. General unhappiness. 

 These are not factors or situations that any employer wants to find themselves in but, the sad fact is that work can be a stressful, unyielding place where people feel uncomfortable. When you consider we spend the majority of our week in work, it seems odd that we do not allow as many comforts and benefits to our working environment.

The office is the place where the wheels of business and commerce turn. With uncomfortable employees, many people will choose to seek alternative employment; if the feedback is such that the office is no conducive to high levels of productivity, then you really need to start taking action…

Comfort and productivity are related

Comfort is not about supplying a sofa and a foot massage, there is far more to it than that but, as if often the case, people tend to be allocated working space and furniture with not much thought to its suitability and appropriateness.

So, what can an employer do and do they really make a difference to productivity?

Ergonomic design

Ergonomic design is about creating items of furniture that fits people. We are all different shapes and sizes and thus, some of the items of furniture we use in the office needs to be different. For example, for one person the desk may need to be higher than their neighbour; some people benefit from ergonomic keyboards and so on.

Ergonomically designed furniture and offices minimise physical discomfort but, they also help in minimising distractions. Customising a workspace for that person is a great way of motivating them too. Imagine having a desk is created for you?

Improving layout

Just like some areas of the home, the layout of an office can be something that happens by chance. In other words, someone just put the desk there and that was it – it stayed. Someone put the printer there, and then the coat stand arrived…

This piece meal addition of items happens in offices across the country but just because something has always been there, does not mean it is in the right place.

Objectively view what needs to be frequently used and accessed, and what doesn’t and create the layout of your office accordingly.

Mobile, adjustable furniture

The range of office furniture, and the choice of items have increased immeasurably in recent years. There are now no excuses for not partaking in adjustable, space saving items that can easily reconfigured in to something else. Many open place office, for example, to help minimise distractions and noise, have cubicle booths in which people work. There may be times that these boards and dividers will need moving; remember, nothing need be set in stone! Your office layout needs to change as your business, and employees, changes too.

Noise levels

Productivity can be seriously dented if the noise levels in an office space are too high. It creates a frantic, almost chaotic feel to a space that some may thrive in, but others will struggle to deal with.

Anything from a phone conversation from someone across the way, to the fax whirring, the printing squeaking to people singing, sighing, sneezing and coughing can all create an atmosphere that many people find stressful.

There may be some industries in which this is more common place than others but, if you are serious about productivity levels then you simply must take a moment to consider how the office environment and noise is impact of these levels.

Create habit and routine

Although it is nice to break free from the shackles of routine from time to time, when it comes to office layouts, studies have shown that for some employees, having their own space, arranged in the way they want it is a habit that actually helps productivity.

Familiarity is key to helping people not be distracted by other conversations, the phone ringing in another space or the printer chewing the paper again. Some employers worry about employees being ‘too comfortable’ assuming that this means little work is being done. But, the opposite has shown to be true.

Time for a move round?

Before you start shifting desks and wheel filing cabinets back and forth, before you attempt any move, take a moment to objectively review your space and what it is that is missing, what needs improving and what are the measures that can be taken to improve it.

Include your staff team – what distracts them? What would help them?