When people buy a house, they carefully choose the perfect house in the perfect location and spend time decorating until it feels like home. The same process should be used when choosing and designing an office space that fits with your company culture. The days of the “Office Space” cubicles are coming to an end as more and more companies innovate with modern office designs. Not only do these designs look amazing, but they also provide undeniable benefits to a workplace environment.
Photo credit: avlxyz / Foter / CC BY
Cost Reduction
Many business owners may look at this point and scoff. Yes, it takes money to update to a modern office design. But there are many ways to create a friendly office environment without spending Google-level amounts. Office Snapshots makes the very good point that simply updating furniture is a cost-effective office update that revolutionizes the design.
No matter what is done to update your office design, the following points in this post will help increase profits and the ROI on the changes implemented.
Sustainability
Making an effort to go green with office design can save companies a lot of money in the long run. Small changes can be made, from lighting to water saving, to make the building more economical. If building or remodeling an office space, larger sustainable efforts can be made to save even more money and better health. Choosing building materials that are long-lasting can make a big impact on sustainability.
According to Energy.gov, making a building design sustainable can reduce annual energy costs from 30-50%, creating a ROI in five to 10 years.
Adaptable and Larger Spaces
No matter if choosing an open office or modular spaces, modern designs are not limiting themselves on space. Larger spaces take away from that cramped cubicle mindset of past offices. More companies are also choosing modular designs that allow them change and adapt the setting based on the business’ current needs.
Increased Productivity
US News performed a case study where they analyzed the impact of poor office design on productivity. They proved that inadequate designs reduce employee capacity and offered suggestions for improvement. Companies who get creative in their office design to serve the workplace needs of their employees will see an increase in happiness and productivity of their workforce.
Better Employee Well-Being
The traditional office had all things bad for employee health. The modern office understands that sitting all day in a poorly ventilated office with fluorescent lighting can actually reduce lifespan. A report from the World Green Building Council outlines changes to make in an office design to improve the health of employees. This includes natural lighting, better air quality and ergonomic spaces that get people out from behind the desk.
When salaries and benefits make up 90% of what an organization spends, creating an office design that in the end improves employee health and productivity is an investment worth pursuing.
