The office is the hallmark of any company. A comfortable office reflects the financial well-being of the company, demonstrates a certain level to visitors. The first impression plays an important role in deciding on cooperation, therefore, the combination of convenience and aesthetics of the office can be considered as one of the tools for achieving business success.
In addition, a comfortable office demonstrates management’s policy of caring for employees, which is a significant factor in helping to increase and strengthen staff motivation. By following this, many email marketing agencies near me have become quite successful.
What should be a comfortable office?
A person spends a significant part of his life at work – about ten years, therefore one of the tasks of management is to maintain a comfortable environment so that employees can work effectively without spending time and energy on adapting to ill-conceived working conditions.
Of course, comfort is a rather vague concept, largely dependent on personal preference. However, if you wish, you can follow several trends used to create a comfortable environment in the office.
The office concept is based on the principles of the corporate culture
The well-chosen interior reflects the features of the company’s business style If space corresponds to the company’s mission, employees are more easily involved in the work process, imbued with the values of the organization. Compare:
The company “Warby Parker”, specializing in the production of glasses (everyday items), uses various methods of bringing employees together: informal dinners, events. In the design of the premises, there is little newfangled technology and modern materials, but there are massive tables, table lamps that create a feeling of home comfort.
Consider the world-famous company “Google”, whose mission is to make all the world’s information accessible and convenient. The organization of personnel management is distinguished by the provision of a high level of freedom. Open spaces, bright colors, unusual details, like an ottoman-bag instead of a chair or a bicycle for moving around the office, are characteristic of Google’s workspaces.
Personal space
In recent years, the open type of office layout is gaining more and more popularity. The absence of walls between offices visually expands the area, facilitates communication, helps employees feel part of a team with equal rights and opportunities, especially if the “most important boss” works in the same room, and not in a separate office. Otherwise, the psychological atmosphere acquires a less favorable connotation: a clear division appears: “we” and “he”.
However, in spite of the fashion for openness, sociability, and stress resistance, not all of us are extroverts who can easily withstand the presence of other people for many hours. However, even an extrovert will not be happy with the perfect blurring of the boundaries of personal space. Experiments have shown that the complete absence of partitions or at least conditional barriers reduce efficiency by 20% –30%.
A place for individuality
A comfortable office workplace doesn’t have to be impersonal. Of course, all team members must comply with the established standards of corporate ethics, but each employee will feel more comfortable if he can add some personal touches to his work area: a photo, a souvenir, a flower.
Little things like this make people feel like they are individuals, not just a cog in a machine.
Classification of office premises
Business spaces are usually divided into four groups, each of which has certain advantages. However, in practice, the boundaries between office classes sometimes turn out to be rather arbitrary: when equipping offices, the owners often try to take the best qualities of each group.
It is curious that all over the world realtors, tenants and building owners use a three-digit classification, and many Russian experts introduce a fourth category – for buildings of the Soviet era that have not undergone reconstruction (their number is large enough to make it necessary to select a special group).
Class “A”
A comfortable first-class office is an elite space, originally designed for the needs of the business, taking into account all engineering and sanitary requirements. The layout meets international standards: there are common areas (for example, conference rooms), lounges, and dining rooms; conditions have been created for the administration of hygiene procedures; the building is equipped with parking. Only high-quality materials are used to decorate class A business premises.
First-class offices are located in new commercial complexes usually located in the downtown area. The building itself is also assessed according to a number of criteria:
- The convenience of access roads;
- Availability of reliable security and fire protection systems;
- A complete set of building documentation;
- Modern climate control equipment that maintains a comfortable temperature in the office;
- Equipping with fiber-optic communications.
Class “B”
Offices of category “B” in their characteristics do not differ too much from elite premises: sometimes the second group includes offices that were considered first-class 5-7 years ago: the concepts of quality in the modern world are changing rapidly, and natural wear and tear make itself felt.
A room of category “B” must have the following necessary qualities:
- Sufficiently developed infrastructure: cafeteria, entrance lobby, reception;
- The presence of several modern elevators;
- Placement in a new building or a building that has undergone major overhaul and reconstruction;
- High level of natural light;
- Availability of parking (open type is allowed);
- Finishing not pretentious, but quality materials.
Class “C”
Business premises of category “C” are often removed from the central highways, located closer to the city outskirts. Offices of this class are often located in former administrative buildings that do not fully meet modern standards. The package of services provided is small, the layout is a cabinet, the infrastructure is weak (you can hardly count on several elevators, showers for employees, or a spacious cafeteria).
Actually, this group also includes all second-class premises that do not meet at least one key criterion for a comfortable office.
Class “D”
Premises classified with the letter “D” attract tenants with their low cost: they can be located in a residential area or in a building of a former kindergarten/school/department store; have not been overhauled for a long time; have a small parking lot, usually set up in an ownerless “patch”.
As we have already mentioned above, “D” class offices do not correspond at all to international standards, although they can have a rather presentable appearance.
