The changing office landscape

Offices continue to change in spacing and layout.

Is it more important to have productive or happy employees? Although productivity may have been the first choice five to 10 years ago, a lot has changed and is projected to continue to do so. Happier workers often means more productivity, which, in the long run, is the bottom line for employers.
To enhance productivity, there are many aspects of a worker’s day that employers should keep in mind, including benefits, communication and extended breaks. Another important idea is office layout.
2015 has been hailed as the year of the open office space. From standing desks, to communal seating and larger rooms, employees had the ability to talk to each other right away, brainstorm quickly and work in a culture-driven environment. In addition to saving money, open floor plans have been touted as the innovative way to attract new hires, but ideas are set to change in 2016.
According to Fast Company, the idea of the open office space is dying, and a middle ground between open and closed is set to take its place.
Although more open spaces have been known to facilitate communication and innovative ideas, they can be distracting and disengaging, causing employees to spend too much time with each other and not enough time on themselves and their goals. With little to no privacy or actual personal space, the ability to think under pressure alone can be quite startling.
Many workplaces are taking note of this, creating a newly defined area that enables employees to have the best of both worlds, privacy and camaraderie.
More office workers now have the ability to move their desks elsewhere, such as to phone rooms or smaller, quieter areas with fewer seats available. As employees often work better in different environments than their counterparts, this gives a range of people the ability to flourish in their role.
If your business is interested in making a change, ask employees what they desire most first. This ensures that changes will benefit most employees, as well as increase productivity for employers.
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