The quality of a workplace environment can have huge repercussions on the happiness, productivity, engagement, and absence levels of employees. Thankfully, there are lots of simple things business owners and managers can do to improve a workplace environment. Here are some of our top tips to make your workplace happier, healthier, and more productive.
1. Invest in the Environment
Business owners who want to make the workplace a more comfortable and enjoyable space for their employees should consider investing in the physical working environment. These are some of the factors you should think about:
- The lighting
Make sure the lighting is adequate for the job being completed. Poor lighting can lead to employees suffering from headaches and taking time off work.
- Ventilation
Make sure there’s enough ventilation. Research has shown that people who work in well-ventilated work environments have significantly higher cognitive scores. Not only that, but they’re much healthier too.
- The temperature
Nobody likes working in an office that is too hot or too cold, so it’s important to make sure that the workspace is kept at a comfortable temperature. Make sure you choose the right type of heaters and air conditioning units for your office space. You can find out more about the different heat types for PTAC units here.
- Noise pollution
Think about reducing noise pollution from both inside and outside the office space.
- The décor
If the workplace environment hasn’t been re-decorated in a while, then now might be the time to re-decorate it. Painting the walls and adding new furniture and accessories to a space is an easy way to improve a workplace environment. When decorating an office space, it’s a good idea to choose calming and relaxing colors for break areas and bright and inviting colors for areas where you want your employees to be productive.
- Luxuries
Why not invest in some little luxuries like free access to tea and coffee, nice hand soap in the toilets, nice furnishings, and some plants? All these things will make the workplace environment a nicer place to be.
2. Pay Attention to Cleanliness
It’s important to make sure that the workplace is kept clean at all times and any maintenance or repair work is kept on top of. Evidence has shown that the provision of a clean environment can improve the productivity of employees.
3. Schedule Regular Breaks
Whether or not your employees are working from a cell phone or sitting at a desk, it’s important to remind them to take regular breaks from what they’re doing. Employees need breaks in order to feel refreshed and to prevent themselves from burning out.
If your employees are working to a tight schedule and there’s not much time for breaks, then encourage them to switch between assignments and tasks. Concentrating on one task for too long is not only unhealthy and unproductive, but it can also block creativity too.
The best and most successful companies often tend to be the ones with the happiest employees. This is because happy employees are often more productive, motivated, and creative. A workplace environment can have a huge impact on the happiness and productivity of an employee. If you want to improve the happiness and productivity of your employees by creating a better workplace environment, then follow some of our top tips above.
