In 2024, it’s becoming increasingly common for teams and businesses to work from home. But whilst this often increases employee morale and reduces costs, is it best for business?
The answer to that depends on the type of business in question. For example, a financial advisor could work remotely without seeing a drop in performance or productivity.
But what about a creative team? It could certainly be argued that the shift to working from home hasn’t worked for those in creative industries. For years offices have been geared towards nurturing creativity. Breakout spaces, office bars and even on-site gyms if you’re lucky enough are all common features of the workplace in 2024.
Businesses like digital marketing agencies need to hold on to this weapon. And in 2024, if you’re still working from an office, it’s your chance to get one up on your competitors whose teams are working from a bedroom or a kitchen table.
With that in mind, here’s how to turn an office into a hive of creativity in 2024.
Swap city for scenic
The hustle and bustle of a major city centre has long been a plus for companies when it comes to attracting talent. But in 2024, consider swapping the abundance of lunch options for more scenic locations.
An office with a view is a great way to get those creative juices flowing daily. And working from some neighboring greenery in the summer could be a major advantage over competitors that are stuck in city centre skyscrapers.
This isn’t the only benefit. If you’re outside of major cities, you’ll likely benefit from lower maintenance costs when transforming your workspace. For example, facilities management in Hull will be cheaper than in London.
Get rid of the seating plan
You’re workers are in work, not school. Forcing your workers to sit in the same place every single day is a little bit outdated.
Younger workers are free spirits and will appreciate the opportunity to move around and work from different places. If you’re a big office with multiple teams, the lack of shackles will also mean your team interact with more of their colleagues which can prevent cliques from forming in the workplace.
Let workers design
If you’re looking to increase your workforce’s creativity through office design, why not just let them design it? That way, your workers can have direct input when it comes to what they want from an office.
Don’t just let them pick the colour palette for the office, let them go crazy. If they want to add a bar, consider it done. If they want a slide down to the kitchen, get it installed. If they want to spend their lunch shooting hoops, you get the idea.
Host regular events
Remote teams try everything to make sure they don’t lose that crucial team culture, but the truth is that virtual social activities don’t quite cut it.
If you’ve got a thriving office space, take advantage. Start those dreary Monday mornings off by hosting a breakfast club, stay behind on Fridays for weekly drinks and take regular brain breaks for activities like quizzing and skill sharing!
The Benefits
Attract better talent
While many people are well and truly in their work-from-home era, there are plenty of office workers who still enjoy going into a welcoming shared working environment with their colleagues. In fact, this says a lot about a worker’s personality.
Those who enjoy going into an office are likely to be more talkative, more extroverted and more likely to enjoy being part of a team.
If you can provide a top-of-the-range office environment with sought-after amenities, it gives your company the best chance of attracting better talent out of the pool of workers who are looking for a traditional office job.
Increased staff morale
Investing in your office environment can have a major impact on your team’s morale and prevent workplace conflict. On the flip side, not investing in the place where people spend the majority of their week is likely to leave your staff demotivated and looking for other opportunities.
A great office means different things to different people, so you’ll need to make sure you’re catering to all if you want to increase the morale of your overall team.
Secluded breakout spaces or pods could be a great way to keep people happy while working, whereas lunchtime activities such as darts, pool and game consoles will allow your staff to enjoy being at work even when they’re not working.
Increased staff productivity
This benefit follows on from the last. A happy workforce is a productive workforce, and creating an attractive office environment will give you the benefit of both.
But what are the advantages of increasing staff productivity? Firstly, it depends on the type of company, but increasing productivity can never be a bad thing.
First and foremost, a hardworking team should open the door to increased revenue for the business. If you’re an agency, it should allow you to take on more work and also offer a better standard of work to your clients.
It will also go a long way toward installing a strong company culture which will play a huge part in the morale and performance of future staff as well as the future of the company itself.
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