Improving Your Office For The New Year

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Improve your Office|Improving Your Office For The New YearIn 2021, as professionals begin returning to their office spaces and welcoming a new year of hopeful normality, it’s important for all business owners to use this time as an opportunity. This opportunity can entail equipping the office with the equipment it needs, redoubling efforts to keep it hygienic, and using methods to improve team morale from top to bottom. Those kinds of investments are almost always worth it, because it will serve as a direct measure of trust in your brand, your culture, and your people.

Improving your offices for the new year also helps you shake up this space, likely long-vacant thanks to the pressures of this year. But what measures will actually make the difference? How can firms allocate their budget and spending towards this goal when times may be tight in the first place? These questions are worthwhile to ask, because they can provide you with a means in which to justify your approach, and better understand the investments you are making. With our following advice, you’re sure to step in the right direction:

Upgrade & Outfit Your Office

There are likely many little niggling issues that have been getting on your nerves, and that was before remote work became the norm. Upgrading and outfitting your office can be as easy as buying office furniture online and provide you with the means to get the ball rolling as soon as you return, and the space necessary to resolve those issues from the offset. For instance, office cell phone boosters from WilsonPro are proven to up the cell phone reception and signal in your office space, which can often be difficult considering the materials the building is made from.

Little resolutions like this, with inexpensive yet reliable equipment, can provide you with the functionality necessary to bring your A-game to the new year. If you can achieve that, odds are you’ll notice the difference in productivity compared to the start of 2020, when offices were populated in the best possible sense.

Ensure Devices Are Well Stocked & Maintained

Ensure your office devices are well stocked and maintained. Replenishing your stock of toner, ensuring your laptops are fully backed up with the latest anti-virus protocols, collaborating with your managed IT services, all of this will help your office functionality stay sharp and ready – much like your returning employees.

It might be that you need to recall your company devices for a moment just to ensure they are updated with the latest protocols. For instance, Google Suite has now changed into Google Workspace, and that may mean you use lesser apps to manage your workflow.
Part of renewing your devices means educating your staff in how to use them, and figuring out new methods of improving your productivity. To use an example, Google Meet could be a perfect addition to your Hangouts policies, only this may require the installation of new apps to work phones. As your devices are part of your workflow, they are also part of the office, and so this is a viable use of your time.

Thorough Cleaning Measures

Thorough cleaning can make all the difference when returning to a normal working schedule. It’s important for your office to shine, and to protect itself against the growing number of difficulties offices have faced.

Deep cleaning will help your staff feel comfortable that you have taken the right precautions, and that they can trust you and your attempts at keeping the space as clinical as possible. Window cleaning, tidying up the exterior of your business, reshining the brand signs and making sure the carpets are refreshed can help the entire space shine, inner and outer. That can help you inspire pride in your office and workplace, something worth encouraging when you hope to kickstart the renewed morale of your employees. Furthermore, cleaning also helps you identify issues that you may not have addressed for some time, from growing damp in your bathroom to scuff marks left by chairs on your carpet.

Sometimes a renewal can help you see this space as it should be seen – radiant, new, vibrant, and worthwhile. That can help any brand feel renewed confidence in itself, from now into the future. That kind of perception you cannot by, but you can come across with hard work, and it’s perfect for a new year full of positive possibilities.

Adjusting Workspace Terminals

Adjusting the terminals in your workspace will help you ensure a regular flow of productivity when staff feel safe, protected, and your space is used in the best possible manner. For instance, seating staff far enough apart with dividers can ensure nothing spreads, while also ensuring staff feel dominion over their workspaces.

It’s important to remember that staff are coming in from remote work options and have had full control over their space for some time. Moving into an office once more can certainly be an adjustment for them, and so it’s up to you to make this approach as friendly and reliable as possible.

Adjusting your workspace in this capacity can also mean investing in worthwhile ventilation, to ensure the space is breathable yet not cold over the winter period. Workspace terminal adjustment may also mean rededicating yourself to cable management, to totally reduce trip hazards and improve desk space. This can give staff the capacity to bring in their own devices, something they may have become used to during the remote working period.

Managed IT Maintenance

Managed IT maintenance will restore your business functionality in the best sense, but upgrading your serviced package or asking to renew certain measures, such as your cloud functionality support and accessibility, can help you refine your workflow.

This might involve slowly backup up all of your data onto the cloud, or it might mean ensuring you are still working with the latest cybersecurity compliance possible. Those measures can help any firm stay thoroughly capable, well-developed and measured from the offset. These efforts can make any firm retain its standing in the best possible sense, even if that means servicing the devices our staff use. Keeping everyone on the same page and encouraging a tune-up of our workflows can make a big difference after everyone has been working at home for some time – a lesson we could all do with learning.

Considering Ergonomics

It’s a good time to invest in staff health. Ensuring they are as functional and able as you hope they would otherwise be can be taken into your own hands. For instance, you may decide to invest in better office furniture, or standing desk toppers to help your staff work and exercise as they may be better off doing.

Simple a renewed intra-office campaign reminding staff to sit up straight, to lift the monitor to the top of their eyeline, and to stretch when possible can help the office serve as a functional, health-abetting resource in the best possible sense. Considering ergonomics can mean investing in chairs with good lumbar support, purchasing left-handed mice and keyboards for your left-handed employees as appropriate. This will all combine to help your staff feel thought of, and it can help them iron out any undue aches and pains that may have otherwise came from bad posture sitting at home for a time. A good place to begin, then.

Making The Most Of Your Space

Making the most out of your space can also be important at this time. For instance, it might be that you’ve been using your conference facilities as a storeroom since the remote work requirements started taking place. Making the most of your space could mean opening this back up again, and using this as a spill-in room to enact social distancing when your employees return to their stations.

It could be that you’ve been meaning to refurbish your office kitchen since forever, due to the fact that space has been disheveled for a while and you haven’t quite gotten around to it. A new refrigerator, a new microwave, and new doors on the cupboards could mean a lot to your staff, who will likely use part of this space as a means of collaborating and connecting with one another once more.

For some, making the most of your space could mean simply ensuring that your smoking area is cleaned up and that the shelters are in place to protect against the weather. Renew your standards, they can make a massive difference regarding how you see your firm, and how it presents itself to the wider world.

Simple Aesthetic Additions

It can be nice to have the little things speak to your office culture, and celebrate it. For instance, a large ‘welcome back’ sign, or a list of people who have done outstanding work remotely, or perhaps signs that reassure your staff they can visit your HR office anytime. Little additions, to help the office culture shine, can help everyone feel comfortable returning to it.

With this advice, we hope you can more easily improve your office for the new year. Your staff, your brand, and you deserve it.

Keeping it Simple:The Right Cleaning Method for 8 Types of Floors

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Cleaning Method for Floors|Keeping it Simple:The Right Cleaning Method for 8 Types of FloorsThere are at least eight types of flooring in homes and commercial buildings, and it is important to use the correct method and cleaners for each floor. The goal is to keep each type of floor looking clean and new without damaging it in the cleaning process. There is a correct cleaning and care method for each type of floor. Using the correct cleaning method will help the floor last longer and look better every day.

Using Professional Cleaning Services

Homeowners who have busy schedules , homeowners with limited mobility, or business owners may find it more convenient to hire floor care from Grime Scrubbers. A professional floor cleaning company has the training and equipment to clean every type of floor correctly for the best results. If a building owner has high traffic or multiple types of flooring, it may be easier to leave the cleaning to professionals then to try to figure out cleaning methods for each type of flooring.

Professional floor cleaning companies have all the correct chemicals and machinery on hand to do the best cleaning job in a short amount of time. When building owners sign up for a weekly, monthly or other regular cleaning program, there are often price breaks. Some types of flooring need regular cleaning and waxing with periodic stripping, sealing and re-waxing. This is a difficult job better left to professionals with the correct equipment. Other floors need buffing periodically to look their best.

This takes special equipment.

Buildings or homes with carpet need a different type of cleaning because of the carpet pile. They often need spot treatment, pre-conditioning, cleaning or shampooing to look their best. After cleaning, the carpet needs to be dried before the room can be used. if the wrong cleaners are used, they will attract and trap soil in the carpet pile.

The Best Methods for Homeowners to Clean Different Floor Types.

Homeowners who want to clean their own floors should follow the manufacturer’s cleaning directions if they are available or try these cleaning tips for the 8 types of floors. There are some general tips that apply to all flooring types such as always clean up spills right when they occur, vacuum or sweep the floor before mopping. When a floor is not swept or vacuum first, the mopping will just spread dirt around for a dingy look.

Use cleaner sparingly to avoid leaving a residue that will attract dirt. Use a different bucket for rinse water to rinse a floor after mopping it with cleaner. Empty both dirty water buckets down the toilet rather than the sink. This water is full of dirt and germs. When mopping, wipe in the correct direction and start at the end furthest from the exit door and mop toward the door so you will not be walking on a freshly cleaned, damp floor when done. When done cleaning the floor, clean the mop with bleach water and wring out thoroughly and air dry. Do not let the mop sit in the bucket to dry.

  1. Hardwood floors can be spot cleaned before overall cleaning starts using a cloth or sponge and a little wood floor cleaner. Now use a flat head mop, a microfiber pad, or a microfiber string mop that has been dipped in cleaner solution and wrung out thoroughly. Use a cleaning solution in a spray bottle and spread a heavy mist on the floor to mop off. Use a wood cleaning product off the shelf or make one with black tea or a mild PH-neutral soap and water. Wood floors will either be finished with a polyacrylic, urethane, polyurethane coating, or wax. If the floor has a wax coating avoid mopping and water and keep it clean with sweeping, and dusting.
  2. Laminate floors look like wood but they are very different. They are made with layers of backing, base, photographic layer and strong sun-resistant protective layer. They are installed in planks and it is important not to get water in those seams or under the flooring. This floor can be spot cleaned or damp mopped when necessary. The main cleaning should be vacuuming with the tile mode or dry mopping. Do not buff or polish these floors.
  3. Cork floors are often sealed to limit their moisture absorption. They are susceptible to water damage, so don’t mop them with a wet mop. Clean spills up ASAP and vacuum often. When they need cleaning, use a weak solution of vinegar and soapy water in a spray bottle. Spray a small section of floor at a time and wipe with a barely damp microfiber mop.
  4. Bamboo flooring needs to be swept often to get rid of dirt that could cause scratches in the soft bamboo. Strand bamboo is harder. This floor is cleaned as if it were hardwood with a very mild PH-neutral soap and writer. The mop should be barely damp, with any moisture wiped off with a cloth.
  5. Linoleum Floors are back because they are more environmentally friendly than more petroleum based floors. This floor is damp mopped with a spray bottle of a few drops dish soap and hot water sprayed on the floor, then wiped off with the damp mop.
  6. Vinyl floors can be cleaned with a commercial floor cleaning solution or a homemade solution of 1/4th cup vinegar, 1 drop dish soap and water in a 16 oz. spray bottle. Spray this on floor one section at a time and mop off with damp microfiber mop. Periodic deep cleaning with a steam cleaner gets germs and stubborn stains.
  7. Natural stone flooring must be cleaned avoiding vinegar, bleach, and ammonia. Damp mop these floors with water and a small amount of PH-neutral cleaner that won’t react with the stone, damaging it. Plain water and a microfiber mop are a good option.
  8. Ceramic or porcelain tile Floors and their grout can be cleaned with a mix of 1/4th cup vinegar and a drop of dish soap in a 16 oz bottle of warm water for weekly cleaning. Then, use steam cleaning for deep cleaning.

Cleaning all of the floors in the home or commercial building is an important part of maintenance, but do not use harsh chemicals or too much water. Carpeted floors need to be vacuumed often and then shampooed or steam-cleaned several times per year. Commercial floor cleaning companies have the right chemicals and equipment to do the best carpet deep cleaning. The home or building owner or their maintenance crew can do the daily or weekly vacuuming.

Well-maintained floors look better and last longer.

The Need for Commercial Cleaning

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article | The Need for Commercial CleaningAlmost any commercial building absolutely needs some type of professional cleaning service. Commercial buildings can become messy very easily, even if the building in question is just an office building or something similar. Commercial building floors can get a lot of foot traffic, making them dusty by the end of the day. During certain seasons and areas, it’s very obvious if a building is not cleaned regularly enough. The businesses that try to save money on commercial cleaning will lose money later in some other form, even if it is not obvious at first.

The services that offer commercial cleaning are almost always very cost-effective. Businesses will get multiple services at once when they hire commercial cleaning services Winnipeg and elsewhere. The professional cleaners will make sure that the entire building is cleaned. Companies usually will not need to hire more than one cleaning service. They can get all of these tasks completed after working with one single business.

When business leaders think about the specific services that commercial cleaning companies offer, it becomes clear that there is no substitute for a commercial cleaning company. The technicians from these companies will clean all of the bathrooms and the washing areas. They’ll also clean the employee lounge and any of the sitting areas in the building. The employees will certainly be happy about this, and so will everyone else. It’s the sort of thing that can improve morale at almost any business, especially if the employees are social.

Commercial furniture also needs to be cleaned and maintained, or it will quickly fade and cease to look anywhere near as presentable as it once did. This sort of change can reflect very poorly on almost any company, and it’s important for all professionals to make sure that these sorts of finishing touches get added. The commercial cleaners are all careful to make sure that the furniture at any corporate building is in good condition. These sorts of cleaning services are ultimately an important part of commercial building maintenance, even if it does not look like that at first.

Almost any part of any building will start to degrade much faster if it is not cleaned all the time. A lot of people have found that they have run into similar problems in their own homes. Dirt and dust can cause anything to wear away that much more rapidly, even if people do not notice the change on a day to day basis. Companies that are careful to make sure that they stay up-to-date with maintenance usually outperform other companies. The organizations that are just as careful with cleaning will often get the exact same benefits.

What are Some of the Best Company Cars in 2020?

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Company Car| What are Some of the Best Company Cars in 2020?Looking for a company car in 2020? This is not a decision that should be made lightly and you will want to find a vehicle which fits in perfectly with your operation and helps your business to succeed. A good company car will be practical, comfortable, economical and safe, but you also need to think about how much you are able to spend so here are a few of the best company cars available right now in different price brackets.

£15,000 and Under

For those working on a tight budget, there are still a handful of excellent options to consider. One is the Skoda Fabia supermini which is a great all-rounder and much more affordable than other models in this class. It has a good amount of interior space for a car of this size along with low running costs so it is well-suited to those in a city. The Kia Cerato and Hyundai i10 is also worth looking at as a similarly priced option and a car that was widely considered to be the best city car a few years ago.

£20,000 and Under

Those looking to spend no more than £20,000 cannot go wrong with the Honda Civic. The Civic boasts sporty and stylish good looks on the outside to go with a comfortable and spacious interior, plus there are a range of engines to choose from including economical options which means that it ticks all of the boxes and your employees are sure to enjoy getting behind the wheel without breaking the bank.

£30,000 and Under

If you are looking to splash a little more on your company car then either the BMW 1-Series or 3-Series are your best options under £30,000. BMW are the kings when it comes to company cars with both of these models featuring the trademark sleek stylish, luxurious interior and excellent driving performances.

£40,000 and Under

If you are willing to spend a little more, the BMW 5-Series is a step up and certainly a car that will paint your company in a positive light. This is a car which shows you mean business with head-turning good looks, agility, comfort and heaps of technology to provide a fantastic experience behind the wheel. For those that are able to spend, this is certainly a great asset for your company but you should always take out a Gap insurance policy for financial protection in case the vehicle were to be written off.

Picking a new company car is challenging but the above are all excellent options for different price brackets.

Are Consumers Putting Pressure on Businesses to Go Green

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Green Business|Are Consumers Putting Pressure on Businesses to Go GreenConsumer behaviours always change and it is the consumer which has the ability to enact change as businesses always need to find ways to appeal to their target demographic. In recent times, one of the biggest consumer changes has people becoming much more environmentally-aware which is understandable when you watch the news and see the impact around the world.

Consumers Becoming More Selective

Modern day consumers are becoming increasingly eco-conscious with scientists encouraging both businesses and individuals to make positive changes in their life to protect the environment. More and more people are now becoming selective when it comes to the businesses that they use and people will favour those that have green credentials so companies are now under pressure not only by new regulations and scientists but also modern-day consumers.

Sustainable Packaging

This is evident with a recent study by Trivium Packaging, which discovered that 74% of consumers would be willing to pay more for sustainable packaging. More than two out of three stated that environmentally-friendly, recyclable packaging was important which is not surprising when you see the attention that supermarkets and other stores get for plastic packaging. The report stated that these findings present “ a real opportunity to impact purchasing decisions by offering environmentally friendly options for their consumers” and it is certainly something that businesses need to think about.

In a time where people consume a huge amount and get items shipped through online shopping, sustainable packaging has become incredibly important and a way for businesses to improve their green credentials. It is important to use recycled materials and to use reliable and eco-friendly couriers when it comes to shipments so that you can satisfy today’s eco-aware consumers, otherwise you could fall behind the competition as well as continue to harm the planet.

Positive Change

Harmful packaging is quickly becoming a thing of the past which is positive to see and evidence that consumers can make a difference when they are selective of the brands that they use. While packaging is a major topic when it comes to environmental-impact, it is not the only one and consumers may start to shun businesses for other reasons soon too and favour those that are green.

Other Areas

This means that businesses need to think about ways that they can protect the environment not only from a social responsibility standpoint but also so that they can continue to attract their target customer. This might include remote working, increasing recycling and using renewable energy to reduce their impact.

It is fantastic to see that so many businesses are changing to sustainable packaging and shows that consumers have the power to make changes, but there is still a lot of work to be done and big changes to make in the coming years.