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13 Maintenance and Design Tips To Create a Healthy and Productive Workspace

StrategyDriven Managing Your People Article |Healthy Workspace|13 Maintenance and Design Tips To Create a Healthy and Productive WorkspaceAfter the pandemic hit, a staggering number of professionals around the country had to abandon the office and start working from home. While the first few weeks came with all the challenges of an unpredicted adaptation period, most workers then managed to find a new balance.

Today, almost 60% of Americans work from home for most of the week, and they are planning to keep things that way. Organizations around the world have also enjoyed the benefits of this new trend – especially because they can now cut down on office space, reduce expenses, and tap into a worldwide talent pool.

Nonetheless, there are also some reasons for which companies still want employees to come into the office for a few days each month. And, if you are also trying to make this new hybrid work model work for your company, you need to make the experience of coming into the office productive and energizing. Start with the tips below.

Let Nature In

Spending time in nature is linked to lower stress levels and cortisol, better mood and morale, and higher productivity levels. So, we know that if you want to feel calmer and more serene, you have to spend time in a park, forest, or coastal area.

But how can you reap the benefits of nature while working in the office? Bringing nature indoors! You can do so by decorating with plants and natural materials such as wood, metal, and natural fabrics. Try to leave out cheap, single-use items!

Leverage Natural Light and Fresh Air

Just as important as decorating with natural and sustainable elements is letting in some fresh air and natural light. Over the past years, a rising number of employees have started to suffer from Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). This condition is not immediately evident but, in the long term, it can cause respiratory problems, skin conditions, low morale, excessive tiredness, and mental health issues.

You can prevent all of this by opening curtains and windows and letting fresh air and sunshine into the office. Your teams will feel much happier and more energized!

Not only that but naturally lit and ventilated workspaces can improve productivity among your employees. They usually perform much better in a work environment with open windows allowing light and air to come in. 

Insulate the Building

Insulating the building is essential to create a comfortable and adequate working environment while making the whole building more sustainable. Insulation is especially important if the premises are in an area subjected to drastic temperature changes, and it allows you to save over 15% on heating and cooling costs. All this, while allowing your employees to feel comfortable when at their desks.

Maintain Gutters and Roof

The building’s gutters and roof are elements that are not often in sight and can be overlooked. However, it is important to inspect them at least once or twice a year. Gutters can get clogged and, with the first heavy downpours, they can cause rainwater to overflow or stagnate, which can lead to rotting of the fascia board.

Maintaining the roof is just as important! Through regular checks, you can ensure that the whole building is structurally sound and insulated. You should also carry out emergency inspections after a natural disaster or if you suspect that something is wrong with the roof.

Read more here about the maintenance, inspection, and replacement options you have!

Keep Up to Date With the Latest Regulations

Your employees are one of the company’s main assets, and it is your duty and responsibility to provide them with a safe and healthy workplace. Whether the commercial building your offices occupy has been recently built or not, make sure you are up to date with the latest regulations and safety requirements.

Invest in Technology

The pandemic initiated some important trends and sped up some that were already happening. But what it has made obvious is that we all rely more on technology than ever before. Make sure your office has all the technology needed to ensure it remains productive and competitive. Aside from industry-based technological solutions that you should have, you might consider investing in:

  • Cloud system that helps you with daily operations, waste management, remote collaboration, and compliance
  • High-speed internet connection
  • The latest cybersecurity features for you and your employees
  • Team collaboration software that allows you to switch from on-site to remote working seamlessly.

With these modern innovations in place, you can make the life of your employees much easier and less stressful.

Allow for Flexibility

As we have seen, over half of all employees in the US and abroad are working from home most of the week. While for some this has been a drastic and uncomfortable change, for many it was a happy change. Whatever your employees prefer, they might expect flexibility from your end. So, you should adapt the office space to welcome this hybrid workforce. If your team is too small for you to have – and pay for – office spaces, you should consider the coworking or shared office model.

Carve Out Green Spaces

Whether it is one of the walls, on the roof, or outside the premises, consider creating a green space where your employees can spend their lunch break and relax away from the four walls of the office. Green space does not have to necessarily be a perfectly designed garden – it could also be a small patch of land or an urban garden on the top of the building.

Thankfully, many companies or building owners offer workspaces to businesses. One of the good things about these spaces is that they’re well-designed, comfortable, and located in prime locations, making it more convenient for your workforce. With flexible workspaces, your employees can freely move around and work in an exciting and fresh environment where they can share their ideas and improve their creativity. 

Hence, if you’re looking for a flexible office space for your employees, you can search for some options online or seek recommendations from friends, colleagues, and other people in the business community.

Make It Easily Accessible

Thanks to the advent of remote working, many companies have opted to move their offices to locations that are less central and, often, more affordable. Since many employees don’t need to commute to the office anymore, this change makes sense for many organizations. However, some of your employees will still travel to and from the office. So, if you want to encourage them to come into the office at least a few days every week, you should make this option easy and accessible for them!

Consider the Benefits of Pet Therapy

Welcoming pets in the office could be a great way to keep your employees engaged and entertained, and this experience can help them develop a caring attitude towards the company itself! Studies have found that there are several benefits to bringing pets into the office premises, including reducing stress, increasing productivity, improving resiliency, and preventing aggressive reactions in situations of stress.

Include Areas for Relaxation and Socialization

The era of the rat race is over. Today, employees want to be valued and recognized for their hard work, personality, and unique touch. Of course, you need them to be in their best shape, energized, and motivated.

However, productivity does not always come from just sitting in front of a laptop for nine hours! New studies have seen that short breaks of ten minutes or less every hour allow the brain to recharge and can significantly increase productivity.

Introducing strategic stations for relaxation and socialization in the office can pay you back in productivity and better outcomes after all!

Create a Range of Workstations

In the past, the focus has always been on finding the best type of furniture, chair, and desks for employees to be comfortable and focus – all while also keeping an eye on the budget. However, today, we know that working in a fixed position does not help productivity, and can contribute to all the issues that a sedentary life can cause.

Instead, make sure to create a variety of seating options and workstations across the office space. These can include benches, conference rooms, quiet areas, standing desks, cafes, and standard seats.

Invest in Activities

Scheduling group activities such as yoga and meditation can help employees better manage stress, feel more energized, and optimize productivity. Whether you can organize weekly sessions or you just encourage your employees to take five to ten minutes out of their day to practice mindfulness, don’t underestimate the power of these activities on health, mood, emotional well-being, and productivity levels. Try it out today!

Conclusion

It’s important to know that having a healthy and productive work environment can play an integral role in the organization’s growth and success. If you have a beautiful and comfortable workplace, your employees will have the energy and motivation to accomplish their duties and responsibilities more efficiently and quickly. 

Hence, if you want your workplace to be as healthy and productive as possible, keep the tips mentioned above in mind, and you’ll be in the right direction. 

Why Is a Shared Office Space Best for Small Businesses?

StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Shared Office Space|Why Is a Shared Office Space Best for Small Businesses?It’s nice to have a big office, but a smaller business may work more efficiently in a shared office. There’s room to grow because you have a better environment to collaborate with your team and clients. When you have this synergy, it can help you build a brand more efficiently. Here are some ways a shared office space works best for small businesses.

Better Flexibility

You might be in a position where you’re either downsizing or just starting up with your brand. You may consider a shared office space yoube works in your favor because you can choose a desk or an office for a project. You may have a short-term project for three months that require you to collaborate in a room.

Instead of going with a brick-and-mortar with overhead, maintenance, and electricity bills piling up, you have a choice to go to one place where they cover your amenities under your monthly plan. Also, you can adjust the plan as needed when your staff gets bigger.

You’ll save tons of money, and it’ll give you a chance to gauge how your business performs quarter to quarter.

More of a Community Atmosphere

One of the depressing things about working in an office or home is isolation. A shared office space allows you to work with different collaborators. Even though you could run into a competitor or two, it may be wise to reach out to others.

You can bounce ideas off each other as well as find each other’s strengths. For example, you may be looking for a graphic designer for a new project on your website. You can schedule meetings and private sessions just in case you want to hide ideas from the public.

You have access to conference and private rooms if you need to discuss things in a secluded area.

Great for Hosting Clients

Maybe there’s a full kitchen available. You can cook up a meal or create a potluck to have a luncheon with your clients. It gives them a sense of your personality and you can save money because you don’t need to go to a different facility.

Also, you can meet in a professional coworking space. You can utilize a private room with a conference table and any equipment to speak with staff members globally. A solid presentation can bring your prospective clients into your brand.

The right location, amenities, and atmosphere can make for the ideal shared office space.

Tips to Create A Global Recruitment Strategy for Your Business

StrategyDriven Talent Management Article |Global Recruitment Strategy|Tips to Create A Global Recruitment Strategy for Your BusinessBack in the day, there was no concept of telecommuting. However, in today’s world of technological advancements, the idea of having physical workplaces has become outdated. With the passage of time and enhancements in the technology sector, employees get a lot of leverage because they can work anywhere that may not be their workplace if they are not compromising on quality, efficiency, and punctuality. Thanks to breakthroughs in virtual technology, businesses have benefitted as well. Companies have taken full advantage of these breakthroughs, from hosting meetings online to keeping track of their employees’ progress through digital portals.

In addition, companies that operate on a global level, especially multinationals and transnationals, have turned to better, more effective ways of hiring. As remote work is exceedingly conventional now, companies have started to hire human resources from all around the globe. Previously, organizations would have the best applicants come down to their head office to conduct the interviews. But in recent times, that has changed. Instead of having applicants come over from different regions of the world, businesses now hire virtually.

Though it may seem like an excellent solution to the time-taking traditional hiring method, recruitment on a global level also requires strategic planning. Here are some tips to assist you in creating a ground plan for international recruitment.

Mitigate risks with fixed-term contracts

Regardless of where an organization’s headquarters may be, the HR department must be fully conversant with international labor laws. In addition, companies need to be mindful of the taxation policies, benefits, and regulations. Usually offered when an employee may be temporarily unavailable or when a project requires an addition to its task force, a fixed-term contract allows companies to outsource personnel for a specific and pre-informed period. The timespan of these contracts varies from country to country, and so do the perks.

Having a clear-cut understanding, which states every single detail, can help employers avoid future risks. For example, newly hired or outsourced employees may want to go against or quit the company. They will try their level best to get everything they can to compensate themselves. Having concrete proof of all agreements can save you an arm and a leg when letting such employees go.

Outsource a third party

Another common practice of organizations in today’s world is contracting a third party to run and look after a handful of business operations. These external service providers can perform tasks or take over whole operations for an organization, helping the management take some weight off their chest. Commonly, these third parties look after customer care, information technology, etc. The main reason for having other companies look over these tasks is to reduce internal costs, improve efficiency, and bring out the best of the departments.

Inspire the world’s best talent to join

Competition in the commerce industry has always been high. Be it job hunting or recruitment, to be the best, you must beat the best. Inclusivity and acceptance of all races, gender, and ethnicities can attract aspiring employees from every corner of the world. Employer branding plays a huge role in securing and acquiring the best candidates the world has to offer. To build an employer brand, companies form talent acquisition teams. Alongside creating task forces, companies also improve their digital presence and recruit social media influencers to become their ambassadors.

The most viable method of doing this is to create a local presence through your marketing team. Marketing teams can collaborate with local influencers and other marketing teams to develop locally appropriate and socially conscious campaigns. Moreover, targeted advertisements through social media can further attract potential employees.

Lastly, ensure your campaigns are mobile-friendly to attract people of all age groups. Through word of mouth, you can increase the chances of people knowing about you and your entity.

Giving candidates a consistent experience

Providing applicants with an experience of a lifetime can do you free marketing. Having tech-savvy mobile applications and an easy-to-use browser interface can have a favorable effect. Aspiring applicants from around the world would want to get done with recruitment formalities as soon as possible. These may include forms and surveys. Most importantly, the job description should be pertinent and to the point. A monotonous job description failing to entice applicants will never get a good response. Along with that, a strong follow-up and posting reviews of past applicant experiences can motivate ambitious applicants to apply for the job.

Universal compliance is inevitable

Every country in the world has different rules and regulations when it comes to its workforce. However, most of them have almost the same requirements. Minimum wage, working hours, job security, medical benefits, income tax, and leave policies are the most common details that every candidate inquires about organizations under consideration.

Offer letters should be meticulously crafted to include relevant terms and conditions. All the intricate details mentioned above should be thoroughly discussed and jotted down. Compliance should be of utmost importance because unless businesses comply, their vacant positions will go to waste. Being aware of the regulatory requirements can smoothen the hiring process. Despite being a daunting task, adhering to statutory requirements can make the whole process easier.

Try blending in

Get your existing workforce to derive an experience that attracts customers through content that matches their cultural heritage. Localization can give them a sense of being accepted and recognized. Organizations can benefit significantly by providing aspirants with an interface/experience that puts them in their comfort zone. Organizations are bound to have an increase in applicants if they can captivate and mesmerize the audience.

Communicating with interviewees in their native language and greeting them according to their religious or cultural background can instantly win them over. As a result, in the long run, your business is also likely to operate in the native language in the respective country, attracting both customers and further aspiring employees. Speaking their language, discussing their country’s social issues or current affairs can help them indulge better in the conversation.

Conclusion

All in all, global recruitment has its pros and cons. International recruitment can take its toll on your company’s position, from not costing it an arm and a leg to having an incredibly arduous process. However, in a COVID-19-struck world, global recruitment is set to become the norm, which is why adapting to this form of recruitment and having a solid plan is bound to do right by you. The tips mentioned above will most definitely help you hire the best of the best in their respective positions from around the world.

Top 4 Tips for a Healthy Work-Life Balance

StrategyDriven Practices for Professionals Article |Work-Life Balance|Top 4 Tips for a Healthy Work-Life BalanceWork is inescapable; it pays the bills and it brings food to the table. Before, the boundaries between work and home were separate. However, with the rise of workaholism, people’s jobs have taken over their personal lives.

Recovering from one’s workaholic habits can be challenging; however, it is not impossible. Here are the top 4 tips for building a healthy work-life balance.

What is Work-Life Balance?

Work-life balance refers to finding a happy medium between one’s job and one’s personal life. Examples of a poor work-life balance include working longer hours, cracking under pressure, and/ or suffering abundant responsibilities both at work and at home.

According to Kevin Lucas, co-founder of New Hope Regeneration, “how the body relates to an environment directly impacts the way a patient [lives and] moves.” When a person’s job takes over their life, their relationship to such an environment can result in stress, a weakened immune system, and/or burnout.

Preserving a work-life balance is essential for the human body and brain; it can benefit health and well-being, reduce physical and emotional stress, and encourage positive self-esteem.

Abandon Perfectionism

A lot of overachievers tend to root for perfection in their assignments. As well-meaning as that is, this kind of ambition can also encourage emotional pressure and stress.

Rather than strive for perfection, one should strive to get the job done. By investing too much energy on perfection, it ultimately makes the task at hand harmful and more difficult.

Start Small

It all begins with baby steps. When one attempts drastic changes, like cutting work hours in half or vowing to attend daily family gatherings, the effort often ends in failure. Building a work-life balance isn’t a simple task, but a lifestyle.

Baby steps are preferable as they help make the transition from old habits to new ones digestible and much more obtainable. Rather than cutting one’s work hours in half, one should cut one or two hours. Likewise, instead of vowing to attend family gatherings each day, one should begin with one event each week. Once a person gets accustomed to these small changes, they can then make longer strides without feeling intimidated.

Set Boundaries

Having a lack of boundaries is what enables one’s work to infiltrate their personal life. One should set boundaries for themselves and their co-workers. For example, one should learn how to say “no.” As scary as it is, having the power to reject an activity one can’t or does not want to handle helps one re-assess and evaluate their priorities. When a person says “no” to more work, they say “yes” to dedicating more time for themselves.

Exercise and Meditate

Nowadays, self-care is often misinterpreted as a luxury, not a necessity. The truth is, taking care of oneself is essential in order to reduce stress and keep on living. Exercise and meditation are great ways to preserve one’s mental and physical health. According to the Mayo Clinic, exercise can improve a person’s mood by promoting endorphins, otherwise known as feel-good hormones. Meanwhile, meditation can help reduce a person’s stress levels through breathing and other peaceful exercises. Meditation does this by activating a person’s parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for relaxing the body. As helpful as exercise and meditation are, they should not be perceived as a chore; reserve at least 3-5 minutes for a quick breathing or meditation exercise, and at least 5-10 minutes for a short workout or stretch.

How The Pandemic Changed Everything For Entrepreneurs

StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article |Pandemic|How The Pandemic Changed Everything For EntrepreneursThis pandemic has made us realize that we cannot predict the future. Business entities now have faith that their success depends on their ability to adapt to change. The preventive measures taken by governing bodies disturbed the entrepreneurial systems. The social and economic mediums of businesses were adversely affected due to this pandemic. The majority of the businesses got liquefied due to the adversities caused by this pandemic. Small-scale businesses and startups were the most vulnerable to these restrictions.

But entrepreneurs are a peculiar kind of successful people. They have the vision to extract opportunities from disasters. They are the ones for whom challenges are gratifying rather than frightening. Numerous entrepreneurs responded to the change optimistically instead of straying away from it. The change in business models and strategies has resulted in new entrepreneurial norms and a more digital atmosphere. It’s safe to say that the pandemic changed everything for entrepreneurs, and here’s how.

1. Digitalization Becomes Inevitable

Since the coronavirus broke out, we have witnessed an exponential increase in the need for digitalization. Entrepreneurial procedures are being shifted to digital platforms. All the major sectors like agriculture, education, trading, banking, and various business models are now rapidly transforming into digital versions.

As an entrepreneur, you must be acquainted with the digital processes in the business world. Luckily, learning resources for digital domains are increasing with the demand as well. They assist you in aligning with the exclusive integration of digital and business ecosystems. Several courses are now available on physical and virtual platforms to help. You can opt for courses like MBA programs no GMAT to gain access to virtual education to tackle your studies and startup at the same time.

Entrepreneurs who went digital were the only ones who successfully retained their market existence last year. Marketing campaigns are now run via mobile phones, emails, social media platforms, etc., reaching customers digitally rather than going door to door. Several service providers have even evolved their services to be contactless.

2. Shift Towards Remote Working

One of the biggest changes is the shift of workstations from offices to remote locations. Offices have now been shifted to home lounges from high-rise buildings, and “work from home” is the new slogan. If businessmen cannot meet people in person, they have found a way to work remotely. Virtual meeting rooms like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet are on the hotline since then.

Remote working has provided multiple benefits to the employees as well, like work-life balance, saving transportation costs, and an open room for time management. But, on the other hand, some entrepreneurs faced deterioration in work effectiveness due to remote working due to the addition of domestic responsibilities. According to a survey done by Kings College London, almost 22.6% of entrepreneurs faced difficulties due to such responsibilities. But, entrepreneurs must adapt to the need of the hour to ensure the success of their business.

3. Worldwide Supply Chain

The commerce and procurement sector is connected worldwide. This community took disastrous effects from restrictions over the international borders. It was a dire issue for supply chain executives when they could not communicate with vendors in the virus-affected zones. Most of these executives had their supply chains linked to the Chinese industry. Unfortunately, it became the center of covid-19 and abruptly disturbed the supply chains of every scale. Shortage of goods and materials caused an immense reduction in the productions of electronic and automobile industries. Production hubs like Taiwan, Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, and India used to outsource their products from China. As a result, they faced a significant reduction in their entrepreneurial activities. The scarcity of supplies led to numerous challenges for the majority of the industries in meeting their targets. Supply chains have begun to gain momentum recently, but promising forecasts cannot be made yet.

4. Challenges For Small Scale Entrepreneurs

Since the pandemic, it has been a difficult time for small-scale entrepreneurs. Covid-19 has brought agonizing challenges to the newbies, and the majority of them are struggling with their businesses. A study by the Asian Institute of Research declares that 41% of small-scale entrepreneurs fell in the red zone during the pandemic and lost control over their cash flow. It was also seen that 20% of the startup got their commitments declined by investors. In addition to that, 53% faced a slowdown in the process, while only 27% were able to function normally.

In addition to this, almost all of the startups had to reduce their expenses. Some entrepreneurial firms even recorded a reduction of 76% in their operational costs. Almost 70% of the firms had to nullify contacts with their full-time employees, which affected their workmanship.

Closing Remarks

You can observe entrepreneurs enjoying hikes in their revenues during this pandemic. This is because they are the ones who have adapted to change and have stayed resilient. The essential step for staying resilient is to accept that you have certain boundaries, and being rigid won’t help much. This approach will lead you to regain control over the aspects that you can influence rather than dwelling on constraints that you can’t control.