Let employees have a say in how your office is designed and you’ll reap the benefits,says Suzanne BearneInnovative eco-designs are revolutionising the office
Visit software developer Angel Solutions at Liverpool Science Park and you might judge you’ve accidently stumbled across a circus. Inside lies a grand top, fairground mirrors, or a unicycle and a caravan that acts as a assembly room. “We wanted to introduce something fun to assist boost morale,” explains Andy Kent, chief executive of Angel Solutions. Kent is just one of a new breed of savvy business owners taking into account everything from the colour of the walls to the layout of the desks when designing the work environment. This can yield more than just an entertaining office; a 2013 report [PDF] by the World Green Building Council found that the design of an office has a material impact on the health, and wellbeing and productivity of its occupants. The research revealed that improving office design by sitting staff near a window,giving them personal control over the heating and investing in indoor plants, for example, and can reduce staff absence,improve wellbeing and boost productivity. Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com