Investing in quality office furniture can boost your business’s bottom line
When was the last time you thought about office furniture? If you are an employee who is dissatisfied with your current office furniture, chances are you think about it quite a bit.
Office furniture can affect productivity in several ways, the first of which is comfort. Many office workers experience muscular and skeletal pain throughout the workday. Research has shown that some of this pain is due to poor posture resulting from uncomfortable furniture, since ergonomic adjustable chairs resulted in fewer symptoms of pain. If your workers are sitting in chairs that are causing them pain, they are going to have a hard time focusing on work. Pain is associated with a significant decrease in productivity at work.
Another important consideration when considering office furniture is the overall plan of the office. Different layouts will lend themselves to different issues. For example, open plan offices can be noisy which can be distracting to workers and decrease productivity. On the other hand, these open plans are thought to increase communication among workers which, depending on your business, could be key to success.
There are as many different opinions on office layouts as there are people. Some employees value the privacy and comfort of a cubicle, while others may prefer to work in more collaborative environments. One business that employed this approach saw 18% greater collaboration, a 10% increase in creativity and a 15% increase in communication. Rather than choosing one or the other, giving employees a variety of workspaces and the choice to work where they will be most productive seems to be the best approach for these questions of office design.
Office furniture can also increase your employee attraction and retention. Office furniture and design is one important way you can convey your company’s values and overall brand identity to staff. A mismatch between your business’s professed values and the way your office feels can damage the connection between the business and your employees. On the other hand, having an office that feels very coordinated with your mission and beliefs can lead to more employee engagement, which in turn can lead to better business outcomes.
Oftentimes, office furniture can be an afterthought. But the place where your employees will be spending most of their day is critically important for promoting productivity and engagement with their work.