Lendis Office Hacks: 5 tips for a more productive working environment
In almost all companies, employees' working time is a limited resource. This makes it all the more important to use it as efficiently as possible. However, there are disruptive factors in every office that limit the productivity of every employee. With the help of simple changes in the office, you can effectively counteract some of them. In this article, you will find 5 easy-to-implement ways to increase productivity in your office:
1. establish guidelines for meetings
Meetings are essential for internal exchange as well as for creativity and innovation in the company. However, they are also one of the biggest productivity killers in everyday working life and often get in the way of focused work. For this reason, it is helpful to establish guidelines for meetings. In an article, the Harvard Business Review also calls for an end to the meeting madness and, in addition to a structural approach to changing the meeting culture, names simple measures to make meetings more productive.
These include, for example, that regular meetings should not last longer than 30 minutes, should only be used for decision-making and should be held standing up to increase the attention of those involved. Some young companies even go so far as to introduce complete weekdays without meetings. However, such guidelines should always be adapted to the needs of the employees and the company.
2. set up a room booking system
Another way to make the overall meeting process more efficient is to introduce a room booking system. These support the team in finding appointments and bring transparency to the use of meeting rooms.
In our opinion, such a system represents great value for any office. For this reason, we have tested various systems and have included the most promising product in our portfolio with "Joan 6". The ability to be integrated into various calendars, wireless mounting and quick installation via existing Wi-Fi make it easy to set up the system. Joan 6 also offers the option of analyzing room usage and automatically cancels meetings that are not taking place. In this way, Joan 6 strengthens the efficient use of space, the implementation of meeting guidelines and the corporate culture.
3. make your office greener
The interior design and furnishings also influence the productivity of your employees. Office plants, for example, can have a positive influence on the way people work in various areas. In a previous article, we explained that "plants in the workplace can increase productivity by 15% [...]". Biophilic design, for example, incorporates proximity to nature into the architecture of buildings. However, this effect can also be used with the help of simple house plants in the office.
4. introduce focus hours
In open-plan offices in particular, the question often arises as to how a more productive atmosphere can be created. The introduction of focus hours with a minimal noise level, e.g. in the morning, can bring about a rapid improvement. This may feel a little unfamiliar at first and take some time to fully implement. However, this phase is usually quickly incorporated into the daily routine and appreciated by everyone involved.
5. keep your workplace tidy
This tip relates more to the individual and immediate working environment and is probably the easiest to implement. Even if it sounds very simple at first, you often come across chaotic offices and workplaces. It has been shown in various contexts that the immediate environment has an influence on cognitive abilities, emotions and decision-making skills. A chaotic environment makes structured work more difficult and can increase individual stress levels under certain circumstances. A simple way to counteract this is to take 10 minutes at the end of each working day to organize your workspace and sort the documents you use. This also applies to digital documents.