One key metric will help measure your success.

When we imagine the ideal office space, it’s probably mirrored after high-tech companies in Silicon Valley. “Silicon Valley” the HBO show, that is. Corovan moving boxes were just spotted in a recent episode of the show when both Pied Piper and Hooli relocate to modern spaces without cubicles, free food abounds, and plenty of natural light.

the set of Sillicon Valley the HBO show (Photo courtesy of HBO Silicon Valley)

The show freely took a cue from real life where Corovan is the leading moving service provider for California businesses. Thankfully, even if your office lacks an over-abundance of pendant lights and a ping-pong table, you can still create a collaborative idea factory. There is actually one simple measurement you can use to find out where your workplace stands.

The shared space metric: Is your office 70-30 or 50-50?

Take a moment to look around your workplace. The average office build out, according to an article from Work Design, allots the majority of the space for individual workstations, or 70 percent, leaving just one-third for shared space in community settings. If that describes your office, look again: Are all those personal workstations being used? If not, that could be considered wasted space. The metric that’s becoming more common is closer to 50-50 for workstations and shared space. And, even if your employees aren’t zipping around the office on hoverboards, they are probably more mobile within the confines of your headquarters. Shared space, according to study after study, is where the new focus of the office should be.

Rethinking your square footage

While shrinking personal square footage might seem counter-productive, the Leesman Index report suggests this leads to more employee productivity, not less. If your office hasn’t been transformed into an optimal design just yet, you’re not alone: the Leesman Index has a survey of companies to determine the effectiveness of their workplace design. According to its latest report, only 54% of businesses polled believe their office layout allows them to be productive.

Does office re-configuration really help?

Research is starting to support that it does. A Harvard Business Review article noted that data on workplace performance does show that “face-to-face interactions are by far the most important activity in an office.” After all, staring at a monitor and trying to finish up all those “TPS” reports, is not where your workers are going to get their best ideas. While “Office Space” didn’t have the advantage of a workplace change expert to keep on top of the latest thinking on workplace set up, you can. From the Leesman Index, here are some simple office space solutions:
  • Natural lighting is preferred over artificial
  • Informal areas are more effective at encouraging co-worker collaboration
  • Workplace with flexibility increase employee production and pride
 

Have workplace balance

Let Corovan help you reconfigure your employees’ personal square footage for a flexible, creative environment. Find out how »