Stacks of files, overflowing storage closets, and cluttered workstations… sound familiar? Unkept workspaces can cause negative reactions among employees and potential clients resulting in fewer business deals, lower productivity, and reduced morale.
If you want to create a high-performing work environment, start with spring cleaning. From greater workplace utilization to increased employee satisfaction, the benefits of an organized workspace can have a powerful impact on your business. Here’s why you should get clean this spring:
1. Greater Workplace Utilization
Changes in the way we work and use office space has made it increasingly important to take note of how you are utilizing your valuable (and expensive) space. If you find you're cramming closets or extra rooms full of old records, seasonal décor, or unused furniture, it may be time to make a change. Carefully sort through these items and reevaluate if you need to keep them. Dispose of items that don't serve your business anymore, and consider off-site storage for items that are only needed periodically. By decluttering these areas, you'll gain back the additional square footage needed for your company's growth.
2. Higher Productivity
A clean environment translates into an efficient, more productive workplace. Organizing is crucial to help employees do their jobs more effectively and stay focused. A few minutes searching for something at your workspace or in the supply closet not only adds up over the weeks, but research shows the lost physical time is amplified by lost mental time. Studies have found interruptions that last a short 4.4 seconds triple the rate of errors on the work we return to. Minimizing unnecessary distractions – like looking for a stapler or file – boosts output and accuracy.
3. Accurate Inventory
Maintaining an accurate inventory of office assets lowers over-spending on the items you already have. To get started, keep supplies in a central, organized location. If you have high-value items, like technology or promotional materials, limit access, and create a written procedure for inventory management. By putting the right employees in charge and taking the time to document what you have in stock, your team can work together to make sure your inventory (and costs) stay under control.
4. Professional Appearance
A tidy, organized office and work atmosphere creates a sense of professionalism for both employees and clients – demonstrating a company-wide dedication to detail, high-standards, and thoughtful planning. As a result, employees will be more likely to take on those core qualities and clients will feel more confident working with you. In contrast, a messy kitchen, scattered papers, or important files out of order can lead potential clients to feel uncomfortable working with you. And as a result, may take their business elsewhere.
5. Workplace Morale
A messy workplace increases anxiety and can have a negative impact on employee morale. When morale levels are down, employee productivity will inevitably decline, too. Maintaining a clean working environment has not only been shown to keep employees positively engaged, but it also creates a sense of workplace pride. Employees who take pride in their company and work environment are more inclined to organize their own desks, clean up after themselves, maintain filing systems, and work more effectively together.
Running out of room in your workplace?
No matter how organized you try to keep your office, when you run out of physical space there isn’t much more you can do. Excess inventory, archived records, bulky equipment, unused furniture – you don’t necessarily want to discard this material, but you also don’t have room for it either. So, what are your options?
On the extreme end, you could relocate to larger office space, but this is a costly solution that's hard to justify. As an alternative, you could consider using an off-site storage partner.
At Apex, we offer an array of full-service storage solutions to help you expand the amount of usable space in your workplace. Our warehouse experts will work with you to design a custom plan to fit your needs and your budget - contact us for a free quote today.
