Small offices can seem cluttered, which can reduce productivity, and it may seem impossible to ensure that each of your employees had enough space to work comfortably. It is possible, though, to maximize a small office space through certain tried and tested methods that will ensure that you can utilize the space you have while creating a spacious and productive environment.
1. Laptops
Laptops are a great way to free up office space and available desks. The highly portable nature of laptops means that employees can work from any location in the office with their laptop, even if there is little desk space. Not only this, but laptops are much smaller than desktop systems, and this can mean that you can fit more laptops onto workstations, or that you can create more space for filing, printers and other office equipment that is equally as important. If you are looking for portable and professional laptops for your business, choosist.com can help you to find the best laptops for your office by providing personalized recommendations based on your needs.
2. Hot Desking
Hot-desking means that employees have desks when they need them, rather than desksbeing left empty while their owners are away. Rather than allocating desks, hot-desking is when multiple workers work from a single workstation by rota or when they need it to do work from. This means that you will have more space in your office by the inclusion of fewer desks, especially those normally left empty, while ensuring that employees have a place to work from whenever they need it.
3. Create Zones
Creating zones in your office mean that each employee can benefit from a certain area when they need it. For instance, by having one area for a specific department, and another for independent work ensures that people can communicate effectively between themselveswhile maintaining productiveness. Therefore, you can adapt these tones for the type of people that will be working there. For instance, your design team will need more space than departments working solely on their computers. You can also consider installing longer tables which can take up more space than individual tables for your different teams,
4. Collaborative Spaces
When creating zones, you should not forget to design collaborative spaces, as these allow your colleagues to communicate effectively and conduct group projects efficiently. You should ensure that these collaborative spaces are away from independent workspaces, such as in the focal point of the room. To maximize the space in these, you may consider installing a couch or relaxed seating area where multiple people can work from the same piece of furniture.
5. Out-Source Work
If you are desperate for space, you should also consider out-sourcing work or hiring remote workers that can work from home, rather than an office. This will ensure that you do not need as many workspaces in your office, while still getting the same amount of work done. You should out-source only the work which you are happy to delegate and have less control over,such as finances, as out-sourcing work will often mean employing independent freelancers.
Image Credits: Small Office Layout from baranq /Shutterstock