Design your Workspace like Google!

Employee engagement in the workplace has reached its highest peak. Companies have noticed that when employees are invested in their job, they are more motivated to help their employers achieve their goals and organizational success.

When employees are engaged, they are more enthusiastic about their work, too, and will often take initiatives to further their company’s reputation.

While workplace engagement has grown, many employees feel anything but “engaged” during the regular 9-5 grind. In fact, only 32% of the American workforce identifies themselves as engaged while at the office, which translates to an estimated $500 billion lost every year in productivity, according to a poll done in 2015 by Gallup. (That’s an astronomical amount of money being lost each yea!!!)

Often, it’s not just the work itself that leaves folks lacking drive during the workday. In many traditional office environments, people feel as if they have no say, as often times, they are assigned where to sit, what to do, and how to do it, which leaves no creativity for one to think and act for themselves, or better yet, feel as if they are part of a team.

Knowing how to deal with the many distractions that pop up during the workday is a constant battle of poor workplace design, which often leaves the employees feeling as if they have no place to go to regroup their thoughts in order to focus better.

It’s really sad, but for a majority of the population of the world’s employees, work is something they simply just learn to tolerate out of necessity. Employees do their best to remain focused so they do not get fired, as disengaged employees can drag down teams and cost the company in lost time, money, and opportunity.

The reality is that regardless of other elements, working in a dysfunctional and unorganized environment consisting of stacks of unfiled documents or post it notes everywhere on the employee’s desk can be a real detriment to staying focus.

Clutter affects productivity, as it can become impossible to find important documents or to find a free space on the desk to actually work.

Here are some facts:

•    One in 3 employees worldwide, or 37%, are disengaged at work.
•       Conversely, 34 % of workers report feeling engaged.
•       Roughly 29% of respondents fell somewhere in the middle.

Space is key!

Employees care about their workplace environment as a clean, uncluttered workplace allows people to be more engaged at work. Working in an office space that isn’t crammed is important.

Understanding how to properly use the floor space and the layout available in an office is essential to avoid cramming.

Let’s take a look at Google and why their space works so well.

Google has been ranked as the number 1 company to work for typically due to their environment. This ranking encourages many other offices to create similar designs knowing that Google has an amazing reputation for their employee’s productivity, largely due to the layout/design of their office.

The approach Google takes to the workplace design is similar to that taken by retailers designing their stores, by connecting their offering with their “consumer’s wants, needs, and aspirations”.

The successful design and culture of Google offices serve a purpose, both for business performance and employee engagement.

Employees are constantly engaged, enabled, supported and motivated to meet the demands of the business. Potential distractions for outside the office have been identified and mitigated. Perks are used in a positive way, benefiting both the employee and employer.

When an employee is asked to work long hours to meet deadlines, sleep pods are available to keep employees rested and refreshed without having to leave the office. Employees also have the option to bring their dogs to work. The pet owners feel more comfortable in the office because they are not under pressure to go home and care for their furry little friends.

Google also offers free food and drink onsite. This park not only saves time and money for employees, but it also increases motivation and productivity.

If you are looking for ways to engage your employees so they become more productive, please feel free to reach out to me. We can discuss how to improve your workplace design layout to increase motivation and productivity.

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