A Guide to an Efficient Office Space Expansion for a Growing Team
If you have a growing team but you are reluctant to make a decision regarding the extra space you need, you better think again, since having a lot of people crammed in a small place leads to sudden bursts of rage. Although they can use many communication apps, colleagues who collaborate would want to talk aloud and solve the issue more quickly but with all the rooms taken, they would have to speak in front of everybody and thus disrupt their concentration.
Providing enough space for everyone will result in an increase in productivity since employees will have enough space to isolate themselves and focus on their work. Apart from that, an inadequate amount of space might lead to employees abandoning your company in search of better working conditions, while a spacious and modern office might attract new talent. Now that we have determined the importance of everyone having enough space, let’s look at a few guidelines to make this possible.
Determine the space needed
The first step is to be objective and evaluate the amount of additional space you might need. To be able to do that, you need to consider a few things, among those, are whether the employee will be working in an open-space room with cubicles, or if they will be grouped by departments in different offices. Many companies nowadays opt for a combination of the two and have smaller teams or upper management in offices while the rest work in a space divided by cubicles.
It is not that easy to know precisely the amount of space you will need but there is no need to be perfectly precise. The reason why you can afford to leave a little extra space is that you might be expanding again soon, so that would be a wise decision because you would avoid renovating in the close future. Also, another thing to consider is whether you will be needing one or more conference rooms, and you mustn’t forget additional rooms such as the kitchen and sometimes a library.
Evaluate your budget
All of your carefully thought-out plans might come to nothing if you suddenly realize that you don’t have the budget to make them happen. Meaning, the question of the budget should be analyzed in the initial stages before you start thinking about the color of walls in the office and the purchase of new desks. Once you see what you are working within regards to capital, you can then continue with the planning.
However, if you are uncertain about the whole process, the necessary space, and the overall cost, it’s best you hire office renovations professionals since they will be able to offer invaluable advice on subjects such as office furniture, layout plans, and networking tech space. A detailed budget plan and ensuring that the work will be done with minimum impact on the staff and business operations will definitely give you peace of mind. In that manner, you will be able to concentrate on your business growth.
Consider different options
Depending on your current office space, you might have an opportunity to physically expand in that same building by joining the empty places next to or above them. On one hand, this could be a convenient solution since you needn’t fuss over moving the entire office to a new location, but on the other hand, it can be tricky since all the while the renovation is taking place, your employees and their work must be disturbed as little as possible by the noise.
Since this kind of arrangement is not an option in all cases, and a change of places might be needed, you need to think about the location. In case your customers, clients, partners, and suppliers are used to having you at a particular location which might be important for some reason, then it would be best to stay in close proximity. You also need to consider the accessibility of restaurants, shops, bus stops, and for those who come to work by car, free parking.
Pay attention to working conditions
Besides adding space, there are other segments that will have to be added, and also, this could be the right time to change some of the things for new ones. For instance, light is an essential element that influences employees’ productivity levels. Make sure your employees have plenty of light above the head and equip them with lamps, just in case.
Another element to consider is the HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) system and if you haven’t had it checked in a while, this is the perfect moment to do so. While you are at it, you might schedule regular checkups from that point on, so as to ensure everything is working properly so you and your employees can work in a healthy and pleasant atmosphere.
A growing team is a sign of a thriving business, so to motivate additional growth, make sure you provide them with adequate work facilities.
