The standards of office cleanliness for a business can directly improve employee productivity, according to a study in the European Cleaning Journal. The appearance and general hygiene of an office environment can contribute to the overall happiness and wellbeing of staff, meaning they are more likely to work faster and to a higher standard.
A Business Responsibility
As a business owner, your responsibility runs much further than just getting the job done. You need to look after your staff and employee wellbeing should be at the core of your operation. Despite this, according to the BMG’s March Employee Update, just 28% of employees surveyed said that their employer has a wellbeing strategy. Providing a clean working environment for your employees is a vital part of a wellbeing strategy. It can improve employee productivity by simply giving your staff a pleasant and positive environment to spend time in. So, you should not consider cleaning as a luxury expense but as an essential service that can add real value to your company.
The Benefits for the Business of a Workplace Cleaning Strategy
REDUCE ABSENCES
A dirty working environment breeds germs which leave employees prone to infection. It is a shocking fact that the average keyboard can gather up to 7,500 bacteria per swab at any one time. Sick days cost UK businesses a whopping £13.7 billion a year, which is the equivalent of the wages of 460,000 office workers. So, the cleaner your office is then the fewer germs there are around. This will no doubt improve business-wide productivity by reducing sickness rates.
IMPROVE MOTIVATION AND REDUCE STRESS
A cluttered work environment can result in a cluttered mind. Working in a clean and spacious environment should go a long way to satisfying your employees. A tidy workplace will help to boost staff morale and keep your teams motivated, even during busy or stressful periods. An organised environment simply makes it easier for workers to be more efficient by having everything they need to hand.
A PROFESSIONAL APPROACH
The internal perception of your company starts with your office’s appearance. Can you really expect your staff to be the driven and dedicated people that you want them to be when their workplace is a mess? A clean and tidy workplace creates a professional atmosphere and demonstrates that you mean business, which will help to improve employee productivity.
Stress is one of the most common causes of long-term sickness absence, accounting for up to 40% of work-related illnesses. Keeping an office clean and in order can help to reduce stress levels. Chaos and filth in an office can actually increase stress levels under certain circumstances and could also create tension between staff members.
COMPANY CULTURE
If you have customers or clients visiting your office, you need to make a good first impression. The expression ‘never judge a book by its cover’ does not apply here. Your office environment should be as important as your product or service when considering the first impressions that clients or staff have of your business. A clean and tidy workplace will create that all-important professional impression to visitors.
Common Areas to Improve
SPRING CLEANING ALL YEAR ROUND
In a busy work environment cleanliness levels can drop quickly. Papers stack up, spills accumulate, a few days of rain leads to mud tracked in – a regular cleaning schedule ensures that standards remain high year-round.
And you don’t always have to leave it to a contracted company. Implementing a clear desk policy can also go a long way to stopping the clutter build-up.
KEEP YOUR ENVIRONMENT LIGHT AND BRIGHT
The American Society of Interior Design found that 68% of employees are unhappy with the lighting in their offices.
A brightly lit office will keep your employees ready to work! Mimicking natural sunlight will improve office productivity massively. Dim or fluorescent lighting can cause eye strain and headaches, because, when light is insufficient, the eyes are strained and forced to work harder to visualise. Dim light can also cause drowsiness, which in turn creates a lack of focus, a negative impact on the workforce.
With natural LEDs, 95% of the energy is converted into light and only 5% wasted as heat. Save energy for both employees and electricity! (*)
BREAK OUT AREAS AND A DESIGN REFRESH
We all need time to recharge our batteries. Encourage employees to take small breaks throughout the working day by introducing a welcoming breakout area to change their scenery once in a while. If your office already has a kitchen area, make space for comfortable furniture so staff can enjoy their lunch away from their desks.
You can even offer a different range of workspaces optional for mobile employees where each has a desk available without having to remain stuck in separate cubicles.
Open office plans have proven popular in the past few years, but they haven’t managed to deliver what was promised. They are very affordable to create and are likely to encourage more interaction, but small chit chat conversations soon become disruptive background noise for others rather than groundbreaking communication.
Minimalistic offices may look fabulous for aesthetics, but they won’t benefit the environment when there are no storage options for employee belongings. The mess will quickly accumulate, and that’s not good for safety reasons nor first impressions. A few cupboards for storage purposes won’t go amiss.
DON’T BE AFRAID TO GO GREEN
A study by the University of Exeter found that employee productivity increased by 15% when previously uninspired workspaces were filled with just a handful of houseplants. Adding just one plant per square metre improved memory retention and helped employees score higher on other basic tests, said researcher Dr Chris Knight.
What Matters to your Employees the Most?
Your employees are the ones who will be most affected by the working space. It’s important to hear their opinions to create the best possible outcome for everyone. Brainstorm ideas to help support their thoughts and decide the best plan of action to proceed with. It’s very easy to get carried away in creating the perfect office space and end up forgetting about the people who work in the area.
A facilities management company can take care of all the office cleaning and maintenance needs to help keep cleanliness standards high without requiring constant input from the business. Cost and time consumption may hold you back, but many of these improvements can happen without a significant budget requirement. A facilities management company like Smarter Services can do all of the hard work for you, so get in touch if you want to find out more.
