If you have considered downsizing to a small office where employees share workstations or complete tasks in a coworking hub, you’re not alone. In the UK, for instance 12% of businesses plan to use coworking spaces more often than owned offices. And 13% of organizations sticking to offices want fewer desks per head in their premises, according to Research and Market. Office space sharing offers startups and large enterprises cost effectiveness without sacrificing collaboration and productivity. Because employees use space and equipment collectively rather than individually, a business can stretch a tight budget. Say you’re launching a startup with limited funds, you can rent a smaller office and purchase a few office appliances workers can share. Besides being cost effective a shared workplace design promises the benefits of custom-built commercial spaces. It maximizes efficiency, collaboration, and sustainability (better use of space, energy, and devices). But, for resource sharing in the office to be successful, a business should apply the following best practices.
1. Create Guidelines
Sharingg items and space in a work environment can be chaotic. For instance, two teams can have a misunderstanding of if they both want to use the conference area at the same time. So, what can be done to maintain harmony and efficiency? Have policies that dictate the use and upkeep of common areas, space reservation, and equipment borrowing guidelines. Discuss how much noise is enough to eliminate distractions, which reduce focus and productivity. For activities that require team members to be loud, like phone calls or project meetings, encourage staff to use quiet rooms, for example. Also, enforce office etiquette. This policy ensures workers keep workstations clean after use, refill paper in the printer, and respect personal stuff on shared desks or computers. Communicating rules prevents common challenges of workspace sharing like distractions, miscommunication, privacy issues, and misuse of resources.
2. Reduce Losses With Asset Management
Every business leader will agree they have moments when office items disappear and reappear with damages. Sometimes equipment is lost completely, forcing the organization to invest in new ones. Remember, a company doesn’t pay replacement costs only when laptops and other business assets are lost. Misplaced laptops or computers increase the risk of data breaches, which cost £3,550 on average, according to a recent cybersecurity breaches survey in the UK. As your organization figures ways to replace lost equipment, productivity is lost and that translates to low revenues.
Having an equipment returns management system solves these issues. The assigned resource manager knows who has a device and how long they’ll keep it for work. They can easily track the condition of laptops, and their return deadlines, for example. But for equipment return to be seamless, especially in a hybrid or flexible workplace setup, you need a strategy and the right tools. For example, tracking technology helps monitor shipments, notifications for overdue device returns, and delivery alerts. Be clear with how and when employees should return laptops, desktops, and other tech gadgets. And use reminders to ensure staff meet deadlines for returns.
3. Optimize Workspace
The purpose of optimizing shared or flexible workspaces is to support teams’ productivity and comfort. Therefore, choose furniture that doubles functionality and keeps areas organized like compact corner desks and floating desks. You could add wall shelves, desks with drawers built-in or integrate a file cabinet under floating desks. They increase storage without taking up too much floor space. If you add room dividers into the office layout you create zones for collaborative sessions or deep work, which is vital for higher productivity. The shared work environment also needs a desk sharing policy to allow rotation through workstations, letting teams use a desk based on their activity. For example, if one employee has a task that requires deep focus, they can switch from a shared workstation to a desk in a quiet zone.
4. Streamline Booking Procedures
How do teams reserve space or borrow equipment in your flexible office? Do they send endless emails requesting for a room or hand in scribbled notes when signing in for work? These tactics result in double bookings, which can cause disputes. Instead of using manual space reservations why not invest in modern booking systems. Available software for desk booking and meeting room reservations automates scheduling to ensure team members can easily reserve a hot desk for deep work or a conference room for their team’s weekly check-ins. Another advantage of desk and meeting room booking software is providing real-time data on space usage. The ability to track how workers use spaces helps make smart decisions on layout and resource allocation.
Office and equipment sharing is more than a cost-effective strategy for modern businesses. It’s a smart approach to encourage collaboration, support flexibility and growth, and reduce resource wastage. But to ensure employees thrive in shared office space, your organization must have easy-to-understand rules, simplified resource booking, optimized workspaces, and robust asset tracking.
