Optimise Your New Office For Staff Wellbeing

You’d be forgiven for thinking all the hard work happens before and during your office move but there are some critical steps you’ll need to take (and continue) after relocation to ensure a happy workplace. If your move was managed well, you will have focused as much on your people as your furnishings and belongings in the move, listening to their views as you planned your new office.

Workplace wellbeing is a hot topic and there’s no better time to put those plans into action than your new workspace.  You’re in the enviable position of being able to put the right wellbeing measures in place for a healthy, happy work environment - before bad practices have become entrenched.

Here are 5 easy to implement measures that will help you foster the right workplace for a happy workforce in your new space:

5 Ways to Improve Staff Wellbeing After You Move Office

1. Involve your people

You’ll need to gauge, monitor, and measure feedback from employees on their mental and physical response to their new office.  From temperature, light, and furniture to personal space, efficiency and comfort, make it easy for staff to report concerns and suggestions, with a clear and open process for asking questions.  This will allow you to iron out early issues before they become bigger problems.

2. Create Familiarity and Comfort

This is the time when many staff will be feeling unsettled and out of their comfort zone.  There’s a lot to be said for familiarity, which your employees would have enjoyed (and probably taken for granted) in your previous office.  When that ease and predictability is missing, discomfort and distraction can follow, leading to poor motivation, wellbeing and productivity.

To prevent that from happening, you need to help your staff become familiar with their new building as quickly as possible.  Start with a comprehensive tour of the building (not just their immediate vicinity).  Staff need to know where they and others work, but also where the meeting, collaboration, break-out and training areas are, too.

3. Explain Why

With all these new environments, processes and protocols, it’s a good idea to run training sessions on how the new workspace works and why it has been designed that way - especially if you’ve introduced new collaborative space, cross-working environment or agile working set-up.

Educate your staff on any new processes, such as meeting room bookings, and show them how to use the new building, with an emphasis on the benefits.  The importance of workplace wellbeing is spoken of frequently but without implementation, it means nothing. Use training sessions to demonstrate how your new wellbeing measures will work.  If you’ve introduced sit-stand desks, for example, explain why.

4. Establish Etiquette

Etiquette may sound formal but it can mean the difference between disgruntled employees and happy ones.  If you’ve moved into an open-plan office, for example, people will need to become more aware of their impact, noise and surroundings.  Having respect for colleagues when speaking on the phone or to others will minimise conflict and frustration.

Quiet zones and booths can provide an effective solution for those who require privacy or need to concentrate, but you should establish how these areas are used, by whom and when to avoid problems.

5. Welcome Everyone Properly

A welcome event is a great way to celebrate the move and engage everyone in the perks of working in your new office. This article from Forbes explains why it's so important to make your employees feel welcome.

If you haven’t done already, give each member of staff their own welcome pack, too. From telephone lists and access codes to a map of the building and information on the local area, the pack will help everyone feel excited and part of your company’s new adventure.

If you’d like to know more about staff wellbeing and how to make sure your office is working towards it, take a look at these case studies or contact our friendly team.