Why you should create an agile workspace

| December 12, 2017

It’s important for everyone to be responsive, efficient and effective in their work, especially with how demanding our world has become. This might be difficult for some, but it can be made easier by adopting a flexible workplace that promotes the ability to work in an agile way.

Agile working means to be productive and flexible no matter where you are. As the days of having to sit behind a desk all day begin to disappear, employees are now able to complete tasks and respond to emails remotely.

The agile workplace

Quite simply, an agile or mobile workplace is one in which staff can work from anywhere, at anytime. This can mean on the road, in a home office, in a café with a coffee in hand, or simply in other parts of the office.

Agile workplaces, in their extreme, are usually linked to “hot-desking”, a concept which has grown in popularity with real estate prices are at a premium. Hot-desking is the practice of not allocating a single desk to a single staff member, but in essence, nobody has their “own” desk.

It is ideal for organisations that hire a lot of staff out of the office, part-timers, temps, contractors or have job share arrangements in place. It means that the staff member comes in, grabs an available desk, does their work and at the end of the day packs up their things and off they go.

The agile working concept is firmly backed up by technological advances with products like mobile scanners, printers, laptops, even folding keyboards – all designed to be easily carried around, for example, between the office and home.

Today, work-life balance is more important than ever and so the ability to work wherever and whenever has never been more necessary. Here are three reasons why you should consider adopting a more agile workplace.

1. Increased productivity and collaboration

Providing your employees with a greater number of choices can increase productivity. Also, as employees are no longer confined to their desks, in an open, agile workplace group collaboration is facilitated and temporary teams can work in pods, have working meetings in break out spaces and also connect wherever they may be located.

2. Flexible and mobile options for employees

One major benefit of agile working is it gives employees the choice to decide where and how they want to work. Rather than be restricted to an office desk, they may decide a quiet working nook or even a bustling café area. It means they are less restricted and can move around the office or even beyond the office walls to work maximising their personal productivity.

You can also provide flexible workstations with the implementation of sit to stand desks, which allow employees to customise the height of their desks and remove the need to stay seated all day long. COS Working Spaces recently fitted Allianz with 200 electric sit to stand desks to get their employees up and moving and to provide them with flexible options in the way they work.

3. Attract future employees

Agile workplaces are increasingly in demand by employees as many are looking for increased flexibility for their work life. Adopting an agile workplace can have a significant impact on attracting and retaining great talent and with more businesses adopting this type of approach, being left behind could mean missing out on great employees.

When it comes to creating an agile workspace, there is no one size fits all approach for businesses to follow. However, it is worth the investment. Employees prefer agile spaces, and they can result in increased productivity, employee retention and cost reductions. If these benefits sound appealing, perhaps it’s time for you to explore how your office can be more agile.

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