Just as we have seen major changes in social and information trends in recent years, we have also seen major changes in modern work place culture. As the information age progresses corporations have identified the great need for collaboration among their employees. As a leading provider of premier New York and Chicago office space solutions, we work to provide our tenants with smart collaborative work spaces that enhance the work process and output.
For more than 20 years Steelcase WorkSpace Futures has been studying collaboration in the work place. In order to test a multitude of collaborative theories, the group created a behavioral prototype work space in which they completed a yearlong study.
The Steelcase study validated and formally documented what our clients are experiencing every day.
There has been a remarkable shift in behavior in the recent years. Today most work is done in a collaborative manner, rather than individually. Furthermore, collaborative work is now more of a consistent thread of communication throughout the work day: at desks, in hallways, via smartphones, emails, IM’s and other forms of real-time conversation. More formal, designated collaborations in conference rooms, etc. are much less common. The study found that offices set up to support this type of collaboration do in fact cultivate better communication, more effective learning and faster decision making.
How do you foster collaboration in your workplace?
Join us at any of Work Better’s location to experience collaboration at work. Again, the Steelcase stucystudy validates what Work Better's clients have been experiencing for just about a decade now:
Equal Access to Information
True collaboration happens when there is enough space to easily support 4-8 people, physically or virtually. Set up your work space to accommodate teams of this size.
Technology Made Simple
Group meeting spaces that provide easy to use teleconferencing and projection technology are utilized constantly. Make sure that any common meeting spaces in your office have easy to use technology that doesn’t take away from the task at hand.
Visual Contact
Steelcase found that workers who can see each other are more likely to approach on another for impromptu conversation. Be sure that your office is set up to allow teams to easily make eye contact and communicate freely.
Social Space
Providing common, comfortable social space encourages employees to converse and discuss work causally. Additionally, social spaces cultivate a friendly work culture. Be sure and provide a casual space in which your employees can converse and brainstorm.
Private Space
It is still important to keep in mind that there are times and projects that require individual work and even privacy. It’s important to also equip your staff with secluded, quite space where they can work when necessary.
You may put these recommendations into place in your own office environment. Or, you may bolt on a ready-to-use solution by using a workspace provider like Work Betters for your workspace needs. If you’re currently in the market for a collaborative New York or Chicago office space, please contact us. We offer Chicago office space in the famous Willis Tower as well as New York office rentals in five stunning locations.
Interested in learning more ways to set your staff up for success? Subscribe to our blog, here we will be sharing recommendations and providing information on our New York and Chicago office space solutions. While you’re here we also encourage you to read these recent posts:
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Do you feel your office space fosters collaboration? Be like figure 3.
