While many would still vouch for the traditional way of working, the new-age professionals are looking for much more than a pay package. Other than a comfortable and encouraging work culture they are choosing flexibility over fixed work systems. Flexibility might mean various ways of task completion and employees choosing the best fit for them, but it also means that it adds up to the company benefits as well.

Let us learn about the benefits of agile work structures and how we can create a successful agile workplace to achieve maximum benefit from it.

 

Benefits of an agile workplace

Among others, here are some benefits of agile workplaces that might help you in your office space transition.

Improved employee satisfaction and loyalty

The huge amount of flexibility in the work environment that the agile system offers, is bound to empower employees. When your employees feel that they are valued and looked after, you can expect your employees to be satisfied and see an improvement in employee loyalty and productivity. Along with long-term employee retention you might encounter reduced loss of productivity, recruitment costs, administrative costs, and other related costs for your company.

Better collaborative environment

Better collaboration is the core value of an agile approach. Frequent and open communication between teams across hierarchies helps them to solve problems, perform better and ensure overall well-being. Flexibility in the physical work environment aids in meet-ups and idea-sharing between colleagues.

Possibility of attracting top-notch talents

If your current employees are satisfied, it will create a positive brand image for the company. Most professionals try to collect as much information about the target company as possible and it mostly is based on the reviews of current employees. This allows them to have a better idea of the company. If you have a good work environment inside your space then it is more likely that the top talents will get attracted to your company.

Engagement of lesser space

When you are removing the restrictions involved in traditional workspaces from agile spaces, it allows the usage of less physical space. This not only reduces costs related to rent or lease, but also lessens utility costs and the expense of maintenance and cleaning. This is a huge advantage for companies in cost-cutting and increases the profit margin.

Reduced carbon footprint

When you are using less space, it means that your organization is using less energy for various company operations. This helps reduce the carbon footprint on the environment and create a sustainable business. The growing demand for sustainable businesses is also a huge benefit of agile workplaces.

 

How to create an agile workplace

Transition is not always easy and acceptable. To make the shift a successful one, here are some tips for you to consider.

Evaluate your current space

Assess the place your organization is currently working in. Research says that on average almost 40% of desk space remains unused in an office space. Traditionally, you would have desks assigned to your employees that might not always be in use. In instances where an employee is on leave or is in a meeting, the desk space remains useless. Before shifting to an agile system, evaluating, and knowing about these unused spaces will help you a lot in correctly designing your agile space.

Take baby steps

Transitioning from traditional to agile systems is not an easy or small task. It would require quite an effort and time to do the entire change. It is a complete cultural shift that many of your workers may find difficult to adjust to. Thus, it is recommended to take on baby steps and start with small changes like changing a corner or an area of the entire space at a time. You can also go for a trial floor and observe the impact on your employees.

Employ experts for the job

Always hire someone skilled enough to do the job. The experts will know when to start and where to start and finish as well. The entire process may not be very comfortable for your employee, so leave it to experts who are well-skilled and experienced to manage everything around the transition.

Make sure that your IT infrastructure is working fine

The first and foremost job after the transition is done is to check whether your IT infrastructure like the wi-fi is working well. This is because the employees no more have designated seating and are free to roam about the space. They would not require better connectivity to continue with their work. Also, you have to install power points at different corners of the area so that your employees are able to charge their laptops whenever required.

The IT setup must be very well performing to make sure that it is capable of handling the workload scattered around the office and also from remotely located employees.

Put up a different set of rules for agile workers

Though it is much more about flexibility and less about rigid rules, still workers need rules for particular task completions. It is not acceptable if employees comprehend agility as autonomy. They must understand that they can work any way they find best fit, but there are certain unavoidable rules set by the office. As an employer, you have to understand that you have to set new-defined rules for your agile workers to maintain the robustness inside the office.

Upskill your employees

The transition from a traditional work environment to agile office spaces primarily means switching the technical infrastructure incorporated inside the office into a much more robust system. Also, your employees must find it hard to manage the new work culture and be productive from the onset. However, training the employees about the new system and upskilling them is a way to minimize downtime and use the office space technology without any hassle.

Put emphasis on storage and security

It is for sure that there will be raised concerns on the security of personal belonging in the agile workspace. The employees are in constant motion and thus they must need a solution to secure their laptops and other items when not in use. Thus, solutions like electronic lockers must be thought of.

 

Conclusion

An agile professional work environment has several advantages. But you must keep in mind certain points to make it your company’s strength while trying to create one. Not only successful transition is important but it is also important to keep a regular update on whether the system is producing the expected results.