While a major portion of a company’s revenue depends on employee productivity, it can be said that a pleasing environment to work in can boost productivity and help in generating more revenue. If an employee is happy in his workplace, then it can be assumed that he will be more productive towards the company.

Having said that, a pleasing environment can be the result of several influences but agility in a workplace is what works best. A flexible environment that looks after individual employee requirements, ensures more efficiency from the professionals.

This article is a comprehensive study of the concept behind agile workplaces and their basic features. No matter whether you are the head of a large enterprise or a leader of a small one, having the knowledge of how to make your employees much more comfortable in their workplace will always add value to your revenue system.

What is an agile workplace?

An agile workplace is based on an agile methodology which targets to minimize the length of production cycles. It is the concept of creating a work environment that provides flexibility to suit employee needs and make a better place to work. The primary motive behind this theory is to nurture optimal productivity for a business.

This concept offers designs for spaces that ensure maximum flexibility. This empowers employees to make maximum use of the resources and finally yield better results for the company. The agility of a work location depends on several factors such as the infrastructure and the team with which an employee needs to collaborate to carry out a particular task.

The agile workplace differs from traditional offices primarily in the fact that agile workplaces allow employees to move freely around the space which is not the case in traditional offices. In the traditional system, an employee is assigned a desk where he is expected to carry out his entire job. In an agile system, the employee is free to make use of any space around the office suitable for him. It is the physical aspect of the space that decides its agility.

Agile office designs concentrate on providing professionals the choice to decide on the space where they feel at their most productive. In other words, it is a way of getting a job done. Now the question is how to create one. For that, we must first understand the basic features of agile workplaces.

Characteristics of agile workplaces

If you want quick thinking and ultimate team performance, then flexibility is the word for your office space design. Here are some characteristics of agile spaces to turn your space into a more collaborative and productive one.

1. More accessible agile space for better collaboration

The employees must be able to access as much space as possible to choose the appropriate space to get their job done faster. Also, the usual size of team meetings is between 5 to 10 people which will take place now and then. So, large meeting spaces are not very approachable ones in this case. Again, several such teams may want to work parallelly. In such situations, small agile spaces work better than traditionally designated spaces.

2. Balance between agile and traditional workspaces

This can be achieved through designs that encourage both open spaces and dedicated cubicles for the workers. While there may be large and open spaces for most workers to collaborate and work together, there must be also the presence of concentrated spaces for one-to-one collaborations. Exclusive, small spaces dedicated to team meetings can be created in an agile environment. That way, your team can move seamlessly around the office and will also have a space for private discussions.

3. A designated space for creativity

You have to keep space for creativity if you want fast growth for your company. To encourage creativity the first thing that has to be changed is the monotonous work environment. If the space has better creative designs and promotes creativity at all levels, then you can expect your employees to think on their feet and come up with better ideas and rejuvenated performance levels. This may involve informal seating areas, standing workstations, changing work posture, and comfortable seating spaces.

4. Video conferencing facility

Post-pandemic, we have learned a lesson that no workplace in the current era would function well without remote work systems and remote work culture requires video conferencing facilities. So, if you want to comfortably accommodate the employees working at a remote location, installing video conferencing equipment is an excellent idea to go with. This flexibility will not only promote inclusivity but will be less stressful to the company budget.

5. A zone for relaxation

All work and no play, your employees might turn dysfunctional if not dumb. Short breaks are explicitly necessary for the entire team to function properly. Thus, an agile workplace must include recreational areas such as cafeterias, book corners, open-air terraces, indoor health and fitness centers, etc.

Conclusion

Agile workplaces are gaining their fair share of popularity across industries. If a traditional workplace is a ground where your company revenue stands steadily, then the agile workspace is the fuel to sky-rocket the company’s growth. A little flexibility in the physical workspace can go a long way in stabilizing employee engagement and diminishing the time span of the production cycle.