Office culture is one of the most influential factors in keeping people engaged with their work on a daily basis – here’s how we unlock the full potential of our team…
f
f
1. Nurture great relationships
“Take care of your employees, and they’ll take care of your business. It’s as simple as that.”
– Richard Branson
We are social beings by nature and strong team bonds lay the foundation for a happy, successful company. Positive relationships between employees have a tremendous impact on job satisfaction, they mean colleagues genuinely enjoy helping each other in times of need. Take care of your employees and help them support one another. Maintaining positivity on the floor is proven to show good results on the app to track work hours of the employees.
Company meetings provide an excellent opportunity to commend outstanding work, share announcements and provide feedback. But what about outside of work? At CandidSky, our resident ‘Chief of Fun’ is tasked with the duty of getting people together to explore and share passions other than their day-to-day work. So far, we’ve enjoyed go-karting, film nights, Mario Kart tournaments, house parties and office Olympics – to name a handful…
2. Prioritise health and wellbeing
Paying attention to the health of both body and mind is so critical for our performance. A lack of exercise in a busy schedule is easily overlooked; but being busy should never be an excuse not to look after ourselves. When we exercise, our bodies release natural stress relievers, endorphins, and our blood gets filled with oxygen which stimulates brain activity and helps to stave off the threat of illness. Also, if you were to visit the site, you’d understand, as an employee, the healthcare privileges that companies must provide you with if you were to fall ill.
We’ve also introduced regular yoga sessions and got new table tennis paddles for the new table tennis in our office space, as well as scheduling a weekly order of fresh fruit and nuts that arrives each Monday morning. This provides us with the chance to take a quick break, stretch the legs and enjoy a healthy snack.
3. Utilise office space and support collaboration
“Ideas don’t happen in the boardroom, they happen in corridors.”
– Steve Jobs
Sensory stimulants in the office environment contribute to a feeling of fulfilment and enjoyment when carrying out daily tasks. Designing organised, uncluttered, collaborative work space motivates people to produce fantastic pieces of work.
One of the ways in which we did this was to reserve 60% of our office space for collaborative work. We avoid putting up too many walls that segregate the space, so people can easily support each other with their work.
The Studio – Our primary desk area
f
The Bar – A dedicated workbench for sitting or standing
f
The Lounge – A comfy area for informal discussion
Equally, we understand that in an open plan office, private space is also incredibly important. Whether meeting clients, making a phone call or simply wanting a bit of peace and quiet, we made sure our space catered for those moments.
f
The Boardroom – A professional space for formal meetings
f
The Lodge – A private capsule set-up for less formal meetings and conference calls
f
The Loft – A quiet spot to get away from the action
f
4. Increase productivity and reduce distractions
We all experience distractions from various sounds and noises, inside and outside of the office. Music playing from the speakers is a great addition to our office that sets an ambient background, acting as a neutral filter for otherwise distracting noises. More than that, it provides a shared reference point for creative conversation – as well as highlighting some interesting musical tastes!
Our culture also strongly encourages regular microbreaks to help clear the mind and regain focus. Office space that allows for comfortable relaxation and access to sensory stimuli such as Lego, mindfulness colouring books and video games yields fantastic results in keeping the team energised and lucid. Hence, make it a point to set-up a gaming desk and lay out some PSP games.
5. Learn and share knowledge
Mental stimulation reduces the risk of cognitive decline, and trains the brain to be faster and stronger. Healthy minds support happy and motivated people which leads to better quality of lives that unsurprisingly results in a higher calibre more productive workforce.
We realise that when everyone is focussed on producing great work, personal learning and progression can often be de-prioritised. So we recently introduced lunchtime lectures where the team present new findings, share their expertise and discuss ideas they have had or have read about. More on that in our upcoming video blog series.
f
“Food for thought and tasty snacks guarantee healthy habits.” – Jakub Wawszczyk, CandidSky
s
Technology gives us access to thousands of online courses and tutorials, whether in the office, on the bus or at home. Providing access to online portals gives staff the freedom and flexibility to enhance their skills.
Certifications provide a good way of tracking progress and bring value to the business. We encourage the team to bring new learning opportunities to us so we can discuss the benefits, help them organise the course and support them in funding it.
What’s next?
As a tightly knit team we strive to always make incremental improvements to our work space and culture.
We actually have our hearts set on building a treehouse, complete with private space downstairs and beanbag area upstairs that overlooks the office! We’ll keep you posted…