Looking for office hacks to help employees get adjust to working in the office again?
Because of the pandemic, a lot of offices had to close down temporarily for the health of everyone involved. Close to 100,000 offices had to do so to prevent the spread of the disease. This caused a lot of employees to find a way to work from home.
What’s great is that workers quickly adapted and became comfortable with their work-from-home situation. Nowadays, though, more offices are calling back their employees thanks to the vaccine and heightened precautions. Remote work made it so they aren’t as efficient when working in an office, though.
You’ll need to help them through to become comfortable when working in the office again.
If you follow my articles, then you know I love sharing useful insights and tools to help people to live their happiest and most successful life. It’s why I wrote my book Happy Habits – to encourage people to take steps forward to create habits which lead to a life you truly love.
Well, this in mind I thought I’d share the office hacks – to help workers used to remote work adjust to how things work in the office. These hacks will also help the workplace be eco-friendly for office sustainability.
Before considering having anybody come back to the office, you need to make sure that everything will be in order for their arrival. The virus is still a looming threat, and you should act with that in mind. You may have to end up revamping the entire workspace to accommodate the necessary changes you’ll make.
First, remove all the communal furniture in the office. The sickness can linger on surfaces for long periods of time, especially absorbent ones. Getting rid of communal furniture will reduce the risk of the virus transferring to someone else.
You can also consider setting up screens that separate different workspaces. This is so no one has to worry about the airborne transmission of the virus. It will help workers have peace of mind while they’re working in an office with other people.
You’ll also need to consider the maintenance of the office. Disinfecting the office after every shift is mandatory. Failing to do so may result in a temporary lockdown of the office and the area surrounding it.
Don’t use any cleaning chemical that’s too strong. The scent may linger well into the next day. It can cause your workers to have headaches or reactions to the lingering scent of chemicals.
Use non-toxic chemicals, instead. Biodegradeable antibacterial wipes are great examples as they’re gentle and effective at cleaning. It’s an eco-friendly solution that can guarantee the safety of everyone in the office.
Next, you need to come up with strict guidelines for everyone to follow in the office. These serve to protect employees from the transmission of the virus. They also stand as a way for people to remember how working in the office should be.
Enact rules that remind people how important social distancing is. Lay markers on the ground in places where there may be a congregation of people. The break room, cafeteria, or the hallway going to the bathroom are prime examples of such places.
Mandate workers to keep their work areas clean, too. This is especially important if you plan on having people work in the office in shifts. Not cleaning up and disinfecting the area will mean any lingering disease will transfer to the next person.
This puts everyone, including the family of that worker, in danger for their health. To aid workers in doing this, help them realize what they can do to reduce their wastes. Providing them with anti-bacterial wipes, as mentioned above, will also help immensely.
Some people may be a bit slow in readjusting to office life. Providing workers with some refreshers will go a long way in helping them transition. Allow your employees to refamiliarize themselves with office devices and where everything is.
They’ll need some time to get a flow going in the office. Remembering where files need to go and how they’re sorted can be a part of your refresher program. Take this time to talk about office sustainability to further keep the office clean as it can be.
Training is even more important if you have workers new to the office. You may have hired some people to do remote work for you during the lockdowns.
If it’s the first time they’re entering the office, make them feel comfortable. Doing this sooner helps them transition and be more productive with their work.
Employee onboarding should be a part of the training course in this case. It helps them figure out the culture in the workplace faster. This way, they can fit in and not feel out of place.
An aspect of office work you should pay attention to is information accessibility. This is different from accessibility with remote work if the server is different. People may not be sure of how to get the files they need under a different server.
A good office hack: Make it a point to include a section in your training about how workers can access information. If they need to login into the server, give them a username and password to do so. Give them the option to change it if they want to, too.
Accessibility should also apply to any update you want people to know about. It’s not enough to let them know by shouting it out to the workplace. The separating screens will make it hard for them to hear or understand you.
Pin a message to a bulletin board, instead. Make sure that it pops out and is noticeable by everyone. This makes sure you get the message across to everyone concerned.
Remote work meant that workers were in charge of their own time management for the most part. Going back into the office, it can mean that they’re not as productive as they can be. Some may even come in late since they’re not used to waking up early to travel anymore.
This is why it’s important to set clear expectations for your workers. Tell them what time they should be in the office. Also, let them know if you’re giving them a deadline for the tasks they’re assigned.
Doing this is important as having a clear deadline can often motivate them to work faster. That said, you should also consider the situations of other workers. The pandemic may have affected their ability to travel by a great deal.
Some may not even have the means to get to the office besides public transport. Talk to them about their situation and see if you can come to a reasonable agreement. You can do this by asking for inquiries after the announcement or by making yourself available to talk to.
Listen well and understand their situation. Communicating in the workplace is a surefire way to boost workplace satisfaction rates. You’ll also avoid future conflicts by doing so.
Making sure everyone is safe should be your number one priority. When transitioning into the office, people often know what to bring for protection. On the off chance that they don’t, offer them some protective measures as they arrive.
Face masks should be your priority. They’re the most effective at preventing the spread of the virus. Have a stock of them available and offer it to anyone who needs them.
It’s also a good idea to give them their own disinfecting solutions. Rubbing alcohol is a good choice here. Make it an investment and give your workers a small bottle if you can.
This will show that you care about their health. It can be a motivating factor that can boost their work ethic.
Because of social distancing measures, you may not be able to accommodate everyone in the office at once. What’s great is that a lot of workers say they prefer working from home. Not only that, they’re even more productive when they work from home.
You can use this to your advantage and come up with a hybrid model of work in the office. You can have people working from home but still be online for those in the office to contact when they need to.
If you still need them to come to the office every once in a while, negotiate an agreement with them. They could spend 70% of their work time at home, but mandate them to work in the office for the rest of the time. Again, listen to their situation and understand if they can’t spare the time for traveling.
Doing this helps people work to their preferences. It’s an important part of boosting everyone’s work ethic since they can work in an environment they prefer.
Making sure old and new employees have a smooth transition to working in the office is essential for productivity. Employ these office hacks to aid in the transition while maintaining office sustainability. Bring employees back into a more productive work environment today!
Want to learn more about increasing productivity and efficiency in the workplace?
Think about subscribing for free weekly tools here.
No SPAM, ever! Read the Privacy Policy for more information.
