With COVID-19 ripping through Texas at record rates, you’ve likely run into your workspace layout changing a bit, if not dramatically. Transparent acrylic walls have popped up between cubicles, dedicated pathways are labeled, and Clorox wipes reside around every corner. The rearrangement of workspaces has been at an all-time high lately, especially those in coworking spaces. The pandemic has, at the very least, brought the pros and cons list of coworking spaces to many employer’s minds, so if you’re considering the best possible way to rearrange your business or working space, let us do some of the dirty work for you.
THE POSITIVES
- An Obvious Plus: Small business could mean a small start-up budget, which means you need to save space. Your rented office space has a set amount of square footage, and unless you plan to knock down walls, you’ve got to stick to it. Creating a coworking space is a plus when it comes to space-saving. Just place long, narrow desks together to create rows of productivity, maximizing area for you and the crew!
- A Corporate Metrics Plus: Having a coworking space could increase your company’s productivity levels as a whole. For example, how often have you avoided a conversation because you weren’t in the mood to talk on the phone or get up and chat with that coworker? Coworking spaces allow for creativity to fly through the airwaves and for natural conversations to happen a lot easier. It could even lead to coworkers becoming better workplace friends, working in the same close quarters.
- A Refreshing Plus: People are naturally drawn to flexibility. If you give someone a choice versus a demand, they are likely to feel better about a particular situation, even if it means being in a tight working space together. Having an ample, open space allows people the chance to get up, stretch, change the view, refresh themselves, and not let things get too monotonous.
THE NEGATIVES
- A Pandemic-Era Negative: The pandemic era has ruined our sense of safety regardless of the current state and numbers of COVID-19 illnesses. Germs, no matter what kind, are hard to shake and easily spreadable. Having a coworking space could be tough on your germaphobe employees. Take some advice from the experts: have plenty of sanitizing wipes and gel around to help your employees feel a bit more at ease.
- A No-Privacy Negative: Everyone has taken 5 or 10 minutes from their workday to pay a bill, schedule a dentist appointment, or do something of their checklist. Imagine sitting among coworkers and trying to softly explain your current (and private) medical issue going on into your phone receiver. Have a few break-out areas that are more private, so your employees can feel like they can go somewhere to take a sensitive call or to feel like they can breathe a little more easily without someone standing over their shoulder.
- A Bad Neighbor Negative: You’re going to have complaints no matter your office, but having a coworking space *could* raise the number of calls made to HR complaining about a fellow employee or even you. We all know the Loud Talker, the Smelly Guy, the Chatty Kathy, and the Debbie Downer of the office, and having them all in basically the same room can cause some issues. So despite your open physical setup, consider making certain times a “Talking Period” where coworkers can feel free to chat while also considering having a “Quiet Hour” where coworkers can intensely focus on their activity and thrive.
In case you missed it: Check out “End of Summer Plans: Let’s Go RVing” to read more about how SOGO can help you while on the road.
