Office Feng Shui: Unconventional Ideas for Your Space

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2017 will see a lot of new trends, especially in office environments. Some of these trends have companies around the globe rethinking the layout of their offices in order to yield the best productivity. If you or your employees are feeling drained and your brain gets foggy throughout the day, try adapting some of these trending office layouts.

 

Where to Place Your Desk

Actual Feng Shui practices show that even your desk has an important place in your office. You’ll want to point your desk in the “power position” in order to maintain positivity and authority. According to Feng Shui, you should always have your desk set in a way where you can see your door. This way, you will be able to see opportunity as it comes through your career.

 

Storage Design

Office design is crucial to the atmosphere and culture of a company. Functional furniture and storage cabinets have to match the aesthetic of the office just as any desks and chairs do. To blend your storage furniture a bit, you can use small cabinets as office dividers in an open area, or turn them into a functional seating feature.

 

Flexible Layouts

As technology continues to grow and change at a rapid pace, so should your office. This is not to say that you need to remodel your office every couple of months, but moreso to say that your office should be adaptable for any amount of layouts necessary. If the budget is tight, your offices could double as work event spaces, seminar classes, and large meetings. Having an open concept will help keep this flexibility in your office.

 

How to Feng Shui Your Desk

If you’re looking to get a little clarity at your desk, Feng Shui uses a great layout designed to give you good energy and mental openness. By dividing your desk space up in the 9 sections outlined by the Feng Shui bagua map, you’ll be able to add functional and personal items to your desk that will promote productivity. A few of these steps include adding some greenery to the top left corner of your desk, a photo of a loved one in the right corner, or keeping an agenda near your mouse in the bottom right corner.

 

Office Wellness Areas

One of the biggest trends in recent years is adding a wellness space to your offices. Mental and physical wellness is extremely important for your employees. To keep a good energy and to promote overall wellness, adding bright and open, yet private, spaces will help to clear the mind, while physical wellness can be taken a step further by offering gym spaces and smart kitchens.

 

While these ideas may seem a bit unconventional, they will help you to optimize your office space for the highest productivity rates possible. By pushing the boundaries and trying a new style, the entire nature of your office can change. If you’re looking to remodel your space this year, you’ll want to keep this tips in mind.

 

Why Employee Recognition is Vital to Organizational Success

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cup-1010916_960_720MMR has grown significantly in the past year alone. We’ve added new offices and expanded existing locations, adding new facilities to service our growing professional community. At the same time, we’ve been fortunate to receive several awards and the honor of being considered one of the Best Places to Work in Baton Rouge. Such success, we know, is a testament to the brilliance of our workforce and the privilege I’ve been afforded to lead a team that not only understands the company’s vision, but is passionate about bringing it to fruition. Thusly, a part of our company’s culture is celebrating one another and recognizing the efforts of the team.

If you frequent MMR’s website or follow us on social media, you’ll see multiple examples where we highlight individuals whose contributions benefit the entire company. Many times these individuals have worked with MMR for decades, making an invaluable impact on every part of the company just by doing their jobs. So we make it a point to say thanks, and I think every organization, large or small, should do the same.

Of course, recognition is not a requirement for employing people. Subsequently it is often overlooked as long as fair pay and benefits are provided. However, employee recognition (or the lack of it) has a major impact on the success of your business in the following ways:

  • Retention: Recognition of great work is likely increase employee loyalty. When employees feel valued where they work, they will stay (and may even bring along promising recommendations). Why is this important? Employee turnover stalls growth. Having to use value time on retraining and getting new hires up to speed can be counterproductive for key goals. Additionally, it hurts the bottom line. The amount of loss increases when replacing more experienced employees, and the longer it takes to find them.

  • Morale: Creating a workplace in which people feel excited about coming in, and are ready to work when they do, is essential to a thriving organizational culture. Acknowledgement of the time and effort people invest into the company’s goals will encourage continued, meaningful investment and it is infectious–as is low morale, so do what you can to keep engagement high.

  • Productivity: With high morale comes an increase in productivity. That means employees  can get more done more done more efficiently. When this is the case, continued growth and expansion as an organization is inevitable, creating a cycle of success that reaches every level of the company.

Take the time to give back to your employees by acknowledging their effort and celebrating success. It makes a world of difference for the company at large and it’s the right thing to do.

Should You Care About The Way Your Company Sleeps?

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time-is-money-1339781_960_720“Don’t lose sleep over it” is an old adage encouraging people not to worry about their problems, whether it’s the kids or money or the dozens of other things about which humans worry. Though it’s considered a mere nicety by some, a few organizations from Unilever to the historic Cambridge University are taking extra steps to ensure quality sleep for their employees, even if it means school: sleeping school, that is.

The Sleep School, led by Guy Meadows of London, is said to address insomnia through drug-free methods, helping its students learn better tools for sleeping and getting a full night’s rest. If you’re wondering whether it’s effective, reviews on his company’s website from The Guardian and The Times seem to affirm his offering. Afterall, Mr. Meadows has spent years studying sleep and has even trained doctors in his own methods, based on his research. Through workshops, The Sleep School, as the name suggests, provides education on sleeping and its benefits.

However, sleep is personal. So why should organizations concern themselves with their employees’ sleeping habits? Because, as companies like PriceWaterhouseCoopers has learned, sleep, or the lack thereof, affects overall ability to perform and even deal with stressful situations. What’s more, lack of sleep or insomnia can lead to poor judgement, low productivity and less than optimal leadership. In other words, it makes the company weaker and can be a liability.

The problem is, most assume that a lack of sleep is related to doing better, a stronger work ethic and dedication. That late nights are a sign of someone who’s passionate and willing to go above and beyond. While all of those are probably true and qualities deserving of recognition, studies continue to show that they are unhealthy, though probably not always noticeably ineffective. For example, both billionaire Richard Branson and lifestyle brand maven, Martha Stewart have said they only get around 4-6 hours of sleep per night. They are doing well by most measures, but it is not something others should follow.

According to experts, individuals should get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep each night to perform at their best. Great sleep decreases fatigue, enhances creativity and develops a noticeably better work environment and company culture. Maybe The Sleep School is out of your range as a company, or just something you are unsure of presenting to your employees. However, you should make its importance known, through newsletters or other literature, and provide the necessary resources for employees to take care of themselves while at home.

Understanding The Importance of Employee Wellness

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Pepper Rutlands exercise equipmentInterest in health has become a major focus for many Americans. Now, more than in recent decades, individuals are concerned about getting healthier and adopting wellness as a lifestyle, as seen in the incredible popularity of FitBit and other wearables which monitor activity and quality of sleep, as well as the consumer trend toward juicing, smoothies, and organic or Non-GMO foods. Consequently, it should not come as a surprise that U.S. News & World Report’s #1 trend in employee benefits to watch for in 2016 is wellness programs. As a consistent leader in our industry, the MMR Group had already begun investing in our employees, and this month, we’re proud to announce that our very own employee wellness center is open for all staff, at our in company headquarters in Baton Rouge, LA.

At MMR, we’ve taken notice of studies with regard to stress as a growing problem in America, and how it affects overall health. Research shows that stress can lead to significant, deadly illnesses when left untreated or exacerbated, such as heart disease, migraines, obesity, and accelerated aging. It is worth noting the role work plays into or sometimes causes stressful situations as well. According to a Carnegie Mellon University study, workplace stress has increased between 1983 and 2009, by a startling 18 percent for women and 24 percent for men. While employers cannot control stressful situations outside of the workplace, it is our duty to alleviate any issues resulting from work, and one of the best ways to do that is through well programs.

Most entities, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to private companies like Altitude in Massachusetts, agree that wellness programs and centers like ours are imperative, with the CDC going as far as to declare that such is a “vital piece of a healthy lifestyle.” In fact, nearly 28 percent of employees who participate in wellness programs offered by Aetna experienced less stress and 20 percent sleep better. That was early last year and just one study, as more services are offered, that number may likely increase.

Additionally, the benefit of giving employees access to sports and exercise equipment leads to an increase in productivity. According to that same study, healthier, better rested, and less stressed employees produce, on average, about 62 minutes more of quality work per week. Financially, that is about $3,000 per employee every year. Likewise, a recent study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine suggests that companies which invest in employee health perform better in the stock market than those who do not. Thus, such contributions are equally beneficial to all involved, and should be implemented on a larger scale.

Our 10,000-square-foot facility houses a weight training and exercise room, a basketball court, and will offer instructor-led boot camp classes. Active home office personnel and MMR staff employees can utilize the facility free of charge Monday through Friday from 6 AM to 8 AM, 11 AM to 1 PM and 5 PM to 8 PM. Click here to find out out more from our company website.