If it isn’t you that can’t see your desktop, you probably know someone who’s desktop is lost under piles of papers, memos, and fast food wrappers. Having a tidy office is difficult if things are already out of control, but once an office is tidy, it is a little easier to keep it that way by following a few tips. The tips can be used for individual offices and cubicles or as a way for supervisors to be sure each desk is a tidy and productive place to work.
Advantages of a tidy workspace:
- Good for time management-a company would probably be shocked to find out how much time an employee who has an unorganized workspace, spends looking for reports, files, notes, etc. When an employee can promptly reach into a filing cabinet and pull out a requested paper, they can move on to the next task quickly and improve their efficiency.
- Productivity improvement-walking into a dirty, messy house is not appealing; the same is true for a messy, unorganized office. An employee will not want to be in an untidy workspace, let alone be able to work efficiently. When an employee will be able to work better, faster, and more effectively in a tidy office or cubicle, which will improve productivity.
- Self-image improvement-it is difficult to feel like a professional when sitting behind a desk that looks like a three year old was playing on it. This can affect the way an employee sounds on the phone to the way a report looks when it is turned in. When employees feel professional, their behavior and customer interaction is professional.
- Positive company image-even if a customer doesn’t see the employee’s desk, other members of the team see it. Walking through the office and seeing one disheveled desktop after another gives employees a negative image of the company they work for and it will reduce pride and lower job satisfaction. A tidy desk will promotes a positive company image to customers and employees.
Tips for a tidy office:
- Provide filing cabinets, desk organizers, labels, and anything else that is needed for a desk to be organized. Having the right supplies to be organized and tidy are important for a neat work environment.
- Set up guidelines for desk appearances and follow up on compliance. Be specific on setting up guidelines if you want them to be followed. Especially at the beginning, make sure that employees understand that you are serious by following up to assure compliance.
- Individual trashcans should be provided to keep trash from piling up on desks. Any time anyone cleans, there is the bag of trash that is surprisingly full. Throwing trash away right away will prevent desks from looking messy from trash pileup.
- Convenient shredders so that sensitive material can be destroyed promptly instead of sitting in a folder labeled “shred” for weeks. When there is one shredder at the other end of the building and a line waiting to shred, the papers tend to pile up in a file instead of being destroyed promptly.
- Easily accessible cleaning supplies so that dirt and dust don’t build up. Even a tidy desk can look bad when there are dirty letters on the keyboard and you can write messages in the dust. Making it easy to keep a desk clean will prevent that from happening.
- Acknowledgement and/or rewards for clean and tidy desks. If the person who has the messy unorganized desk gets all the attention, it may prevent the organized employee from caring about how their desk looks. Make sure that those who are complying with desk appearance guidelines are getting the attention they deserve.
- Procedures and consequences for non-compliance to desk appearance requirement. If there are no consequences to having an untidy desk and spending countless hours in search of an important document, most employees won’t change. Prompt consequences will assure compliance.
Even in the most tidy of work environments, the office furniture may just be no longer working for the company. When it is time to replace desks and cubicles, you can contact Corporate Design Choice. The experienced staff can also help you design work areas that are easy to keep tidy and promote productivity.
