Choosing to go green in your office space comes with a number of benefits. These include cutting back on paper usage, reducing waste, cutting energy costs, providing a better work environment for employees, and much more. Let’s break down 5 benefits of having a green commercial office space and how you can go about making your office space greener today.
1) Increased Productivity
When compared side by side, the employees of green offices tend to show more productivity than their counterparts in non-green work environments. Employees tend to have more pride in their work when their employers are environmentally responsible which encourages them to work that much harder. More and more businesses are becoming aware of this spike in employee productivity and have begun to go green just to improve productivity in their own offices!
2) Happier and healthier employees
Whether you realize it or not the health and mood of your employees can be directly affected by the environment where they work. From air ducts exposing employees to unhealthy air to drab color schemes painted on every wall in the building, the work environment often has a direct impact on how your employees perform. Changing this atmosphere by going green is often the medicine needed to make employees happier and healthier to boot.
Office plants add liveliness to any office environment. As an added benefit, plants can also catch the containments in the air, making the work environment that much healthier. Throwing flowers into the mix will provide the office with a fragrant aroma for your employees to enjoy. Also, you can’t beat the mood improving bright colors you’ll be adding to the space!
3) Lower Bills
Going green doesn’t just allow businesses to reduce their environmental footprint. It also saves them a lot of money. Every green step that an office makes, from using natural lighting to recycling, reduces overhead costs and ultimately impacts the bottom line positively.
4) Improved company image
Image is everything in the business world. A bad reputation not only reduces your chances of attracting new clients, but can also repel potential future employees. Both newer employees and customers appreciate a company who makes an effort to go green. You’ll be seen as caring about more than just your bottom line — you’ll project a message that you care about your employees and the environment.
5) Positive impact on the environment
Humanity has done significant damage to the environment. With millions of vehicles shooting pollutants into the air, companies dumping corrosive chemicals into the ocean, deforestation and more every little bit helps when it comes to fixing the damage we’ve caused. Having a green office space reduces this impact even if it’s only ever so slightly. It’s simply the right thing to do, and hopefully, more businesses will follow your lead as you continue promoting green practices on a daily basis in your office environment.
Tips on how to go green in your office space
Going green may be easier than you think. Here are a few ways you can go about reducing your impact on the environment in your office space:
- Switch to organic cleaning supplies that are non-toxic.
- Lower your utility bills by using office equipment optimized for reduced energy consumption, changing the energy settings on your computers and handheld devices, and replacing all of your standard light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs.
- Start slowly and change one or two things at a time. You can start with changing the settings on your computers and handheld devices and then move on to changing out your light bulbs. If you make the process of going green gradually, you may be surprised at the transformation of your office a month down the road.
- Coach your employees on how to be green. Have them get into the habit of turning off lights, use reusable cups, forks, and knives, and so on.
- Do everything you can to reduce the amount of paper you’re using in the office every day. Use recycled paper when you can and reuse shipping and packing materials.
- Encourage your employees to reduce their environmental impact by carpooling with fellow coworkers. You can also try to condense work schedules to reduce the number of days your employees have to drive to work. Telecommuting is also an option.
- It isn’t difficult to recycle used cans and bottles. Recycling becomes a problem, however, when recycling bins and are not easily accessible. You can remedy this issue by placing recycling bins next to the workstations of your employees. That way there will be no excuse when it comes to recycling.
Going green in your office space
Going green is the way of the future. If you find yourself falling behind the times, you may find it harder to attract future employees and customers. With the many benefits of transforming your office space into an ecologically friendly environment, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t think about going green with your office space today.
