OFFICE LAYOUT

• Types of Office Layout:

  • Traditional Office Layout: follows a hierarchical and compartmentalized structure, like cubicle offices
  • Team-Based Office Layout: prioritizes collaboration, communication, and teamwork
  • Open-Plan Office Layout: characterized by a large, open workspace promoting unity and transparency
  • Activity-Based Office Layout: tailors various areas to specific work activities
  • Co-working Office Layout: individuals or small groups share a work environment
  • Home Office Layout: arrangement and design of workspace within one's home dedicated to professional tasks
• Objectives of Office Layout:

  • Ensure proper utilization of space
  • Maintain uninterrupted workflow
  • Improve supervision by managers
  • Provide a comfortable work environment
  • Enhance communication between team members
  • Ensure a safe working environment
  • Allow for future expansions
• Importance of Office Layout:

  • Impacts Morale: eases stress, fosters collaboration, and improves social skills
  • Impacts Business: increases productivity, profitability, and sales
  • Way the Work is Done: affects how employees perform tasks and their productivity
• Principles to Consider in Making Office Layout:

  • Inter-departmental Relationship
  • Flow of Work
  • Maximum utilization of floor space
  • Flexibility
  • Service Facilities
  • Supervision
  • Good Environment
  • Least Cost
• Advantages of Office Layout:

  • Better Goodwill
  • Better Morale
  • Reduction of Cost in Office Maintenance
  • Economic Stabilization
  • Promotes Efficiency
  • Improves Quality of Supervision
  • Best Uses of Equipment and Machines
  • Speeding of Inter-department Communication
• Disadvantages of Office Layout:

  • Noise
  • Distraction
  • Security
  • Privacy
  • Spreading illness
  • Reduced Productivity
• Workflow:

  • Types of Workflow: Process Workflow, Case Workflow, Project Workflow
  • Common Workflow: Manual Workflow, Automated Workflow, Human-Centric Workflow, System-Centric Workflow, Document Workflow, Sequential Workflow, Parallel Workflow, State Machine Workflow, Rules-driven Workflow
  • Benefits of Workflow: improves efficiency and organization
• Manage Changes:

  • Having a simpler layout design for organizations can positively affect employees without compromising their work
  • Employees should easily adapt to new office environments
• Increased Productivity:

  • Office layout aims to maximize efficiency and encourage collaboration between employees
  • Well-planned office layouts improve traffic flow and quality production of documents and services
  • Increased productivity and improved performance positively impact profit and sales
• Facilitate Supervision:

  • Office layout brings managers or supervisors closer to their teams for immediate issue discussion
  • Communications between managers and subordinates are smoother and quicker, leading to quicker solutions and processes
• Effective Use of Equipment:

  • Office layout designates equipment to be used diligently by employees
  • Equipment is placed in the right places to prevent overuse or underuse
  • Employees are not disturbed by noise from equipment
• Inter-departmental Relationship:

  • Office layout should consider how departments interact and collaborate
  • Departments dealing with clients should be close to the entrance, and general office should offer shared services
• Flow of Work:

  • Workplace arrangement should facilitate a smooth flow of work to prevent delays
  • Logical order of work like a straight line, circle, or U-shape should be followed in the plan
• Maximum Utilization of Floor Space:

  • Office plan should make the best use of floor area without compromising productivity and comfort
  • Space duplication, waste, and congestion should be avoided in the layout
• Flexibility:

  • Office layout should be adaptive to changing needs and requirements
  • Plan should allow for easy rearrangement and adjustment of furniture and equipment while maintaining appearance and operation
  • Design should allow for future extension and growth
• Service Facilities:

  • Office layout should provide adequate and convenient service facilities for staff and visitors
  • Facilities include lighting, ventilation, heating, cooling, power, telephone, internet, water, sanitation, security, etc.
  • Layout should ensure safety and health of staff and visitors
• Supervision:

  • Office arrangement should allow for efficient supervision and control of office work
  • Supervisor should be able to see staff and their work clearly and communicate readily
  • Arrangement should encourage worker collaboration and teamwork
• Good Environment:

  • Office layout should offer a pleasant and suitable environment for office work
  • Consider color, design, décor, noise, privacy, and other aesthetic and psychological qualities
  • Layout should boost staff motivation and morale
• Least Cost:

  • Office layout should be reasonable and cost-effective
  • Reduce initial and recurring costs like rent, maintenance, and operation
  • Enhance efficiency and profitability
• Advantages of Office Layout:

  • Better goodwill, morale, and cost reduction in office maintenance
  • Economic stabilization, efficiency promotion, and improved supervision
  • Best use of equipment, speeding inter-department communication
• Disadvantages of Office Layout:

  • Noise, distraction, security, privacy, spreading illness, reduced productivity
• Workflow:

  • Workflows are structured series of steps that take you from the beginning to the end of a process
• Common Workflows:

  • Process Workflow: tasks are repeated with a predictable pattern
  • Case Workflow: path to finish the item is not initially known
  • Project Workflow: organized route with flexibility along the way
• Other Types of Workflow:

  • Manual: requires human intervention
  • Automated Workflow: automates redundant tasks
  • Sequential Workflow: actions taken one after the other
  • Human-Centric: tasks assigned to humans
  • System-Centric Workflow: tasks done by machines with little human involvement
  • Document Centric Workflow: workflow built around a document
  • Parallel Workflow: different steps happen simultaneously
  • State Machine Workflow: progress from one state to another
  • Rules-driven Workflow: based on a sequence of operations evolving over time
• Benefits of Workflow:

  • Reduced errors, improved connectivity, reduced micromanagement
  • Elimination of redundant manual tasks, improved product or service quality
• Open-plan offices have no physical barriers between employees' desks or cubicles
• Office layout refers to how workstations are arranged in relation to one another