The agile office: why you should consider it

Across Australia, many businesses are turning to adopt the agile business model. Here, we break down what this system can do for the productivity of your office.

What is the agile business model?

Aiming to boost flexibility and reduce cost, the agile business model creates a shared workspaces where employees can move to different areas of the office as needed. Through a non-assigned seating structure, staff flexibility is encouraged. Giving your employees the freedom to sit where they would like to invokes feelings of creativity and productivity, as well as fostering a social and professional dialog through inter-department mingling.

Agile works particularly well in open plan offices as different working areas and structures are easily established, usually implementing the following ideas:

1. Variation of work areas

The agile business model seeks to diversify traditional offices by allowing for a number of different work areas. As every employee has their own personal preferences of what works best for them in terms of productivity, presenting staff with seating options means that they can make those choices for themselves. Popular seating arrangements include:

• Informal meeting areas with beanbags and cushions for employees to chat with one another.
• Collaborative desks where employees are sat beside and facing each other, ideal for bouncing around ideas.
• Private tables for employees to have alone time should they need to concentrate.
• Standing desks for brainstorming sessions and meetings.

A simple change of scenery is energising – giving your staff the opportunity to shift is great for their motivation.

2. Allow employees to work from home

An aspect of the agile framework is cutting down on costs by changing to a smaller office space. This is partially achievable through allowing employees to work from home, thus reducing the need for a large work area. This plays into the flexibility of agile, and gives employees the opportunity to refresh and recharge while still completing tasks.

3. Standups

With all of the flexibility considered, it's important for managers to have time to touch base with their staff to ensure they're on track. This is where "standups" come in – daily meetings where employees discuss what tasks they completed the previous day, what their plans are for the day ahead, and what roadblocks lie in the way to achieving goals. Standups are fantastic in that they create accountability, as employees can check in and ensure everyone is working as needed.

If you're looking for a new Gold Coast commercial property to test drive the agile business model in, get in touch with the team at Ray White Surfers Paradise.