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After you’ve been running your business for long enough, you’ll probably reach a point where you feel you’re ready to move it into an office. This is an important and exciting milestone, so I’m sure you’ll be anxious to get started. Before rushing into this task, though, it’s important to make sure all of your money is being well-spent. Here’s some advice for a cost-effective office.
Source: Pixabay
I’ll start this off by saying get the essentials out of the way first. Sure, a towering fountain in your main lobby will look very impressive and prestigious. However, if it eats into the budget you have for more essential things, you’ll end up with a frustrated workforce and an office that can’t function properly. When you’re budgeting for your office, make sure that all the essential items are placed at the top of the list. I’m talking about stationery, printer ink cartridges, furniture and so forth. Remember that the little things like pens and paper clips have the irritating habit to go missing from any office. For this reason, I recommend allocating far more money than you think you’ll need for stationary.
Source: Pixabay
If you want your workplace to be really cost-effective, then think about flexibility when you’re planning the whole layout. A space having multiple functions will make the workplace more efficient in general. Furthermore, your business is probably going to be changing a lot over the coming period. With all these changes, having the flexibility to move things around will be a complete godsend. Robust technology is an important ingredient for this. You may think that the best way to save money is to buy dated, wired tech. However, wireless technology can free up a lot of the space that you’d be taking up otherwise. If you’re not planning to use this wherever possible, then I suggest you look into it. You can also penny-pinch and keep things flexible by choosing a multi-tenancy space, shared with another young start-up.
Source: Pixabay
My final tip is more of a warning; don’t forget about the people who are actually going to be working in your space. Employee comfort should come pretty high on your list if you want to have the most cost-effective space possible. Reading this might make you think of all kinds of unnecessary expenses, but it’s been shown irrefutably that happy employees are efficient employees. Be sure to consider the heating and cooling facilities you have in the office, as well as the natural light your employees will be getting in. It’s also worth looking for premises that are fairly close to some kind of food chains. However, these locations are typically very expensive, so don’t worry if it’s not in the budget. Don’t scrimp out when you’re picking out furniture, either. If there’s one thing you should be spending big on it’s your customers.
Make sure to take this advice with your when you’re setting up your first office space. This will ensure that every penny you spend contributes to a homely and highly efficient workplace.
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