Employee Appreciation Day is “officially” Friday, March 1, according to the bonus holiday arbiters, but celebrations can be anytime. Let’s explore some initiatives that promote employee well-being and contribute to a healthier, happier workplace at any office. Mindfulness Practices. Employees can incorporate mindfulness techniques and practices into daily routines to reduce stress and enhance well-being. Mindfulness is about being aware and awake rather than operating unconsciously. Slowing down and paying attention to routine tasks helps be mindful in the workplace. Relaxation breaks are essential throughout the day to unplug from work. Be sure employees are taking breaks, which is beneficial for improved productivity. Healthy Office Snacks. Encourage healthier diets in the workplace with nutritional and delicious snack options. Donuts are not a healthy breakfast option for employees, though it might be fun for National Donut Day. Instead, provide fresh fruit like apples and bananas and seasonal fruits like peaches or watermelon. Provide drinks that do not have chemicals in them, like high fructose corn syrup or aspartame. Avoid snacks with hydrogenated oils or artificial dyes. Offer a variety of protein bars, trail mixes, and beverages like Body Armor that replenish the body with electrolytes and essential minerals. Trader Joe’s has a wide selection of natural, healthy snacks at affordable prices. These healthy options give everyone more energy, resulting in better productivity than butter, sugar and neurotransmitter disruptors.   Healthy Recipe Sharing. Foster a sense of community in the office by having everyone share their favorite healthy recipes. Not everyone will be on a keto diet or vegan, but that doesn’t mean employees can’t share healthy recipes. By sharing recipes, instead of just looking at recipes online, everyone can have first-hand knowledge of what works and what does not. After accumulating enough recipes, turn it...

Since the pandemic, companies have had to adjust to keep their customers returning. For example, movie theaters are finally starting to see box office numbers like in 2019, but how are they getting people out of their comfortable living spaces and coming to the movies? Because viewing options at home are limited, and most need more space for a 60 by 80-foot screen, IMAX theaters are growing, but smaller, older theaters cannot keep up with amenities. Sounds familiar for the return-to-office issues companies are having. Lifestyle offices have become attractive for top talent seeking a modern and progressive work environment. Let’s discuss how traditional rigid office structures and work-life integration play a significant role for talented individuals who value flexibility and freedom in their work. Lifestyle offices are the IMAX version of an office building, packed with amenities and features that support work-life integration, such as flexible work hours, remote work options, on-site childcare/dog care facilities, and relaxation areas with greenery and wellness programs. These initiatives contribute to reduced stress, increased productivity and improved employee satisfaction. Aesthetically pleasing workspaces contribute to a positive work environment. Open-plan layouts with natural lighting and biophilic design elements promote employee satisfaction. Many more extensive tech or finance companies are moving to this type of office style since they have the budget to afford the construction and high rent prices. One Brickell City Centre in Miami has done just this. Featuring sustainability and is the first LEED gold-certified commercial building with sustainable architectural features. They offer gorgeous city and ocean views from each building floor, along with flexible workspaces. Other places in New York, California and Boston have ample lifestyle offices for regional transit access, dramatic outdoor terraces, top-of-the-line security and plenty of amenities. Some offer perks for exclusive...

We have reported on pet-friendly policies for multifamily properties, senior living communities and coworking spaces. So how about traditional offices? Are attitudes about pets in the workplace evolving? As recently as 2015, about 8% of U.S. businesses had pet-friendly policies. While only about 15% of employers let employees bring pets to work six years later, according to a survey by Southern California mobile pet groomer Barkbus, more employers are open to the idea. With 23 million U.S. households having adopted pets during the COVID-19 pandemic, “employees are prioritizing pets in their choices of where to work—and this affects employers’ willingness to allow pets onsite,” Forbes asserts. Employers such as Google, Ben & Jerry’s, Tito’s Vodka, Cliff Bar & Company and Atlantic Health System have established onsite pet-friendly policies. Some companies offer insurance, care stipends, onsite dog parks, time off for adoption or bereavement as part of their benefits package. A potential competitive advantage A 2021 study by job-seeker resource LiveCenter found that 94% of people were supportive of having pets in the workplace. Tolerance extends beyond cats and dogs to significant (although somewhat lesser) support for fish, birds, rodents, amphibians and reptiles. As a result, there are “increasing numbers of workplaces where you can take your pet to work and reap the benefits of pet ownership no matter what your work schedule,” Forbes reported in February 2022. And, adds personal finance information resource FinanceBuzz, “pet-friendly companies may even have a leg up over competitors: pets in the workplace can decrease employee stress levels and improve trust and communication between co-workers, which increases productivity.” Feasibility checklist Obviously having pets isn’t possible or desirable in every location, such as construction sites or workplaces restricted by lease and health regulations. But companies considering adopting pet-friendly policies might consider...

As workers migrate back to their offices, they’ll enter an environment that’s dramatically more accepting of nontraditional working arrangements than before the pandemic. Most industry observers agree that openness to flexible work arrangements among employers will be the norm. A survey by video messaging platform Loom that found that 90% of workers and managers are happier with the increased freedom they now have to work from home. LinkedIn reports that 1 in 67 U.S. jobs offered a remote work option in March 2020; today, that number is about 1 in 7. Here are a few of the trends workers might encounter when – or if – they return to the office: Hybrid here to stay. Harvard Business Review reported in January that more than 90% of employers plan to adopt a hybrid working model in 2022. “In the U.S., employees expect flexibility within their job as much as they expect a 401(k). Employers that don’t offer flexibility will see increased turnover as employees move to roles that offer a value proposition that better aligns with their desires,” according to HBR contributors Brian Kropp and Emily Rose McRae of the Gartner HR Practice. “There’s no one-size-fits-all approach: Experiment with ‘Team Tuesdays’ or in-person office hours between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m., two days a week. Consider quarterly off-sites that bring far-flung teammates together regularly,” suggests Microsoft in its Work Trend Index 2022 survey report.Growth in AI and automation. The World Economic Forum predicts that artificial intelligence and automation will spark the creation of 97 million new jobs by 2025. AI will affect many existing jobs as well, by automating managerial tasks such as approving expense reports and monitoring direct reports’ completion of tasks and letting workers focus on areas requiring creativity, imagination and high-level strategy....

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) heralds Yardi among Top Workplaces in Metro Atlanta. Yardi ranked 45th out of 3,268 nominated employers. It is described as “a large global software corporation with an unwavering focus on quality software and customer satisfaction.” To celebrate the achievement, Yardi Atlanta hosted a virtual watch party. Employees tuned in to watch the awards ceremony while enjoying their favorite snacks and beverages. Attendees also explored a virtual photobooth. They posted their pictures and testimonials to the Yardi Atlanta Confluence page. Learn more about Yardi as one of Atlanta’s Top Workplaces. Get to know Yardi Atlanta The Yardi Atlanta office is located in the suburb of Roswell, about 22 miles north of the city. The town offers an appealing mix of progressive eateries, historic buildings, parks and cultural events. RentCafe.com ranks Roswell among one of the most affluent neighborhoods for renters in metro Atlanta. The Atlanta office serves as home base for more than 370 of the company’s nearly 3,600 U.S. employees. Though most employees now work in remote environments, the office has managed to maintain a sense of camaraderie through virtual events. #YardiLove Valentine’s Day party, Halloween Week, and continued charitable outreach helps employees feel united while working apart. Corporate culture is just one of the reasons why Yardi Atlanta made the list as one of the top places to work in metro Atlanta. How AJC chooses top workplaces The 11th annual Top Workplaces list is a collaboration between The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and employment research and consulting firm Energage. To form the list, employees nominated 3,268 of their employers. Philadelphia-based Energage then narrowed the list to 244 companies, each of which agreed to participate in a no-cost program and survey. The short list of companies represents 56,160 workers in the metro Atlanta...

Employee burnout is a pain point for many property managers. It’s a major contributor to high turnover, which is costly, time consuming and quickly depletes employee morale. In remote work environments, there are additional risks and considerations. Fortunately, you can fight back. A few industry experts offer tips, tools and insights to prevent and mitigate burnout amongst your remote staff. Why should you keep an eye on employee burnout? Employee burnout is the first step in a downward spiral that you may recognize: an overwhelmed employee cannot indefinitely sustain a high level of performance. Eventually, job performance suffers, and fellow employees are required to pick up the slack. As other team members compensate, their workloads increase to unsustainable levels. Emotions and frustrations run high, morale plummets and then someone quits. Their workload shifts to other employees, which increases the potential for burnout and the cycle continues. In remote work environments, employees may not have a designated home office or coworking space. This means that they are facing professional and domestic challenges in tandem, potentially quickening the burnout cycle. It costs between $5,505.80 and $9,444.47 per turnover to replace an entry-level employee. Harvard Business Review reports that the psychological and physical toll of burnout cost an estimated $125 billion to $190 billion a year in healthcare spending. Eric Garten, partner at global management consulting firm Bain & Company, believes that’s just the tip of the iceberg. “The true cost to business can be far greater, thanks to low productivity across organizations, high turnover, and the loss of the most capable talent.” He continues, “Executives need to own up to their role in creating the workplace stress that leads to burnout—heavy workloads, job insecurity, and frustrating work routines that include too many meetings and far too little time for...

Many jurisdictions are now allowing for reopening, requiring managers and landlords to balance the value of workers returning to the office with the need to keep them safe. There are tech advancements that will facilitate offices reopening, such as touchless door access, Bluetooth tracking, parking vacancy sensors, temperature readings and countless others. But the reality of this situation is that these enhancements were not created for a post-COVID world. We had the ability to leverage these tech drivers before, as Brandon Van Orden, senior vice president and CIO at Cousins Properties, explained. However, it has become a necessity for companies to use them more frequently now, some experts suggest. What about those who make a personal decision to stay remote? Some workers may have comorbidities making them especially vulnerable to COVID-19. Some may be unable to arrange childcare while schools remain virtual. Regardless of the reason, many workers may not be ready mentally or physically to re-enter the workplace, and businesses must weigh the human elements of this just as much as the tech components of reopening. In-office Value There is one big question that nobody can yet answer: how long will capacity restrictions be in place? Because this is an indefinite timeline, it is much harder to determine in-office schedules. Some offices are moving to a hybrid work environment, which many experts believe is the future of work. It could mean that workers alternate days or weeks in office or it could mean that each day has multiple shifts, but the benefits of being in a work setting are numerous. The initial wave of work from home success was tangible. Employers were generally pleased at the rapid adaptation to a WFH model and employees showed they can produce at a high rate when...

We are nearly four months into the COVID-19 pandemic and businesses have had to adjust their daily operations to reopen for staff and guests. Every aspect of sanitation, proper distancing, touchpoints and other routine business functions are now altered to improve the safety and peace of mind of workers returning to the office. Coworking industry case studies On a recent Realcomm webinar, Yardi vice president of coworking, Dale Hersowitz, said that some aspects of technology already being implemented prior to the pandemic are now even more useful to help maintain productivity and safety. For example, in the coworking industry, fully transactional websites and apps for meeting room bookings, desk reservations and virtual space tours help facilitate a completely distanced and safe experience. Staples, whose brand is most associated with office supplies, started a coworking brand in 2019 called Staples Studio. They repositioned part of their stores into shared workspaces and on their website they list everything from meeting room space to private offices, making it quick and easy for a prospect to become a member and complete transactions. This shift to a mobile experience has begun to replace the in-person meeting with a front desk associate or community manager and it now grows to more prominence during COVID. “One of the keys is to use apps that will not only show you the product but the availability of the product,” Hersowitz said. In coworking, member retention is always a driving factor with a high turnover rate month-to-month. One of the main ways to increase retention while members are still largely not entering your space is to use apps that allow for as much community interaction as possible. Launch Workplaces, a Maryland-based coworking space with six locations, is using a member portal to drive community,...

Did you know that you and your tenants spend more than one third of your lifetime at work? That’s a lot of time spent indoors. As our “second place,” the physical workspace of the future must facilitate wellness, satisfaction, and retention. Built-in features can then complement tenants’ initiatives in those areas. Thought leader Brian Eichenseer, General Manager of Hines commercial real estate investment firm, explores how connectivity, flexibility, and sustainability equip future properties for success. What do tenants want? “Today’s work environment focuses on creating a harmonious blend of open and private spaces that both encourage interaction and provide place for solitary retreat, experiential moments that draw a connection to the surrounding community and a sense of place, and sustainable features reflective of the environmentally conscious generation joining the workforce,” explains Eichenseer. That’s a tall order to fill. Creative developers are finding practical ways to deliver. Eichenseer addresses the key elements to fill that order: digital and physical connectivity, workplace flexibility and sustainability. Physical and Technical Connectivity Connectivity bears social and technological features. Socially, tenants seek spaces that are connected to the local community and provide staff with a sense of place and belonging, suggests Eichenseer. They desire shared spaces that encourage collaboration as well as private spaces that allow occupants to connect to their inner creativity and problem solving abilities. Accessibility to mass transit makes the connection between home and “second place” more seamless, says Eichenseer. Building near interstate access has long had its appeal. Newer to the scene, especially in rural areas and the Southeast, is bike and pedestrian travel accommodations. To address the latter, developers are incorporating bike storage and locker facilities into new projects. The big ticket item is internet connectivity. Tenants need to connect to their commercial property management...

Yardi follows up being named one of Glassdoor’s top places to work in the U.S. with a local honor for its Santa Barbara and Oxnard offices from the Pacific Coast Business Times, a local news outlet covering area companies. Yardi joins an elite group of 25 firms in the Santa Barbara and Ventura/Oxnard area recognized on the list, ranging in size from startups to established companies. Selections for the list were made based on submissions from the general public. “What makes this award most gratifying is that it was the result of our employees writing about us,” said Gordon Morrell, executive vice president, in a note to Yardi staff. Ranking No. 12, Yardi is the largest employer on the list of featured companies with around 700 employees in its Central Coast offices. A feature article about the company in the PCBT focused on corporate values, benefits, philanthropy and growth. Since being founded in Santa Barbara in 1984, Yardi has now grown to 6,000 employees worldwide. You can read the PCBT story here. A ceremony honoring the winners will be held Thursday, May 17 at Hotel Californian in Santa...

A major trend in 2017 was the prevalence of discussion around sexual harassment in many workplaces. Seemingly every week heard new reports of high-profile offenders, despite decades of preventative efforts by employers and government regulators. In 2018, it’s likely that major changes are on the horizon. PBS provides an excellent overview of the history of harassment policy, and how training has evolved since being first introduced in the 1980s. The article cites a report from a task force set up by the United States Department of Equal Employment which found that training likely failed to prevent harassment because it were too focused on simply protecting employers from legal liability. One example of an evolving training policy is happening in California. State legislators passed a bill in the fall of 2016 that requires managers receive training which includes the topics of gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. The requirement applies to companies with more than 50 employees and went into effect on January 1, 2018. “Training is vital to prevent harassment from occurring, but it’s clear that the curriculum must evolve as the issue changes over time. That’s one of the great things about online training, it can be quickly updated and efficiently rolled out to learners at very little cost compared with producing and shooting a new video,” said Patty Evans, director of corporate training for Yardi. Yardi recently announced that its Yardi eLearning sexual harassment classes are fully compliant with the new California law. The team worked to update courses so that California-based clients could comply with new state law as it went into effect. “Gender identity and sexual orientation are long past due when it comes to inclusion in harassment training. We’re proud to make this important instructional material available not...

It’s that time of year when your team members may start dropping like flies. Coughing, sneezing, headaches, body aches, and congestion—the list of symptoms in the PTO requests may be endless. Revealing the truth behind these common cold and flu myths may help you run a full ship this season instead of surviving on a skeleton crew. At Yardi, we are thrilled to create software that boosts productivity and efficiency. But even the best real estate software on the market is less effective when clients work with a depleted staff. Keep your operations moving smoothly with these tested truths for a healthier workplace.   Fact or Fiction? After the First 3 Days of a Cold, Safely Return to Work: FICTION A publication by the University of California, Berkeley explains, “As a general rule, adults with a cold will be able to infect others one day before symptoms appear and up to five days or so after becoming sick. […] The precise number of days for transmission can vary from person to person.” It is in the best interest of everyone at the office when a sick person takes adequate time out to recover from an illness. This personal time off minimizes the spread of the illness and supports long-term productivity. If personal time off is not an option, self-imposed quarantining may actually prove effective. “If you’re around someone who is sick, stay at least six feet away—cold viruses can’t be propelled much farther than that before falling to the ground,” the publication states. Immediately clean any shared surfaces after use and frequently wash hands with soap and water.   Fact or Fiction? Hand Sanitizer Creates Resistant Germs: FACT Viruses and bacteria naturally evolve. Antimicrobials are not the sole catalysts for “super germs” but they are a...

Yardi recently sponsored and participated in an event hosted by the Empire Club of Canada. The panel talk, titled “The Evolution of the Real Estate Industry — Diversity, Culture and the Workplace,” focused on the commercial market. Established in 1903, the Empire Club of Canada is an influential forum for leaders in various industries and cultural organizations. Every generation, but especially Baby Boomers and millennials, has a major impact on various sectors of real estate. The Empire Club panel broadened the discussion to include gender and racial diversity. The hope was to motivate industry leaders to increase the presence and influence of women and minorities in the Canadian real estate industry. The panel included Scott Addison, President, Brokerage Services Canada, Colliers International; Toni Rossi, President, Real Estate Division, Infrastructure Ontario; and Michael Brooks, CEO, Real Property Association of Canada. Serving as moderator was Sheila Botting, National Real Estate Leader in Canada and a partner at Deloitte. Driving Change Botting compared a thriving work culture to an ecosystem. No ecosystem can be homogeneous — diversity is crucial for ongoing growth and survival. “Diversity drives productivity, profitability and better outcomes for everyone involved,” Botting said. Addison commented that the first thing that needs to happen to drive change is awareness. He has personally observed a lack of gender diversity in the brokerage arena. To address this issue,  Colliers set up campus recruiting and other hiring programs led by women to help balance the gender gap. Rossi, representing Infrastructure Ontario, said the organization is fortunate to have a 50/50 gender balance in its leadership.  That has been established thanks to direction by the federal government, especially during the Trudeau administration. Rossi outlined three key things she believes can prompt change: Leadership: set a target (not a quota) for...

The world is facing a worker shortage. For the last few years, the World Economic Forum and others have been sounding the alarm on what they call “skills instability,” and many industries are scrambling to find qualified applicants. With women currently making up less than half of the global workforce, tapping into the gender gap could be the solution for the tech industry’s talent shortages. The best way to close the gap? Digital fluency. A new study by Accenture reinforces this idea, declaring, “Because women are underrepresented in the workforce in most countries, they are a significant source of untapped talent.” Digital Fluency Accenture’s study makes it clear that increased access to learning and using digital media results in a smaller gender gap, in both opportunity and advancement. “Our analysis highlights the importance of digital fluency in helping countries progress toward equality in the workplace,” explain the report’s authors. “Higher rates of digital fluency among women have higher rates of gender equality in the workplace.” Defining the Gap Accenture surveyed almost 5,000 women and men in 31 countries to measure their access to digital technologies, including smartphones, wearables, and other devices. Information gleaned from those surveys was cross-checked with data on internet usage gathered from the International Telecommunication Union (the United Nations agency for information and communication technologies). Accenture researchers also looked at three specific areas when creating their template for gender equality. They investigated how women use education in preparation of finding work, how they go about actually looking for a job, and how they advance in their careers. This information was then compared with data from the World Bank and the OECD. The numbers revealed ample evidence that digital fluency can “act as an accelerant in every stage of a person’s career.”...

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” -Confucius Geekitecture – a new term I’ve just invented to describe the development of office space by new technology titans – is becoming a real trend. Apple, Facebook, Google, and Amazon are showing off innovative architectural plans for their impressive new headquarters’. These projects may look drastically different, but they have major commonalities, namely that they are focused on innovation, sustainability, collaboration, and beauty. By capturing the attention of the general public, these technology innovators are showing that they can transfer their design and development skills to physical plant as well as virtual products. Let’s take a look at a few of the projects planned. Apple is building a jaw-dropping 2.8 billion square feet spaceship-like corporate campus on approximately 176 acres, property that was previously owned by HP. Apple Campus 2 will be four stories high, encompassing a mix of office, research and development space and open land. It’s planned to accommodate up to 14,200 employees who will unfold their activity in a unified, secure and private campus which connects with outdoor opportunities for recreation, relaxation and reflection. The top priority for Apple’s project is the environment. The company is committed to power the campus with renewable energy, provided by fuel cells and approximately 8 megawatts of photovoltaics. This solar installation will be one of the largest in the world for a corporate campus. Some of the campus’ amenities are a striking restaurant, a Corporate Fitness Center of approximately 100,000 square feet, and a 1,000-seat Corporate Auditorium of around 120,000 square feet. The project replaces existing asphalt and hardscape with over 100 acres of landscaped green space. The professionals behind it are London architects Foster + Partners,...

With every change of season, you can expect new complaints about the thermostat setting. This isn’t (necessarily) because employees are grouchy. Studies suggest that previously recommended temperature settings are outdated and biased. International reports vary on the optimal setting for thermal comfort in office buildings. The United States Department of Labor Occupational and Safety Administration recommends anywhere from 68°F – 76°F. Many offices implement seasonal temperature standards established by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) in the 1960s; though temperatures vary based on humidity and other factors, ASHRAE recommends thermal comfort temperatures as low as 67°F. Such low temperatures are problematic for two reasons. Primarily, men set the standards for the workplace in the 1960s. Men’s thermal comfort temperature is lower differs from that of women. Studies published by the US National Library of Medicine reveal that men prefer an environment that is roughly 72°F whereas women are most comfortable in an environment of about 77°F. (Temperature preferences are influenced by metabolism rates and fat to muscle ratios.) The American workplace is more diverse than it was in the 60s, but thermal comfort guidelines have yet to catch up. Changes in workplace norms also affect our comfort levels. Business attire isn’t what it was in the 1960s. Most noticeably, men and women wear fewer suits. Clothing materials have also changed. In place of traditional wool or gabardine, clothiers now manufacture a host of breathable business wear fabrics. When indoors, modern employees may feel cooler than their 1960s counterparts because of clothing choices. Changing indoor temperatures could result in cost savings for a business. Decreasing the strain on central cooling systems results in lower utility costs. E Source estimates that HVAC systems require 42 percent of electricity and 86 percent of...

Generation Y is changing up the norm when it comes to where and how they live, and the Millennials have unique ideas about workspaces, too. The cubicle with a desktop PC still exists, but Generation Y wants the ability to move work seamlessly across spaces and devices to unlock new levels of productivity and inspiration. Surveys show that they would accept a lower-paying job that offers flexibility with regard to where, when, and how work gets done, with continuous movement from work to personal activities and back again. When the assigned workspace becomes obsolete; fewer employees stay in the same place all day, every day. The current needs vary from the individual desk in the quiet area, to a lounge area with sofas and chairs for a spontaneous meeting, to a formal, enclosed meeting room, to a countertop to check email or make a phone call. Traditional cubicles will still be around, available through reservation just as conference rooms are for meetings. Supervisors and managers could see this more difficult to control, but the shift to the shared workplace and common areas makes for much more efficient utilization of valuable (and expensive) real estate. Rose Clements, HR director of Microsoft Australia, has dealt with the experience of the shift to ABW. “It’s required us to be adaptable and agile, we’ve had to think differently how we’re onboarding people, we’ve had to think differently about the strengths that our managers need to be comfortable in managing in this kind of environment,” she said, adding that ultimately results have been positive. Cisco Systems conducted a survey among its employees and applied the discoveries. They learned that fluidity around the office is beneficial also because it increases communication across departments and roles: a support employee can receive...

Cross training has been with us for ages, though perhaps not under its formal name. In short, cross training is when an employee who was hired for one position is taught the skills needed to perform additional jobs. It occurs within the workplace naturally, especially in small businesses, yet during the recession larger companies relied on cross training to maintain or maximize output while working with a skeleton staff. The technique may have earned a permanent place in businesses of all sizes thanks to its proven benefits, though several disadvantages challenge whether cross training is sustainable. By implementing cross training strategies in a thoroughly planned, deliberate manner (rather than out of desperation) companies can reap numerous benefits: Cut Overhead Costs When employees can execute multiple tasks, the company stands to decrease overhead costs associated with hiring and training new employees and reduce equipment costs.  This can be particularly helpful for start-ups and small businesses who must accomplish more with fewer capital resources. Increased Productivity The company won’t come to a grinding halt when a few members are away at a conference or on vacation. Supporting staff can pick up the reigns when needed, facilitating a consistent workflow that doesn’t miss a beat. Valuable Employees, Greater Possibilities Employees with a broad range of skills are greater assets for their companies. Their adaptability can help businesses run smoothly and contribute to the team efforts more effectively. By understanding multiple roles within the organization, employees gain a holistic understand of their organization and are thus capable of  contributing towards overarching objectives and long-term goals. Broader Horizons, Improved Morale Formal cross training provides the challenges that employees need to feel intellectually stimulated and engaged in the workplace. When team members feel that they can make a worthy contribution...

Food: celebration, unity, comfort. The cultural significance of a meal, or even a snack, goes beyond our bodies’ need for nourishment. Unfortunately, that’s the problem. Deciding what foods to stock in the break room or how to create menus for a conference can be a daunting task. Organizers must decide between foods that nourish the mind and body—leading to greater productivity and higher morale—and comfort foods that people actually like. Costs and ROI There is a rumor floating around that a healthy diet costs more than an unhealthy one. That’s only half of the truth. An intensive, international study recently published by Reuters suggests that healthy eating costs an average $1.47 more per day—that’s less than a cup of coffee. Over the course of a year, that totals to about $550 per person. Since most companies don’t feed employees three meals a day, they will only absorb a fraction of these costs by serving health meals. The truth remains that healthy options cost more upfront but the cost difference is swallowed when healthcare is taken into consideration. Check out the Union of Concerned Scientists’ findings: If Americans ate just one more serving of fruits or vegetables per day, this would save more than 30,000 lives and $5 billion in medical costs each year. If Americans were to follow current USDA recommendations for daily consumption of fruits and vegetables, those numbers would go up to more than 127,000 lives and $17 billion saved. According to methods commonly used by economists, the increased longevity that would result if Americans ate the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables is worth over $11 trillion. The Integrated Benefits Institutes reports that “227 billion each year is from ‘lost productivity’ from employee absenteeism due to illness or what researchers called...

One of the hottest tech topics of the year in the technology world has been wearable gizmos like smart watches and Google Glass. As hot as these inventions are, they have privacy implications that must not be overlooked. By April 2014, the initial 10,000 people that are currently testing the prototype will multiply. With the eminent adoption of the “all-knowing eye”, reviewers and scientists are uncovering problems and discovering solutions. The most prevalent concern is related to privacy. The fields of discussion are various, from the privacy of a walk down the street, to the security in the work environment. Privacy is already affected primarily by the cameras installed everywhere, from storefronts to busy intersections; the new Google Glass mechanism will rule over all of them, combining a miniature computer with everything it means plus a recording camera that’s seamlessly mounted on the glasses – you might not even know that you’re being recorded as you take your evening stroll in the park. What will organizations do? Having the freedom to wear a small recording device at the office gives both employees and management the potential to modify how transparent things really are in the work environment. The HR department will suffer important changes, as here is where organizational policies are developed – here is where disputes between employees, and between employees and management are handled. Perhaps this will ease up their work, perhaps they’ll need a Video Review function, or perhaps they’ll focus on determining if and to what extent will Google Glass be allowed in the workplace. It’s absolutely relevant the worry that this watchful eye could easily turn into a spying eye, more so than the current highly used devices that have the recording function as part of their mechanism. “Smartglasses...

Make your workspace brighter, better and more productive. Design an office space that fosters productivity, encourages creativity, and promotes the health and well being of all who enter. This holistic approach to an otherwise function-driven space could be the change that you need to breathe fresh air into your business and boost the morale of your team. Create the right frame of mind Your office is more than a space for meeting clients and handling paperwork. It is the environment in which you and your staff live for a significant portion of the day.  Create a space that feels livable without detracting from your professional goals. Integrating biophilic concepts into work places has proven to increase employee productivity, happiness, and health. Of course, that isn’t as easy when operating in an existing property. Retrofit the office from the inside out with a nature-inspired makeover. Create a fun, organic space like the Open AD office green house by replacing faux plants with their real equivalents. Opt for energy efficient, low-e windows with insulation instead of window coverings. By removing window coverings and permitting natural light to enter, workers can thrive in a more natural feeling and dynamic environment. In urban settings, accomplish a similar look and feel on a smaller scale using Domsai. Each mini-greenhouse is compact, easy to maintain, and adds a fresh, airy feel to your office. Optimize available natural light while conserving a bit of privacy with transparent or translucent room dividers. Opt for organic curves for a more natural effect. Create a healthier work environment with Grabo Acoustic Flooring. The flooring’s primary function, noise control, still sits center stage. As an added bonus, the flooring offers antistatic and bacteria resistant properties for a healthier workplace. Lighting doesn’t have to be purely...