If you are visiting this page, we believe that you must be having a business idea that you are planning to bring to reality. In that case, congratulations on your new venture. Alternatively, if you are an existing business and are looking for setting up a new office place, this article is going to serve as a useful resource for you.
We understand that setting up an office place may take a lot of effort on your end. However, in this article, we are going to help you out with the major considerations that you may look for to ease out the process of setting your new office place.
Here is an overview of what the article talks about:
- Listing Down the Office Essentials
- Identifying the Non-Essential Business Supplies
- Preparing a Layout of the Office Design and Map
- Selecting and Planning the Installation of Communication Systems
- Other Factors to Consider While Setting the Office
Let’s get started!
Listing Down the Office Essentials
This is the first step that you will need to take care of. Start listing out all those important things that you will be needing in the day to day office functions. The purpose of this step is to get a fair idea of how much office space you would require to accommodate the office accessories and other essentials.
There are some office accessories and equipment that are necessary for any business organization. These include:
Office Furniture
Depending on the size of your business and the count of employees that you intend to introduce to your office place, decide the requirements of each type of office furniture. Some of the commonly used office furniture include:
Chairs: There is a wide range of office chairs that you might choose from based on their features and pricing. They include executive chairs, ergonomic chairs, leather chairs, mesh chairs, stack chairs, and so on. The list doesn’t just end here. You may refer to BizChair and check out the various kinds of chairs to find out the ones that best suit your needs.
Tables and Desks: Based on your requirements you can choose from computer tables, glass tables, conference tables, cafeteria tables, reception desks, corner desks, desks with drawers, and much more. OfficeFurniture2go.com and Furniture@Work can help you select some good options for your search.
In addition to these individual furniture types, you may jot down the other furniture accessories that you would require necessarily to smoothly manage your business affairs.
Computer Systems
Needless to say, computer systems form an integral part of any office space. Estimate the number and types of systems that you will be needing based on your business type and workforce. Also, start searching for the software that can help you run your business smoothly.
At Office Stationery, you can find out the computing accessories that are required in the daily functioning of an office such as batteries, cables, computer accessories, computer software, computer peripherals, and much more.
Communication Networks
Search for an internet provider who offers good internet speed and connectivity at affordable rates. You would also need to decide which types of phones and connectivity networks you want in your office.
Identifying the Non-Essential Business Supplies
You must also analyze what are the other business supplies that you would require in your office which though are not essential but will help you in the day-to-day business activities. We are listing some of the services and products that you may warrant your attention.
Front-Office Services
Whenever anyone would visit your office, you would require the reception staff to attend to them before they move into the office. If you need ideas about how your reception area should look like, you may get in touch with Office Designs. Their team will provide you with an end-to-end solution for your design needs as well as installations.
Security Services
You need to decide what kind of security system you want in your office. Further, inside the office premises, you may want to install security safes, lockers, or other similar items. Furniture@work contains a range of such items which will keep your important documents, cash as well as other confidential items safe.
Regular Office Supplies
Office supplies that any functional office may require include calendars, desktop accessories, diaries, envelopes, files, pens and pencils, etc. It is not possible to imagine an office space without these regular office accessories. That’s how Office Stationery can help you arrange your office consumables at some great discounts. In fact, they provide free delivery for orders above £40.
Banking Channels
Get in touch with some bankers and make a comparative analysis of the costs involved and facilities provided by them. Accordingly, make decisions regarding your banking channels. You would also need to decide if you would need to provide credit cards or some pre-prepaid business cards to some of the employees.
Preparing a Layout of the Office Design and Map
In this section, we are talking about the creation of a basic layout of your office design. After you have gained a basic insight into the workforce and furniture requirements, you would be able to draw a basic map of how your office should look like. For example, decide about the whereabouts of the conference room, how many cabins will be there, where will be the reception area, and so on.
Office Designs provides you professional help in planning and designing your office space to help you achieve a competitive edge over others.
Here are some commonly used office layouts:
Open Plan Offices
These types of offices do not make use of any partition walls between the work areas. The demarcation of workspaces is made only with the help of furniture. Such layouts not only take less space but they also ensure communication barriers are not created by creating partition walls.
Cubicle Offices
Cubicle offices contain temporary partitions which help the employees to work in their own private spaces. These cubicles can be redesigned as and when required. Such a layout can be opted for departments that require confidentiality in their work, such as the treasury department.
Private Offices
This layout involves the building of private office cabins for those select employees that are doing essential business functions and need a high level of confidentiality. These private offices require a huge budget to support the associated expenses.
Hybrid Offices
In this type of layout, half partitions are constructed. This means that cubicles are made but the partition walls only go up to half. This allows for some personal working area for the employees without separating them. This helps to communicate easily without creating any barrier.
Selecting and Planning the Installation of Communication Systems
To run the business smoothly and efficiently, it is very essential to make the right choice for communication systems that you install in your office. There may be different modes of communication that you can choose such as cell phones, faxes, emails, intranet, video conferencing, internal communication software, etc. You may choose a combination of these options to take the benefits of smooth communication within and outside the organization.
Other Factors to Consider While Setting the Office
There are some other factors which may require your attention.
- Deciding the location where your office will be situated: Office location is a very important factor that you need to consider. This is because you can get benefits by locating your office in a prime location where customers have easy access to your office.
- Deciding whether the office should be purchased or taken on lease: If you are planning on buying the office, you will need to arrange for the necessary funds. However, if you choose to take the office on lease then you would be required to pay monthly rentals. It is generally better to purchase the office if you are planning on running the office in the long run.
You may use this article as a checklist to ensure all your business needs are taken care of when you decide to set up your new office.