Improving Our Working Environment

Allocate the task sheet and Physical Environment Review and ask colleagues to examine the criteria by noting positive and negative factors. You are not looking for suggestions at this stage, simply what is working well, and what needs to improve.

Depending on the size of the group, and amount of available time, you might want to split the participants into subgroups and distribute the criteria between each subgroup.

Review Activity (30 Minutes)

Bring the subgroups back together, so that the whole team can collate all the issues and identify three top priorities needing to be addressed.

Now, split the team into two, to identify solutions/actions that need to be taken. With one team, tell them that they can be as imaginative and creative as possible; there are no constraints. With the other team, advise them of any real constraints (such as space or budgetary) and encourage them to be as creative as they can within these constraints. Allow 15 minutes for this phase.

Ask both teams to feed back their solutions for each of the three priorities. To keep a logical flow to the exercise, it would be best to collate suggested solutions for each priority from both teams.

Here is an example of some guidance that you could give the team if they are struggling to come up with ideas:

Light

Ensure that the room is brightly lit with plenty of natural sunlight. A lack of light can cause fatigue and create a negative effect on employees’ moods. On the other hand, bright, natural light can boost energy levels, motivation and concentration. If this is not possible, try:

• Placing table and floor lamps around the room, as they give a much warmer and more natural light than strip lights
• Reviewing whether you really need those table dividers as they reduce the light in the room and create shadows
• Hanging mirrors on the wall to help reflect natural light
• Using lighter colors to reflect light (deep colors absorb light)

Apply Learning (10 Minutes)

Take each priority in turn and encourage the team to reach an agreement on the best solution, and on the actions required.

Summarize at the end by briefly repeating the key findings and actions, and ensure that these are all agreed. Ask for a volunteer to collate the findings and assimilate them into one concise report. This document can then be used as a basis for further analysis and planning.

Improving Our Physical Environment – Task Sheet

This exercise will help you to review your physical working environment with a view to making specific improvements.

It provides a framework for you to assess the positive and negative factors of your working environment against criteria that often influence how pleasant a working environment can feel and how others perceive your team.

Task

1. Examine each of the criteria in the left-hand column of the Physical Environment Review, noting positive and negative factors. There are additional rows for you to add any criteria you feel are missing. You have 20 minutes to do this.
2. Agree with your team the top three issues that should receive priority attention.
3. Now identify possible solutions for your selected priority issues.
4. Finally, agree on the best solutions and required actions and who is going to take responsibility for what.
5. Review progress at a future team meeting.

As you complete the exercise, you will be asked to consider the following criteria in terms of your physical working environment:

• Space (e.g. storage, seating, office layout)
• Noise levels
• Temparature and air circulation
• General levels of tidiness
• Quality of light
• Décor