How old are your co-workers?
As move managers, our clients often look to us for ideas on furnishing and equipping their new office in a way that will help them become more productive. To help them, we’ll typically start by asking them a series of questions to understand how they work. Our questions include whether the company works collaboratively and how much filing space they might need. But I recently attended a presentation that made me think of a new question we should be asking our clients – how old is your typical worker?
The presentation was by Scott Openshaw, Human Factors and Ergonomics Manager at Allsteel, who pointed out that most baby boomers plan to work into traditional retirement. To get a sense of the size of this group, every 7 seconds somebody in America turns 50. In 2007, 17.5% of the workforce was 55 and older. By 2015, 20% of the workforce will be 55 and older. Clearly this is a huge population!
The question is – how can we adapt the workplace to meet the needs of both younger and older employees? Scott had some great ideas.
- Increase illumination by 20%
- Use special purpose lighting techniques to make low-contrast targets more visual
- Avoid the use of small print in instructions, orders or on equipment
- Consider using LCD displays
- Sound masking/dampening strategies
Scott’s presentation reminded me of a client I worked with recently who was moving their office that was looking for used furniture as a way to save money. I drew the space plan and then we started to look for used furniture that might meet their needs. I remember one of their vice presidents telling me that they were willing to spend more money on chairs because they were an older office and they needed the comfort that an ergonomic chair would bring. It makes sense. Just think how much time somebody spends sitting in their task chair! And I think this is a sentiment that the younger generation would agree with.
The boomer generation brings experience and maturity to the workforce and, when planning a new office space, some thought needs to be given to their needs. Hopefully these ideas will inspire changes in your workplace so that everybody can work most productively.
