There are many strategies employers can adopt to improve the productivity and happiness of their employees, but is it a case of the quirkier the better?
The likes of fashion retailer Missguided and Mind Candy have designed their working spaces in an attempt to capture employee’s imagination as well as boost their productivity.
Missguided’s Manchester headquarters incorporate dressing rooms, sleep pods, arcade games, a hair and make-up space, swings and even a selfie tunnel for staff to enjoy. It also boasts an all-pink conference room.
Meanwhile, IT firm Peer1’s offices feature an indoor garden complete with a 15ft tree, picnic benches and a tree house. The office, based in Southampton, also has a swing, yoga classes, giant helter-skelter, pool table and mini-golf course, not to a mention an office pub named after the organisation’s founder Gary Sherlock; The Sherlock Arms.
And entertainment firm Mind Candy gives its employees a surreal experience when they come into the workplace inspired by its own products. Mind Candy created children’s’ game Moshi Monsters (pictured), and its offices are based on the fictional city of Monstro where the game takes place.
The workspace features faux grass and ivy, a tree-trunk reception desk and a giant slide. Its meetings are conducted on beanbags with beers for staff to sip on, plus there’s a ping-pong table, a tree house and Guitar Hero championships.
Family-run web hosting business Melbourne, which is based in Manchester, forms its working spaces around the overall welfare of its workers. For instance, it has an indoor and outdoor barbeque area, pool tables, a Scalextric track, pinball machines, a slide and, of course, beanbags.
However, according to The Leesman Index, which was published in November 2015, just over half (55%) of office environments allow employees to work productively, and if Missguided, Mind Candy and the likes are anything to go by, perhaps we’ll be seeing far more quirky places to work.
Here at Employee Benefits we’re drawing up our wish list….