4 Ideas for Making an Outdoor Space Where Employees Can Work

Being out in nature is good for our overall health and mental well-being. If that's something that you're hoping to cultivate in your employees for improved satisfaction and productivity, why not create an outdoor area where they can get work done too? It will help with employee morale and productivity, and both of these play a large role in how successful a company ultimately is. Let's take a look at four ideas for making an outdoor space where employees can work that will offer some variety in their workweek.

1. Provide Them With Plenty of Shade

Working outdoors can sound exciting, but it's far more of a hassle if it isn't done right. The first thing to prioritize when creating an outdoor working space for your employees is to ensure that they have plenty of shade. If you're working outdoors without shade, employees can quickly become hot and sunburnt, and the sun can cause a glare in tech or even overheat the devices they're using. Make sure that you have canopies, umbrellas, shades, or whatever other additions are necessary to ensure the right amount of shade in your outdoor space.

2. Use Comfortable, Durable Outdoor Furniture

Putting office furniture outdoors isn't the best choice. Office furniture isn't built to withstand the elements. Heat and UV rays may cause fading and peeling, and moisture could result in mold growth and other issues. Instead, focus on filling your outdoor workspace with commercial outdoor furniture. This outdoor furniture will be comfortable for your employees to use and will be durable enough to last a while before you need to replace the furniture in your outdoor space.

3. Consider Adding an Outdoor Kitchen

It's important for employees to have a breakroom so that they can get refreshments and snacks when they need to take a break and refuel. If your outdoor working space is close to this breakroom, they could just always go inside real quick and get what they need. However, if the outdoor space is farther away, you could build a small outdoor kitchen in your outdoor workspace. Here, you can add a refrigerator and other essentials like a sink, giving your employees a place where they can grab a snack or wash their hands.

This might also be a good idea if you plan on using this outdoor space as a multipurpose space where you could hold outdoor meetings or parties for your company.

4. Implement Plenty of Outlets

An outdoor workspace only achieves its function if employees can get their work done there. If there aren't enough outlets to plug their laptops and other devices into, this workspace will become more of a hassle to use, and employees will give up using this space altogether. Make sure to include enough outlets for whoever wants to use this workspace so that they have what they need to plug in and stay focused.

Crafting an outdoor workspace can be a great way to enhance your workplace environment and give your employees something new and exciting to look forward to. Make sure it goes off without a hitch with the above ideas.