When starting up a company or a business, the founders are mostly focused on the product, marketing strategy, distribution, and financials. The questions running through their minds revolve around figuring out what do companies need to make it past the first seven years of business.
The focus may be on the larger picture of product, place, packaging, and position most of the time. However, for all these to fall in place, other seemingly mundane factors need to be addressed. Although in the background, these factors are still important to the day to day running of the company
Aesthetically Pleasing Look
Aesthetics play a key role in the perception of a business. There is only one chance to make a first impression. This goes for the product itself, the packaging and branding of the product, the office decor, and even the placement of the coffee machine and the washrooms. Some people base their product choice on how it looks before they think about how the product will work for them. Some employees even decide if they would like to work for a company based on the office aesthetics, environment, and atmosphere.
To improve the office environment, some companies have gone as far as incorporating plants into their decor. Those who have outside space with gardens may have to pay for a tree service company to maintain the garden, especially if they have trees. Where there is no outside space, indoor spaces can be modified to create an indoor garden area where employees can either work or take a break. Balconies and rooftops are some examples of spaces that can be transformed into gardens.
Office layout and ergonomic furniture ensure that employees and visitors can move around the office easily and are also comfortable at their desks. Employees spend most of their time in the office sitting at their desks and the type of seat they are in makes a difference.
A clean, well-arranged office, with comfortable furniture and easy-to-use equipment, are just a few of the considerations on what do companies need to ensure that their staff are motivated.
HVAC Maintenance
Apart from having comfortable seats and beautiful space, the air quality in an office space is important. Everyone wants to breathe clean air, and the pandemic made us more conscious of the air quality in crowded spaces. Something that we had taken for granted in the past. Regular HVAC maintenance will avoid inconvenient and costly unexpected interruptions to the circulation of air in the office.
Retaining the services of a reliable furnace company will take care of regular maintenance of any HVAC units in the building. The maintenance company should provide a bi-seasonal maintenance checklist that will provide a reasonable guarantee that the air conditioner will run well during both the warmer months and the winter season. Having a checklist in place will ensure that small things like changing batteries or cleaning the filters are taken care of in good time.
Simple maintenance procedures that do not need an expert and can be assigned to the cleaning staff on a regular basis. These include keeping a lookout for noises and odors coming from the unit, keeping outside units free of debris, and inspecting the fan blades.
Reliable Plumbing
Studies have been conducted on the amount of time employees spend on the toilet and how to reduce it to maintain productivity. It may seem extreme, however, if a company has taken the time to create a positive work environment and provides lunchtimes and breaks, they do not have to worry about their team members spending extended periods in the washroom.
A clean washroom with running water should be made available for the staff. There may be some debate on whether it is necessary to have different washrooms for each gender or to have a shared room. This will be dependent on the size of the organization. For companies running off-site activities and functions, management should consider providing a portable toilet for the employees. This may include contractors on a building site or any visits to an outdoor location.
Along with providing washroom facilities, there needs to be reliable plumbing. Clean, running water on demand is a standard requirement. Constant interruptions to water supply, blockages, and broken pipes are a costly inconvenience, especially in the manufacturing industry. Interruption to water supply means that production has to stop costing the company both time and money.
Safe Storage
Companies have a lot of data and equipment that requires safe storage. Whether it is a start-up or a corporation, all organizations require some kind of storage space. Data storage needs vary depending on the type and size of data that needs to be stored and if it can be stored either virtually or in a physical space.
The selection or creation of safe storage requires several factors to be taken into consideration. Security is at the top of the list for both virtual and physical storage space. This is followed closely by protection from the elements in the case of physical storage space. Protection from water, which is the most destructive of physical elements, is necessary. Hiring a waterproofing contractor to ensure the physical space is waterproof will protect your property from damage in case of leakages or flooding.
Once a secure location has been selected and equipped for safe storage of physical items, it is also a good idea to create a record of the items in storage and get them insured.
Strong Roof
For companies that own the buildings they occupy, proper roofing is a major factor to be addressed. What do companies need to ensure their roof is well maintained? They would need to hire the services of reliable roofing contractors. The services of a roofing contractor are not only needed for roofing replacement or installation, but also for general maintenance. A good contractor will let you know of any repairs, replacements, or improvements that can be made to the roof.
Being on the outside, roofs bear the brunt of the elements and keep the building and all that is inside safe from the same elements. Strength and stability, resistance to the passage of heat and sound, durability, and security are just a few of the functional requirements of a good roof. A roof that does not meet these standards would mean great losses to a company in the event of damage and destruction.
Reliable Power
Power interruptions can be caused by severe weather or natural disasters, motor vehicle accidents near power lines, power line damage from construction work, equipment failure, or high energy demand. For most companies, this is a major inconvenience. For manufacturing companies, power interruptions lead to big losses.
To avoid such interruptions, management could consider using solar energy. This is a reliable and eco-friendly source of energy. The installation of one solar panel or several panels, will greatly reduce energy costs and provide consistent power even during winter. The only challenge may be that the panels will require some maintenance during winter to ensure that the panels are not covered with snow or have frozen water on them.
Over the years, the availability and affordability of solar power have improved, making it readily accessible. Solar panels are now more efficient and can be relied upon in different weather conditions. Solar energy will put an end to worrying about refueling and refilling or interruptions and disconnections.
Updated Printers
It is frustrating when you are unable to print quality work due to a faulty or outdated printer. It is also frustrating when you need to print something and the printing shop is closed because it is after hours or a holiday. Although the world is steadily moving towards a paperless society with everything going digital, there is still the need to have a printout now and then. Most offices use a basic printer to meet day-to-day printing needs. However, there are larger offices that require bulk printing services. In such cases, it would make sense to consider outsourcing the printing services.
Where the company is in the creative line, it would be reasonable to have their printer for speedy and timely turnaround on orders. However, this is also dependent on the size of orders coming through regularly. For example, in the t-shirt printing industry, a start-up creating custom orders may not be able to afford the latest direct to film printer. It would make more sense to outsource their printing. Compared to a design house with thousands of orders, it would require an in-house printing department to have better control over the speed and consistency of output.
In-house verse outsourcing is one of the choices management has to make when deliberating on what do companies need to be ahead of the game.
Payroll Service
Unless you are a large company with a Human Resource department, payroll can be a monotonous, time-consuming, and demanding task. Engaging a payroll service company will ensure that your employees are paid on time and your taxes are in order. Unfortunately, it also means that someone outside of your business has access to your personnel data, and making any necessary changes on time may be difficult.
Depending on the size of the business, the cost of having a payroll service may put a dent in the overall budget. One would have to compare the cost of the service versus the time it takes to complete the payroll task before making the decision. The time that is being spent on the payroll can be directed to another area of the business.
There are various options when it comes to choosing an online payroll service. There are paid and free payroll software options available, as well as freelance accountants who provide the same service on a need-to basis. In considering what do companies need to streamline their payroll, cost, accessibility, easy access, and compliance need to be taken into account.
Staffing
For a company to run, it needs employees to perform the various tasks that involve what do companies need to function effectively. The front office, sales, production, distribution, customer care, invoicing, payments, and cleaning are just a few of the functions of a company. These positions need to be filled with employees who have the qualifications to do the work effectively and efficiently.
While it may be necessary to personally recruit the employees that one would like to have on their team, one must remember that hiring is not the only aspect of staffing. Staffing includes acquiring, hiring, training, motivating, and keeping employees.
There are aspects of staffing that can be outsourced to a staffing service. Their work is to match qualified candidates to companies that have vacant positions. This takes the time and effort required to sort through applications and interviews to find the right candidate. The staffing agency will provide a shortlist from which the employer can make a decision.
Success At Every Level
The goal of any company is to be successful. While the focus of success is usually on the product, sales, and market growth, as we have seen, other areas also need to be focused on. One needs to think about what services can be outsourced and which ones can be done in-house.
Maintenance of the building and fixtures is another area that is not thought about much. The reason for this may be that most businesses are renting their premises and rely on the property manager to take care of any issues that may arise.
It may be safe to say that when taking into account what do companies need to be ahead of the game, those needs vary. Different companies have different needs based on their industry, size, product, and market. What they do have in common is the need to have a good product, a motivated staff, and a market strategy.