 We're Moving!
Our New York City office will be moving in February to our new facility located at 237 West 35th St, Ste 1004 New York, NY 10001. Come visit us!
0 Comments
Why Your Office Space Matters More for Productivity Than You Think Office space design can make the difference between people being able to concentrate and not  Credit: Getty Images What's the relationship between quality of office space and company performance in tech companies? originally appeared on Quora, the knowledge-sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights.
Answer by Yuval Ariav, VC, founder at Fundbox, product at Onavo (acquired by Facebook), on Quora: Here are a few observations from years (and years) of firsthand experience, and from discussing this question with quite a few founders and managers:
This question originally appeared on Quora, the knowledge-sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. Source: Inc.com The Halsa Bariatric Chair by Allseating  Halsa, which is Swedish for "health" is a new series of waiting room and lounge furniture that offers healthcare and education facilities the perfect balance of comfort, style and flexibility.
Inspired by Scandinavian design principles, Halsa's linear design approach makes it ideal for organizations where balancing space and comfort are key. All seating features a high level of durability and built-in lumbar support. For more information, contact a bfi sales representative today! An insightful glimpse into the office of the future told by fast coexist author Ben Schiller. Office chairs that adjust to your body based on biofeedback. Walls that slide, shift, and change color according to worker needs. Three-dimensional printers that produce food and replicate office supplies. These are some of the possibilities in the "office of the future."   The days of classrooms where a teacher desk sits at the front of the classroom and students’ desks are neatly aligned in rows are over. Learning technologies, and changing pedagogical methods, are not only changing the way we teach but also the physical environments we teach in. The role physical environments play in our learning is just beginning to be studied and understood.
CONTINUE READING Source: Education-2025  by Patrick Allan
Every discussion about standing desks today is an argument over whether they’re healthier than sitting all day, or whether those health benefits are bullshit. None of that is important to me. What is, however, is that my standing desk made me more productive, more creative, and overall more active. That’s all I want from it. Standing Gives More Urgency to My Work For me, sitting flips a switch in my brain that tells me it’s time to rest. Standing, however, does the opposite. When I stand while I work, the stuff that usually only engages my brain and hands becomes work that engages my entire body. Doing the simple things, like typing, reading, and clicking links requires effort from my entire body. I have to hold myself up no matter how simple the task at hand. If it sounds exhausting, it kind of is. But that’s a good thing. Just the physical nature of standing while I do my work combines with the mental energy I bring to the table, and it just makes everything feel important. It adds some momentum and urgency to my day. That urgency helps me concentrate and focus. By standing, I’m telling my brain that I have shit to do and I can’t rest until it’s done. Everything matters just a little more, and instead of opening a tab to laze around on Facebook, I actually work faster. Not in a sloppy way, but in a “I’m totally absorbed in what I’m doing” way. I get in the zone quicker, and stay in it longer. I shun distractions and stay productive because I know that getting work done means I can rest sooner. With a standing desk, my own inherent laziness makes me more productive. Standing Puts an End to Lazy Starts to the Day That urgency I feel when I work at a standing desk also gets rid of slow, lazy starts to my workday. Before I started using a standing desk, I would sit down at my computer in the morning, convince myself I had started “working,” and waste time easing into the real meat of my day. I was like a machine that was slowly starting to warm up. The gears would turn, the belts would spin, and after an hour or so the machine would finally start running at full power. Some people might like that kind of slow, luxurious start to the day, but for me, it was a waste of time and energy. Standing forced me to start working right out of the gate. That morning, “well I should probably get something done” grogginess dissipates faster, and I can’t get too comfortable because if I do, well, I’ll fall down. This revelation was a game-changer for me. Now, I turn on my computer and dive right in because my body is telling me it’s time to work, not time to read Kotaku. I still take regular breaks throughout the day to give both my mind and body a rest, but I have more control over when those happen now. My mornings jump start into productivity and my breaks only come when I actually need them. Standing Means No More Post-Lunch Food Comas Food comas are awesome (I indulge in that lazy, full feeling as often as I can), but not when I’m trying to be productive. The sleepy fog that comes from eating too much or totally binging on carbs for lunch can completely waste your afternoon. Standing desks fight that off, and for me, help me get back into the groove faster after eating. Every day, I get as much work done in the morning as I can, then eat a meal that’s a combination of late breakfast and early lunch (I refuse to say I eat brunch every day). I used to sit at my desk, eat, and maybe watch Netflix to take a break, but a few bites later and I’d be full, sleepy, and in no condition to get back into the swing of things. Once I started standing, I actually get away from my desk to eat and take a well-earned rest sitting at my dining room table. When it’s time to get back to work, standing gets me back into “work mode.” I stay alert, and the food I ate feels more like fuel and not weight that’s bogging me down. Standing Desks Help Me Stay Active, and That’s What Matters Obviously, standing all day is a little more active than sitting all day, but standing also makes we want to be more active. Whether you stand or sit, moving and being active is what keeps you healthy. With my standing desk, I’m more inclined to pace around my apartment while I think, hop on my stationary bicycle for a quick session, keep some dumbbells next to my desk to lift, go for a walk outside when I need to take a break (what’s that bright yellow thing that burns my skin?), and even dance around like an idiot to my music. My Fitbit tells me my daily steps have skyrocketed since I started using a standing desk. Step counts aren’t the same thing as good health, per se, but I can feel a difference too. It’s amazing how big of a mental barrier getting up on your feet really is. Instead of “I have to get up and go do that,” it’s “well I’m already up, so why not?” Even better, all the extra activity helps me concentrate and think creatively. Sure, exercise, pacing, and dancing are all distractions from the work I have to do, but they’re the good kind: The kind that give my mind a moment to recharge, reset, and get back into what I’m doing without completely pulling my head out of the zone. The effect is similar to having a great idea pop into your head while you jog, or while you’re in the shower. One minute I’m dancing, the next I’m scribbling like a madman because I finally figured out how I want to write something. Standing Even Makes Sitting Feel Productive Make no mistake, sitting is still super important when you have a standing desk. You need to give your legs (especially your knees) a break every once in awhile. But that’s the beauty of a standing desk; it gives sitting purpose. Sitting goes from being the norm to being what it should be: a break. Rest is just as vital for productivity as work is, and now sitting fills that role for me. Sitting has become a tool. Before, my bouts of escapism would fill me with guilt because I’d go from sitting all day at a desk to sitting all night on a couch. Now when I sit down to watch a movie or play a video game, I feel like I’m enjoying a well-earned rest. On top of that, working at a standing desk creates two layers of fatigue, and I find that I’m more inclined to hit the sack at a decent hour. More good sleep translates to more energy for my workday, and that means better productivity all around. Those two layers of fatigue can be a double-edged sword, however. Standing desks wear me out both physically and mentally, so I’m not up for much after working hours. Going to the gym, standing in a bar with friends, and running errands around town become a lot less appealing when you’ve been on your feet all day. Ask any retail worker, restaurant server, or anyone else that stands all day. That said, if you can strike a good balance of sitting and standing, you’ll end up with more benefits than drawbacks. Source: Lifehacker Here is a well written and insightful 2016 Workplace Report created by the architectural firm, Ted Moudis Associates. Ted Moudis Associates has offices in New York, Chicago and London. We created a benchmarking database to provide insights on the metrics, trends and strategies that are influencing workplace design today. Spanning multiple industries and encompassing over 2.5 million square feet of workspace this robust tool provides the most comprehensive analysis of recent workplace design projects available. An insightful and enjoyable interview on the Future of Work and WorkSpace.  Jennifer Magnolfi thinks about the future of work from her own unique perspective — that of an architect. Born and raised in Italy, she has also spent a lot of time in North America exploring workspaces and what they mean in the context of society. She has worked with large web corporations and new workspace networks. She has also spent time working for Herman Miller, the iconic furniture company.
bfi was recently acknowledged by the Associated Builders and Contractors Inc. New Jersey Chapter for our outstanding work along with construction firm V.J. Scozzari & Sons, Inc. for The Chapin School expansion project performed over the last two years for their Lower and Upper School additions. Not only did bfi provide the furniture, bfi did all of the furniture specifications and furniture designs, including the selection of the furniture finishes to work with the architect’s design and we managed the scheduling and installation of the new products for the project. This is a prime example of bfi's capabilities and project management abilities that our diverse staff performs every day.  BFI is pleased to welcome Helena Loman to the BFI-New York Office as a Sales Executive, Business Developer. Helena comes to us after a successful tenure at Innovant as a Senior Account Executive, Business Development and Dovetail, Director of Business Development and Sales. Helena also is a licensed financial services professional holding series 7.9.10, 25 63 and 65 FINRA credentials and has enjoyed success at PaineWebber and Wachovia Securities. She is also a licensed Real Estate Broker. Helena is active in CoreNet, IFMA, IIDA CIANJ and Professional Women in Construction NY/NJ.
She was born and raised in Sweden where she received her nursing degree and is multi lingual. Helena is quite networked in New York City architects, designers and other professionals and has worked with BFI-New York on several financial service opportunities during her tenure at Innovant. Some of her major accounts include Rothschild, Vermillion Asset Management and Aflac Financial Services. Welcome Helena! |
Archives
May 2019
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed
