The office environment plays a crucial role in maintaining employee morale. After all, no one wants to spend the entire day in a drab, gray space with nothing but endless rows of identical desks and unimaginative décor. Even if the place is cared for by a commercial cleaning franchise business with cutting-edge coffee makers and whatnot, workers still want to see a splash of color and life into an otherwise purely functional space.
So, consider putting plants in your office. Greenery injects life into the working environment and makes it feel more like a living space than an office. Here’s how office plants keep employees happy and keep your productivity at high levels.
Plants Reduce Stress
Stress deters high productivity; plants step in to mitigate this problem. In fact, a 2010 study by researchers from the New University of Technology Sydney found that greenery in offices reduces the stress and negative mood states of workers. People who placed plants in their office reported 30-60% lower stress levels over three months. On the other hand, those with no plants in the office recorded 20-40% higher stress levels over the same time period.
So, placing small pots can help your employees cope with the workload and deadlines. The less stress, the higher the morale.
Plants Increase Mood and Relaxation
Proponents of color psychology claim that colors elicit different psychological reactions and affect our mood and emotions. Green, the hue that symbolizes life, has a calming effect. Whenever people feel anxious or nervous, it takes one look at a green wall to help them relax. Having huge tall plants to look at in the office could help your employees calm down whenever there’s a crisis.
Plants Increase Productivity
Productivity could jump by up to 15% if you place a handful of house plants in your office, according to a 2014 study by researchers from the University of Exeter. The authors added one plant per square meter, making sure that everybody could see a plant from their desks. The workers’ memory retention and performance in other basic tests improved dramatically.
In fact, employees’ attention span increases when they are surrounded by greenery. A study published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology found that the presence of plants in an office setting can boost their ability to maintain attention.
Moreover, plants can help prevent sick building syndrome, a condition where employees experience acute health and comfort effects that appear to be linked to spending time in the building. This translates to fewer absences and tardiness, increasing the productivity of the entire team.
Plants Increase Creativity
It’s not enough to have a long attention span; you have to keep creative juices flowing, too. A Human Spaces global study surveyed 7,600 offices in 16 countries to check how natural elements — natural light, live indoor plants, views of the sea, and bright colors — impact the creativity and productivity of employees.
It found that employees who work in an environment with natural elements are 15% more creative than those who don’t. This could translate into a bigger bottomline for any company.
Indoor plants may be small, but they provide huge advantages for your workforce. So, place house plants in your office to spruce up the place and keep your employees happy and productive.
