Timeline:
7/5: Project Plan proposal
7/7-9th: Research proposals on similar objectives
7/11-12th: Draft proposal, including all examples of solutions
7/15-29th: Add visual elements, create a structured proposal and feasibility report within the guidelines of our Style Guide
8/1: Final Feasibility study due
Problem Description: Many office buildings located in a suburban environment lack a place for employees to step out and take a break from the workplace. Specifically, the insurance company, Thrivent Financial, located in Montvale, NJ, does not have any designated space for employees to make a call or take a lunch break. The employees must eat at their desks or go to their car if they need to make a personal call.
2020 Plan to Implement Employee Break Room at Thrivent Financial in Montvale, New Jersey
Proposal: Due to the outbreak of Covid-19, many employees have switched to working remotely, leaving unused space in the office. To create an environment that will benefit all employees, the unused space should be reallocated as a break area for the workers at Thrivent Financial. The regional office manager may be contacted for budgetary information. However, due to the abundance of space, there is no need for costly renovations.
Problem: The floor plan of Thrivent in Montvale lacks a separate, designated space for the employees to take their break or lunch hour.
Proposed Solutions:
Solution A: Reallocation of empty office space as a place where employees can sit down, take their lunch break, and take personal calls. The empty space was created due to some employees transitioning to permanently working remotely. Employees will no longer be within earshot of the rest of the day-to-day office noise. The desks could be pushed together to create a larger table. All that needs to be added would be a few chairs, making this an affordable solution.
Solution B: This solution calls for picnic tables and umbrellas to be set up outside the office. Many studies show that spending time outside in the fresh air improves overall physical and mental health.
Solution C: This solution calls for slight renovations to be made to the office building to create an alcove or a completely separate area from the main workspace.
Abstract
Thrivent Financial is a Minnesota-based financial service organization that offers advice, insurance, investments, and banking. One of their suburban regional branches is located in Montvale, New Jersey. The floorplan of Thrivent in Montvale lacks a separate, designated space for the employees to take their break or lunch hour. Because of the suburban environment, there are no places within walking distance to sit down to take a break.
Due to the transition to remote working during the Coronavirus quarantine, a large section of the office remains unoccupied. It is neither ideal nor pleasant for the employees to take personal calls and eat at their desks instead of a designated space that is out of earshot from the everyday office environment. The purpose of this document is to explore the most viable option to create a more beneficial work environment at Thrivent Financial.
I. Problem Description
Given that the office is in a suburban environment, there is no place outside to take a 30-minute break without being pulled back to work, so there needs to be a space allocated for workers to be completely separate from the office space. Many studies have shown that getting up and moving to a different location when taking a break leads to higher productivity when returning back to work. Additionally, there is little to no privacy when employees have no choice but to take their break to eat lunch at their desks.
The Harvard Business Review conducted a study that shows how employees perform much better when they are in control of their space.
https://hbr.org/2014/01/employees-perform-better-when-they-can-control-their-space
II. Current Method
Currently, the employees at Thrivent Financial are forced to choose between taking their lunch breaks at their desks or in their cars. As previously stated in this document, these options do not foster a productive, comfortable, and successful work environment for the employees. Business calls, conversations, and any other background noise within the office environment can still be heard while the employees break at their desks.
III. Proposed Solutions
This document proposes three solutions that may be used in order to mitigate the problem of an unideal break space for the employees at Thrivent Financial. These solutions vary in price range due to the complexity of the project.
1. Solution A: This solution calls for the reallocation of empty office space as a place where employees can sit down, take their lunch breaks, and take personal calls. The empty space was created due to some employees transitioning to permanently working remotely. By reallocating the empty section of the office into a break space, employees will no longer be within earshot of the rest of the day-to-day office noise. The desks could be pushed together to create a larger table. All that needs to be added would be a few chairs, making this an affordable solution.
2. Solution B: This solution calls for picnic tables and umbrellas to be set up outside the office. This would be beneficial for a few reasons. Many studies show that spending time outside in the fresh air improves overall physical and mental health. One downside of this solution is that the benches can only be utilized in the warmer seasons and would have a larger initial cost than office chairs.
3. Solution C: This solution calls for slight renovations to be made to the office building in order to create an alcove or completely separate area from the main workspace. This may be achieved by having a wall to separate the designated break area or room. The downside of this solution is that it would be the most costly.
IV. Conclusion
There are often many challenges to face when dealing with the renovation and or reallocation of corporate office space, whether it is due to budgetary matters, renovation time, or building permit codes. Therefore, a prompt yet fiscally responsible solution is in order. A complete renovation may be too costly and take up too much time. However, a hybrid of both Solutions A and B should be considered. Both solutions have a low budget while still meeting the needs of the Thrivent employees by giving them a separate space from the office to take a break. An example of these solutions being put into action may be shifting desks together and adding additional seating. A small refrigerator and microwave would also be feasible options for the unused space. Depending on the budget mandated by the Regional Office Manager, a picnic bench outside may also be added. No employee should feel uncomfortable during their personal break time, as it does not cultivate a successful and beneficial work environment for the workers or Thrivent Financial.