The 5 C’s of Choosing New and Used Office Furniture

With the advancing trend in integrated communications, virtual and physical networking, telecommunications and technology, and work group teams segmented by unique skill sets, American companies are experiencing a major shift in the way they do business. Hence the rise in demand for collaborative workplace environments, especially the office furniture and the space planning associated with laying out the office furniture. Sensitivity to a consistent company image has led many firms to go for a branded environment in their office, which has an impact on the types of office furniture selected, the colors on the office furniture, and even the feng shui utilized in their arrangement. Collaborative office furniture can be used for a wide variety of functions, including:

• Work Groups
• Brainstorming Sessions
• Breakaway Rooms
• Kickoff Meetings & Briefings
• Team Sales
• Focus Groups
• Board Meetings
• Seminars & Webinars
• Social Gatherings

With the objectives of collaboration for maintaining profitability, improving company image, and encouraging productive teamwork and a streamlined process as our goals, we have put together a quick guide for anyone out there seeking to incorporate office furniture for effective collaboration in their office. We call this “The 5 C’s of Collaboration”.

1. Cooperation

The first key to successful collaboration is to select new or used office furniture that urges cooperation within the company to create a better oiled machine. Ask and find out what appeals to the majority of your staff and keeps them happy – with CubeKing, you can choose from a wide selection of quality brand name new and used office furniture, available anywhere from California across to the east coast. Our huge inventory, discounted up to 90% includes excellent condition workstations in a variety of shapes and sizes, so you can control the proximity of employees in planning the space. Consider opting for a P or U-shaped desk if they have other co-workers on either side, to cooperate with, or if they greet guests frequently, or have more computer monitors and need the extra space. Also you can decide how close together workers need to be with desks of 4′, 6′, 8′ and other different widths and depths. Another helpful note: adjustable office chairs with wheels make meetings, and hopping over to other workstations much easier – and if the chairs get mixed up, adjustable levers (and ergonomic design) can assure that the chair fits everyone right.

Along with cooperation is coordination. Sometimes a machine is easier to oil if the parts all fit right. That is, the coordinated aesthetics in branded environments and consistent office furniture are conducive to employee coordination, too: less visual dissonance, less bickering over the chair that isn’t the broken one, more impressing and more satisfying to work in.

2. Comfort

Nothing is worse than feeling completely uncomfortable at a long board meeting. The better you feel in your chair, short of falling asleep in it, the better chances the quality of your work and energy level will increase. Nobody likes a grumpy client or team partner, so ergonomic chairs, padded lobby and reception area seats and adjustable office task chairs are good ways to encourage collaboration with less negative outbursts. Consider high-quality office furniture from stylistic brands like Teknion, Herman Miller, Allsteel, Haworth, and more.

3. Consolidation

If you’re growing too big for your office building’s britches, you may need to consolidate in a way that allows for collaboration without the drawbacks of annoying sound levels, distractions, and lacking privacy. Cubicles with sound absorbent side paneling are a good way to keep your employees happy in this respect, maximize the amount of usable space to expand the business size and to give everyone their fair share of personal work space. Pod layouts for cubicle workstations work well to form teams within office work groups. CubeKing Office Furniture Discounters conveniently allows workstations to be purchased separately or within pod layouts at even further reduced prices and greater savings.

4. Communication

It is important to note that communication and the ways we use technology have an affect on the possibilities with office furniture, and vice versa. Conference tables for video or telephone conferencing are a must-have staple of corporate culture. Call-centers are a great way to support that function while hiding untidy wiring. Desks with nested computer monitors are another way to allow for greater surface area and reduce the amount of glare on the screen. There’s an abundance of possibilities with workstations that include shelves, drawers, wire holders, and storage solutions, all available from CubeKing.

5. Compensation

The bottom line is the bottom line. Effective collaboration can lead to increased profits for the company and a better outlook on future growth. However, the return you get back from it is a function of the quality of the office furniture you order and the cost, along with the impact on team and worker productivity. At CubeKing, you get both high quality and low price for the best value. You can save up to 90% on our used office furniture, and we’ll do our best to beat any legitimate prices that come our way.