Category: Efficiency & Organization

Article: Web and Marketing Firm Exists Sans Offices

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PR Newswire has a really cool update about Web and Marketing firm Synergema, which is embracing the idea of a “Green” offce by having no office to speak of:

“Working from their homes, our employees aren’t using many of the resources than they would if they were out at an office for the day,” Steiger says. “By not making them come into an office and effectively double the use of the various resources, we’re saving money and also impacting the environment.”

From there, the ripples flow outward. The absence of a central office eliminates the need for trucks to deliver office supplies, which saves fuel. Meetings are conducted via videoconference, reducing the need for airline flights or auto trips to headquarters.

Perhaps the ones who benefit the most, though, are Synergema’s employees, Steiger says. “Our people don’t have to get in cars to come to work, so it’s not necessary for them to be stuck in long traffic tie-ups to get here,” he says.

And since the average American worker spends around 100 hours a year commuting — more than the 80 hours many get for vacation — giving that time back to the employee makes a huge difference. “That keeps them happier, and happier employees are more productive. Because they are driving less, they save money on fuel, insurance and auto maintenance,” Steiger says.

This, to me, is insanely cool. I’ve always loved working from home, and it’s boggled my mind how many companies are resistant to the idea of their employees saving time, money, supplies, and overall angst by being able to do their job in the comfort of their own home. Obviously the approach doesn’t work for everyone, but Synergema seems to have hit on a format that works for them, and I say congratulations.

One of the reasons we’re in the web-based office supply business is because the concept is green all around. We offer quality supplies shipped using existing methods to get them to your door faster. No getting in the car and going to some big-box store, which itself has to be built, maintained, powered, have their waste dealt with…to say nothing of THOSE employees who have to shlep themselves into work every day. If everyone kept an eye to the environment the way some companies are starting to, we’d not only have a happier workforce, but a happier planet as well. Corny, perhaps, but true.

Blurb: Manage Expenses Strategically

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As part of a larger Reuters article on ways in which businesses can better manage their funds, I came across this useful tidbit:

Office supplies. Cancel unnecessary subscriptions and services. When re-ordering supplies, look for discounts and consider items that do the job without the frills. Perhaps you can reduce costs on items such as paper with the efficient use of e-mail.

Not the most mind-blowing of observations, but it highlights an important element of what we do: find people the best office supplies at a price that works for them. If you’re flush with cash and want only the highest name-brand items, we’ve got them. If you’re trying to trim your budget and just want something no-frills that can do the job, we’ve got that too. By not being propped up by huge vendors the way some big-box stores are, we can afford to be flexible and meet your needs, rather than just trying to sell you the priciest widget we can.

Just another reason I love my job.

Home Office Ideas: The “Command Center”

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Over at CommercialAppeal.com, there’s another interesting take on the home office that I find quite interesting. Rather than a separate room for a home office, they recommend the “command center” be a small, dedicated space somewhere in the home where the “family manager” can handle the countless tasks, responsibilities and decisions that need to be made every day. From the article:

Basic equipment for the best home office or command center should include a laptop or desktop computer, printer, scanner, copier, fax machine and telephone. It’s OK if you don’t have a computer. The most important thing is to have a designated place (other than the kitchen counter/coffee table/dinning room table) to take care of the day-to-day activities.

The article goes on to say that by using some simple office supplies such as a plastic storage box for supplies, a Rolodex and/or cork board for organizing information, and baskets and boxes for storing documents, you can create a small, dedicated hub for all your home office (or just home-business; even if you don’t work from your house, just being there can accumulate a lot of paperwork these days.)

This article is interesting to me because it flies in the face of a lot of other home-office planners that say the best way to conduct business from home is to have a private, shut-away space that is “office” without being too much “home.” This approach instead has your command center seated as an island in the sea of daily life; a place where anyone can stop off to replenish supplies, coordinate tasks, and generally make sense of day-to-day home management.

It’s an interesting concept, and I imagine it would work much better for some people than trying to wall off their home office from the rest of the house.

Do you have a home office plan or tips that have worked for you in the past? Let us know in the comments.

Question: Can I use any ink I want in my printer?

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Short answer? Yes you can.

A lot of manufacturers try to bully you into buying official, name-brand ink from them at exorbitant prices by claiming that you will be voiding your warranty or have to pay more for maintenance if you use anything other than their ink. Well, it was recently brought to my attention that not only is this claim ridiculous, it’s also illegal.

Under the Warranty Improvement Act, United States Code Annotated, Title 15 Commerce and Trade, Chapter 50: Consumer Product Warranties 15, Section 2302:

(c) No warrantor of a consumer product may condition his written or implied warranty of such product on the consumer’s using, in connection with such product, any article or service (other than article or service provided without charge under the tears of the warranty) which is identified by brand, trade or corporate name; except that the prohibition of this subsection may be waived by the commission if:

  1. The warrantor satisfies the Commission that the warranted product will function properly only if the article or service so identified is used in connection with the warranted product, and
  2. The Commission finds that such a waiver is in the public interest.

So basically, unless the manufacturer can claim (and prove) that using a third-party product, like printer ink or toner, is doing some kind of harm to the device, than anything else they say about it is forfeit. And guess what? No one has yet come forward with that kind of proof.

Not only does this mean you can use any ink or refill kit you want without fear of your warranty being voided, but the company can also not threaten to remove or discontinue support, break a lease, or basically do anything else about it, either:

The Supreme Court (IBM vs. The United States) held that IBM could not threaten customers with termination of their data processing equipment leases just because they did not use supplies manufactured by IBM. Such practice constituted a “tying agreement” and was found to be to violation of the Sherman and Clayton Antitrust Law.

So there you have it. Buy whatever ink you want, to your heart’s content (though remember, buy from your friendly neighborhood online store, not those other guys). This goes for computer parts, replacement parts, and just about anything you might need to buy. You learn something new every day!

 

Article: Porsche Consulting Debuts the “Lean Office”

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In an interesting article from The Financial, they talk about Porsche Consulting (yes, that Porsche), who have developed an innovative strategy for, of all things, dealing with office management and workflow. Using design tricks they learned from the automotive assembly line, they’ve come up with some interesting solutions:

In order to make their office “lean” the consultants turned to the same methods that they also use for external customers in order to optimize their own workflows. The Porsche Consulting employees first analyzed the amount of time they spend walking around the office, the capacity of meeting rooms and the use of individual workstations. Then the optimization process began.

So, several small instead of a few large meeting rooms were set up. This arrangement allows work groups to implement their respective projects faster because the waiting times for available meeting rooms have been reduced and it is easier to call meetings on short notice. Through modular shelving systems and lockers with an integrated post box, work-related walking distances have been shortened and space saved. Just as on the Porsche production line the availability of office materials is controlled by a “just-in-time” system. This ensures that the most important office tools are available at all times at each workstation.

It’s one of those articles that makes you want to slap your forehead and say “duh.” Why has it taken so long for us to realize this? More meeting rooms means less wait time. Modular, mix-and-match furniture means the office can be quickly reconfigured to optimize workspace and flow. Simple concepts, elegantly implemented. I guess there’s a reason this is coming from Porsche.

Article: Organize More Efficiently By Staying Put

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My favorite go-to blog for organizing and streamlining my life, Lifehacker, has a great article up right now about organizing your space.

While the article is geared toward general organizing, I find the tips within to be pretty much in line with my own philosophy about cleaning up my home office.

Basically, the article (which quotes from another favorite organization blog, Apartment Therapy), says the main trick to making sure you do the job you set out to do is to stay in the room you’re doing it in:

When you’re in the sorting process (the crucial first step) of organizing a specific room, STAY in the room for the organizing session. (Prepare for the session by having trash bags on hand for trash, recycling, donations.) Invariably you’ll find objects that actually do have a home in another room or on another floor. Most of our clients, if left to their own devices, are inclined to leave the room immediately every time they come across an object like this to return it to its home. And in the process, it’s REALLY easy to get distracted and to not return to organizing.

I find this to be immensely true. I’ve never had a huge house to fan out and get lost in, but even during apartment living I’ve found that the second I leave the room I’m tidying, I lost the motivation to re-enter it. Seems like the farther you get from the job at hand, the easier it is to not go back. Solve the problem by staying put.

The best office redesign I’ve ever had came when I purchased some plastic organizers of the bucket and bin variety, set up some new shelves, and sat down in the office and went to town. Remember, you have to make a mess to clean one, sometimes, so don’t be afraid to tear your office down before re-building it. Just don’t walk away after step 1 and never come back for step 2.

Ask an Expert: Going Green Can Help Your Bottom Line

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ask-an-expert-going-green-can-help-your-bottom-line

Steve Strauss over at USA Today has put up a great list of ways to go green around the office that I thought I’d share. His tips and tricks include such staples as switching to better light bulbs, using timers and motion sensors to avoid leaving lights on all the time, and checking with your power company to see if you can get on a “green grid” of electricity provided by wind, solar, and so on.

Of course, with our focus on office supplies, I found this tip the most relevant:

Buy recycled office supplies. Paper, pads, sticky notes, file folders and even ink and toner cartridges can be purchased in recyclable versions, and often at the same price as similar “regular” items. Indeed, many recycled paper products are now roughly the same price as conventional paper due to increased demand and better production operations.

Check out the article for the whole list, and see how going green can not only save the environment, but save you a big chunk off your bottom line, as well!

Design: The Vanishing Standing Desk

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Lifehacker shares a really cool find from their photo pool: a standing desk that vanishes behind the closing doors of an armoire.

I’ve never personally been all that enamored with the idea of a standing-only desk, as most of my work sees me sitting at least a portion of the time. I much prefer something like this pneumatic desk that’s like a crazy office transformer, turning from sitting to standing with the touch of a button.

Still, if standing desks are your thing, this is definitely a classy solution. Some glass bricks space out the shelves to make sure it holds all of the computer components properly, and the addition of some IKEA cabinet lighting means there’s plenty of light to see what you’re doing. And when you’re done, it buttons up to look like any other piece of furniture.

Again, I’ve never been concerned with people seeing my messy desk (sign of creative mind, or so I tell myself), but if you’re one of those people who hate clutter, this is definitely an elegant solution.

Article: The Evolution of the Office Space

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Wired.com posted a pretty amazing roundup of office layouts throughout the ages, and it really shows an amazing progression in how we’ve come to view our communal workspaces.

While the fundamentals of desk, chair, etc. are all there, it’s pretty cool to see how workflow, communication and technological integration have shaped the way we lay out our floor designs.

Most of my office career has been spent in one variation or another of #4, the “Cube Farm”, which, according to Wired:

[is] the cubicle concept taken to the extreme. As the ranks of middle managers swelled, a new class of employee was created: too important for a mere desk but too junior for a window seat. Facilities managers accommodated them in the cheapest way possible, with modular walls. The sea of cubicles was born.

From a row of school-like desks to the current fractal hubs of modern-day networking layouts, this article has a tidbit for all of them. Definitely worth a look.

Article: Professional Organizers help save time and money

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Courant.com has an article up where individuals share testimonials they’ve learned from professional organizers. As that fits in with what we like to do around here, I thought I’d share it. The highlight that grabbed my attention?

• Organizing office supplies: Has prevented unnecessary purchases for my home and business.

• Organizing my garage business supplies: Has also allowed my employees to find supplies and not accidentally double order, wasting cash flow.

• Time is money: When I can find files, etc., I am more productive all day.

As we’ve shown before, just knowing where your stuff is can help save you needless expense and make your day a little easier all around. The right filing cabinet, a handful of binding solutions for all your loose papers, and so on can really spruce up an office, home or otherwise, and keep it running like clockwork. That article said it best: time is money, and the less time you waste finding the stuff you need to run your office and the more time you spend running it, the better off you’ll be.