Coffee shops are becoming increasingly popular work locations, with many now catering to those who would rather work out of the office.
As well as offering a more relaxed working environment, coffee shops are also ideal for freelancers and those who find a home office to be unproductive.
Most cafés now offer free wifi and plug sockets to create a productive working environment; if you’re lucky you might even find yourself receiving a free refill!
So what does all this mean for the traditional office environment? Do businesses need to start catering towards a generation that have fully embraced café culture?
A flexible working environment
Times are definitely changing for the traditional office setup; table tennis, video games and ‘chill out areas’ are increasingly appearing in many workplaces.
Does this mean that solitary desks and computers are on their way out? There definitely seems to be a shift towards encouraging more collaboration and conversation amongst employees.
Coffee shops certainly encourage a more relaxed approach to working, and moving away from the monotony of the office could be a welcome relief to some.
Relaxed doesn’t have to equate to unproductive though, with many people finding they get more done when attempting a difficult task in a new working environment.
Offices might have a lot to gain by moving towards more of a “coffee shop” working environment; this could encourage interaction amongst employees and even reduce stress.
Productive coffee breaks
The office coffee break may often present the opportunity for people to delay their most dreaded work tasks, but this doesn’t have to be the case.
Embracing the coffee culture in the office is an excellent way of encouraging work to continue during coffee breaks, allowing employees to enjoy their drink of choice in a communal area where they can discuss work with colleagues.
There’s also a lot to be said for the productive buzz that a mid-afternoon coffee can provide, with plenty of research demonstrating its memory and attention boosting benefits.
Taking a break from the working day and enjoying a cup of coffee in the office with other employees could be just what some businesses need to keep people motivated and satisfied with their work.
Kettles are being left behind
Surveys have shown that more offices than ever before are embracing an office coffee machine, as employees are no longer content with a simple kettle.
High-end, gourmet coffee machines for offices are becoming more popular, with millennials in particular being more willing than ever to spend their disposable income on high-quality coffee – or even expect their employer to provide it.
We are now essentially spoiled for choice when it comes to the selection of drinks available in cafés, so it’s unsurprising that workers would also want these options when it comes to their office coffee.
Given that research has shown that over 40% of employees would be willing to leave the office to buy a coffee from the high street, moving the coffee shop into your office could save workers both money and time.
Embracing the office-café culture
The traditional office setup is definitely facing a shake up in its move towards embodying more of a coffee shop environment, but this doesn’t have to mean that businesses will suffer.
The relaxed and collaborative environment that café culture encourages could result in more productive, motivated and sociable workers.
Investing in a high-quality office coffee machine is the starting point; providing workers with gourmet coffee is a perk that many are looking for within their working environment.
Moving away from the time pressures and frequent stresses of the traditional office and embracing café culture could be just what the modern workplace needs to encourage a healthy and positive working environment.