4 tips from startups to increase productivity in your office

Are you curious about how other companies operate and stay productive? Well we sure were and visited our network of startups to find out what tools they use to stay on top of things - here’s what we discovered.

1. Setting up your office space is important to manage your creative juices

We noticed that each office we visited had it’s own unique character and set up. A startup in the design industry for example had a more open space full of trinkets and images to enhance creative thought. The startup sales office we visited on the other hand had everyone sitting in closer quarters to encourage conversation and the  focal point was a whiteboard filled with daily goals. So depending on what industry you are in and what you want your team to accomplish, you need to think about how you want to set up the room.

2. Offline tools are sometimes better than online

We were pleasantly surprised to see that people don’t just need online applications and systems to communicate their point effectively. Startup offices used visual reminders (especially in sales offices where reminders like ABC - ‘always be closing’ was displayed), performance dashboards, post-its for scrum boards, idea boxes, large calendars, and a special device called a ‘time timer’ to time creative sessions were among the top items. So when you are choosing to add items to your space, think about what can provoke thought and conversation.

3. Time to hop on the Trello and Slack bandwagon

If you haven’t heard of Trello or Slack, check them out, NOW! 

Trello is a free platform that let’s you organize projects, tasks or whatever your heart desires on a board to share your bigger vision with your team. And Slack is like an intranet, it allows you to bring all your communications together so you can stay on top of what your co workers are doing. All the startups we visited and asked about productivity tools said ‘oh ya and Trello and Slack of course!’

4. If you are not using Excel, you should be

Excel is one tool that never seems to get old, despite its release date in the year 1985! Every company we met uses Excel to make to-do lists, templates, or track operational and financial expenses. Therefore it is in your best interest to become an excel master as it will help you succeed in any office environment.

So does your office share any of these productivity hacks? Tell us about them over Facebook and Twitter.