What does everyone do every day, while it can be harmful to their health? Is to sit down. People who sit for long periods of time are said to be at increased risk of heart disease and diabetes. It has also been pointed out that it is associated with weight gain and obesity. This is a big problem for office workers who spend most of their time sitting down. By introducing a standing desk, you may be able to secure healthy employees.
If you want your employer to introduce you to a standing desk, here's how to convince your employer to invest in a standing desk.
Advance preparation is important
If you really want to convince your boss to buy a standing desk, you need to have a meeting. Your idea doesn't have to be a PowerPoint presentation with 40 slides, but it should be carefully considered and communicated in an easy-to-understand manner. The idea is to start by focusing on how the purchase will help your business.
Frankly, senior executives will not be interested, so don't start by talking about desk features. They have to have the tools you need to get the job done and keep your company in the black. Persuading will be easier if the purchase of a standing desk can be linked to achieving their goals.
Economic benefits, productivity impacts, and employee motivation are three key factors in winning persuasion. These three items are interrelated and work together to strengthen your business. All that's left is to show the people at the top that this is possible.
Economic impact
When considering approval of a purchase, managers tend to focus on immediate spending. However, diversifying decision deadlines and spending can overlook long-term benefits and positive impacts on business performance. Your job is to convince the "cost" of a standing desk to be an "investment" in the company's long-term goals.
According to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, 77% of employees have at least one chronic health problem, including cancer, asthma, high cholesterol, depression, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart attack, and obesity... Absence of these employees can reduce productivity by as much as $84 billion annually.
Unscheduled absenteeism is a persistent problem for US companies, with $ 3,600 per hourly worker per year and $ 2,650 per full-time worker per year, to say the least. Sick leave, FMLA period, workers' accident compensation, disability, etc. are all included in unscheduled absenteeism.
Cost fluctuation factors related to absenteeism are as follows:
Wages are paid to workers who cannot work.
Secure alternative personnel at high cost (overtime pay for other workers and / or overtime pay for contract workers)
Management costs are incurred to manage absenteeism.
The indirect costs and implications of absenteeism include:
The quality of products and services deteriorates due to fatigue caused by overtime and shortage of personnel.
Reduced productivity
Excessive time spent by management (finding suitable alternative employees, managing discipline)
Safety Concerns (Hurrying to find an employee who is not properly trained to fill a gap in absenteeism or a replacement employee can increase safety issues.)
Employees who have to spend time on absent colleagues or do additional work are demoralized.
It is clear that absenteeism is a high cost for the enterprise. Many absenteeism is associated with long-term health problems. Studies show that efforts aimed at improving employee health can reduce absenteeism by up to one-third. Standing desks help reduce the risk of certain health problems by reducing the amount of time you sit. The introduction of a standing desk also has economic benefits such as an increase in employee absenteeism, an increase in group medical insurance premiums, and a decrease in workers' accident compensation insurance claims.
Impact on productivity improvement
After talking about the financial benefits of a standing desk, we need to talk about its productivity benefits. Many cases have shown that the use of a standing desk enhances creativity, productivity, and sharing of ideas. According to Business Insider, at FF Venture Capital, a standing desk was set up in the meeting room, and it was found that standing up made the staff more active in sharing ideas.
Standing desks are provided as part of Google and Facebook's efforts to improve employee health. Facebook claims that more than 250 employees use standing desks to keep their workplace energy levels high. "The 3 o'clock slump is gone and you can feel productive all day long," Facebook's Greg Hui, interviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
Standing desks are said to help raise employee attention, maintain energy levels, increase concentration to complete work, improve employee health, and reduce absenteeism. These benefits increase employee productivity.
Employee participation
Gallup has been promoting the impact of its employees on the company's success for decades. According to a Gallup survey, employees at work are generally more happy and productive. Their research also shows that the organizations in which they work are quick to recover from the recession and have high earnings per share.
Gallup has found a strong relationship between employee engagement and its performance across a wide range of companies, disciplines and regions. We also found that organizations with the top half of the employee cross score had a substantially four times higher chance of success than organizations with the bottom half.
Employees become more proactive when they think their employer cares about them. Providing a standing desk as needed by a company shows that it cares about the health of its employees and is interested in investing in benefits.
Greening
The office can also portray this as a sustainable and environmentally friendly initiative. With an increasing number of consumers interested in sustainable workplaces and preferring companies that care about the health of their employees, it is beneficial for business owners to take this investment seriously.
First, you can choose a sustainable desk made of bamboo, such as the "Adjustable Standing Desk Pro Series". In fact, bamboo has even better tensile strength than iron.
For this reason, you can expect a longer desk life in the office, and you do not have to worry about additional purchases in the future. In addition, since it is equipped with a silent motor, the desk can be put into standing mode without making noise, and the office environment is also taken into consideration.
It is important to choose such materials, as plastics and other types of materials made from unsustainable resources end up in the ocean and already flooded landfills. Business owners will soon realize the benefits of a standing desk, as employees are generally healthy and good for the environment.
Employee health
Sitting at your desk all day will definitely increase your lower back and neck pain. If the desk or chair you choose for your office isn't ergonomic, you may be doing something worse than good. Employees need to find healthier options at work. A standing desk helps reduce back and neck pain. According to the Take a Stand Project, 54% of employees who stand for more than 66 minutes each day find that they are reducing back pain.
Standing desks have also been found to improve employee mood. Employees who have been standing for more than 66 minutes can feel healthier, happier, refreshing and focused. This can have a direct impact on work productivity and efficiency. Employees who feel better are more motivated to complete their work in time.
The standing desk is also great for maintaining weight and fitness. If you sit all day, your buttocks and thighs will get fat. If you stand for even an hour every day, you can burn calories while you work.
Conclusion
To convince your employer about implementing a standing desk, it's important to first focus on the benefits of your company. Consider how it will affect your productivity and employee motivation to increase your persuasiveness. If you prove that you are worried about the company's growth, management will be happy to accept your proposal.
