Workplaces

A man who has no office to go to...... is a trial of which you can have no conception. George Bernard Shaw.

A workplace is where a person performs their job or a particular role within it. An individual may have several workplaces, as with a science lecturer who uses a classroom and a laboratory, or a consultant who uses an office, a client’s site, and home.

Characteristics: A workplace has three characteristics - physical environment, facilities and emotional environment.
The physical environment can vary enormously. It may be dirty (garbage collection), messy (farmyard), dusty (sawmill), noisy (airport taxiway), quiet (library), out-of-doors (gamekeeper), dangerous (road maintenance), poisonous (crop sprayer).
The facilities provided at each type of workplace will also be different. Those provided at the unloading bay of a supermarket are quite different to those at the checkout position. The facilities which a business consultant requires in the office may include computing, high quality printing, filing, telephone, fax, desk, chair and a storage area, while at a customer site all that may be needed could be a desk, chair and a telephone socket.
The emotional environment has also to be considered - the competitiveness of a telephone sales group, the boredom of a production line, the concentration of an air-traffic controller or the anticipation of police officers about to arrest an armed gang.

A 'home from home': The physical place where people spend their working lives directly affects their performance and, as a result, the performance of the organization. Individuals should be consulted about the design of their workplace and encouraged to accept personal responsibility for it - making sure that defects are put right and that it is a tidy and safe environment.

A workplace can be evaluated in terms of:
Suitability - convenience, ergonomics, ease of use, training required and the efficiency with which work can be performed.
Security - physical security of people and things, security of information, confidentiality, safety of personnel and freedom from intimidation and bullying.
Adaptability - ability to move location, customize for individual choice, change, upgrade or add new features.  >>>