If you work in a space with a lot of employees in one room, chances are you frequently get distracted by the noise and commotion.  And you may be bothered by the lack of privacy.  While privacy panels and room dividers won't put a cone of silence around you, they do help to put a barrier between you and those unwanted distractions.

When I say "stack chairs," do you think of the plain, plastic chairs with the hard, uncomfortable seats?  If you said yes, you are not alone.  The good news is that stack seating has come a long way.  Now there are upholstered chairs, big and tall chairs, contemporary chairs, chairs with lumbar supports and chairs with contoured seats.  You can get traditional styling, sleek contemporary styling or even what I call "industrial" styling.  So you can have not only comfortable, affordable seating but also make a statement with style!

About a week ago, I wrote about breakroom tables and chairs and promised a post on cabinets and appliances.  In order to make your company breakroom employee-friendly, you need to finish your design with good storage and amenities.

Both HON and Alera have some attractive modular hospitality cabinets.  The HON system offers more versatility and configurations than the Alera, but I like the styling of the Alera better than the HON.  Here are the components of the Alera group:

So you have a beautiful lobby and office area - good quality, attractive reception area furniture, coat racks for clients to use, bright airy spaces, plants to help create a relaxing atmosphere.  Maybe you have a coffee station set up in the lobby also for your visitors to use.  What about the space your employees use?  Do you have a spacious, welcoming, well-equipped breakroom where they can relax on their breaks and lunches?

I have been trying to break some of my bad habits - one of which is slouching.  I have back problems and I find myself slouching at my desk to relieve the pain.  I always try to have everything ergonomically correct at my desk - make sure that my legs are at a 90 degree angle, my arms are desk height, the monitor is in the correct position, etc.  But still I would find myself slouching a lot.

We have had the Zenergy chair in our showroom for quite some time now (we call it the mushroom chair) and when I first saw it, I wasn't interested at all, but then a medical professional suggested that a ball chair would help my back.  Since we are a working showroom, I replaced my desk chair with this one to try it out.

If you're looking for contemporary furniture for your office space, consider the Voi line from Hon.  Voi is a sleek, simple product that is incredibly versatile and can be configured in an amazing number of ways; it offers a unified, integrated design for the entire workspace.  Voi features layered work surfaces, practical storage components and footprints that can be customized to create the perfect mix of functionality and style.  Its trendy look is created through the magic of mixed materials.  

If I say "Office Furniture" to you, probably the first things that come to your mind are desk, chair and credenza.  You wouldn't be alone in that thought, but there is more to office furniture than just the "hardware."  Room accessories play a major role in the decor of your office; they help create the atmosphere and the comfort level of both your employees and guests (really important if you are in a medical office).

Every business needs a back up system for its documents and data.  In recent years, the move has been to back up everything to the cloud, but I think it's safe to say that many companies still have important documents on site.  The question then becomes:  Are those documents protected?  What happens to them if the building burns down?

The solution is simple:  fire-resistant cabinets and safes.  Sentry Safe and FireKing are the two big names in this area.  They both offer a variety of products and price points.

Even if you don't officially have back problems, if you spend 8 or more hours a day sitting at a desk, you're going to have days when your back is bothering you or that chair just doesn't feel good - it goes with the territory.  Many of you will purchase a back support and/or a seat cushion to ease the discomfort.  You get the cushions, put them on your chair and fiddle with them to find the right placement.  Sometimes that's all you need to do, but sometimes they just don't feel right and they don't help.  So you return it and try a different one.

I was asked to write a blog on a furniture topic and I thought about it for a while, trying to decide what to write about.  I thought about all the questions I've taken from customers over the years and one thing popped right into my mind - chairmats.  Perhaps not the most riveting topic out there, but a necessary one I think.  I've worked in customer service for many years and I've lost track of the number of times I've explained how to choose a chairmat.  

If you find yourself constantly writing sticky notes to yourself and putting them on your monitor or your desktop, you may want to consider getting a planning board.

If you find yourself running out of room for notes on your desk calendar, you might want to consider getting a planning board.

If you are involved in projects with coworkers and need a way to keep everyone informed and on track, you might want to consider getting a planning board.

Something that I frequently see missing when I go to an office is a place to hang my coat. If I'm only going to be there for a short time I'll keep my coat on, but if it's going to be an extended visit I'd prefer to hang it up somewhere and it always surprises me when I don't see some sort of coat rack in the reception area.

Is this what you see when a coworker comes to your desk?

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