Learn More About SuiteWorks in this Video

Learn more about SuiteWorks in this video featuring a SuiteWorks business client, Jeff Krause

Organization Increases Productivity!

When you start work in the morning does your desk give you a clean fresh start, free from clutter, a workspace where you can be highly creative and productive, or does it bog you down and act as friction to getting things done?

If you're like most of us, your desk is probably not optimized for productivity and performance.

Let's start with the benefits.

1. When you have your desk set up well you minimize distractions and resistance to actually doing your work. You want your space to give you energy, not drain it.
2. You will work better when you desk is set up for workflow. Your desk surface is a place to do work, not store it. You'll have the space to spread out current work without overlap with clutter.
3. When the right tools are organized and at your fingertips your productivity increases.

One way to re-think your desk, is to use the PLACE system.

P - purge unnecessary items from the desk surface (this means material you are not working on, archives, junk mail..)
L - like items with like - group all your office supplies together, reference books etc.
A - access - frequently used items and tools need to be at your fingertips, others stored
C - contain loose items using a desk organizer or storage system
E - evaluate how well your system is working, make changes and get it right

After you have your supplies and tools organized - think about workflow. Since we operate processes from left to right, you might want to implement this approach to your desk. Productivity experts recommend keeping your inbox, phone, and diary or agenda (if you use one), on your left side, with work being processed in the middle and work that is complete or needs to be stored on the right. When you stop for the day, always make sure the middle and right side are clear.

It's easier organizing the permanent stuff: equipment, supplies, decoration, and reference.

Transient stuff, input to be processed, action reminders, and project support materials is the challenge, because to improve your productivity you may have to change the way you work.

Input to be processed - goes in your in-box (an old fashioned tray or basket). This unsorted, un-prioritized material, mail, requests, lists, folders - things others leave on your desk..

Action reminders - notes about to-do's go in your task management software or, if you are paper-based, your planner.

Support material - goes in files or, if it is too big to fit in a file, on a project shelf or project area away from your desktop in a binder.

Go through all the papers, books, folders on your desk and file everything away according to these groups.

Now you should have just an inbox and agenda/notebook on your left hand side.

Don’t manage your work from stacks of folders, manage your work from lists. Put what you need to accomplish on your action list and put the supporting materials in the pending files or a project shelf. When you are actually working on something, only then is it time to bring in the files and support materials. Be carefully about working on multiple tasks that require lots of support materials. If you can break down the task and only keep the materials for the task at hand on your desk surface you'll be much more focused and energized.

If you keep the idea below as a guiding principle, you just may find your desk surface not only more appealing, but you may get more work done and feel good about starting fresh tomorrow.

The desktop is for the work you are doing, not for storing the work that you have to do.

Tips for Selecting a Coworking Space

Are you interested in learning more about coworking spaces for your small business?

 

SuiteWorks Business Centre - Café Meeting Area

Coworking spaces vary dramatically in the service level and quality of work environment they provide to clients. At the low end, they may simply provide a chair at a communal table where an individual can access the internet, or they may provide a full range of business services including; conference rooms, reception, virtual office location, and self-contained offices.

 

When looking for coworking space ask yourself the following questions.

 

1.) How does the workspace handle sound and distractions?

2.) Is the desk configuration flexible?

3.) What other business services does the space provide?

4.) Are the services affordable and customizable for my business?

5.) Is the office space scalable so that I can use more space or services as my business grows?

6.) What networking opportunities does the space provide?

7.) Does the space provide a range of environments, from individual quiet areas, to space for collaborative meetings and events?

8.) Is the space attractive and does it give my business a professional appearance?

Karsten Strauss, writing about coworking spaces recently in Forbes said,

"Given the intense interest in start-ups these day, more and more young entrepreneurs are looking to coworking facilities to grab relatively inexpensive office space. In addition to WiFi, fax, conference rooms, kitchen and snack-prep areas; these ‘rental’ business studios also offer new companies the opportunity to rub elbows with others in their world. The coworking space industry has seen growth in recent years and that swell is only going to continue. "

He went on to add that the social aspect of coworking was a draw for business people tired of the isolation of working at home, “They find it inspiring, they find it more cost effective and they find that they’re able to be very productive in that environment because of technology.”

Read more.. Why Coworking Spaces Are Here to Stay | Forbes

 

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including coworking space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

Take a Tour of SuiteWorks Online!

We're pleased to now offer an online virtural tour of SuiteWorks Business Centre. The tour allows you to explore and view different rooms at SuiteWorks including an office, boardroom, reception, and meeting area.

The virtural tour is shown below, but you can also see it on Google Maps.

The images really show how bright and contemporary the office space is. We have high ceilings, large windows, sky-lights, and open space.

Once you've seen the virtual tour, you'll want to book a meeting with us to see for yourself, and to speak with us about our flexible office and meeting space solutions.





View Larger Map

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including co-working space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

How to Run a Productive Office - Infographic

This is an interesting infographic about improving productivity in the office. Whether your an office of 1 or many, I think there are some tips here that you'll find helpful.

Did you know?

• People work an average of 45 hours a week and 17 are considered unproductive.
• 55% of employees relate their productivity directly to their software
• People spend 5.6 hours per week in meetings.
• Only 34% are using proven scheduling tools and techniques
• Workers receive and average of 42 emails per day

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including co-working space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

Where to Hold an Off-Site Meeting in Barrie

SuiteWorks Boardroom

It could be that you just don't have a pleasant clear space to get everyone together, or you may be thinking of the advantages of holding your meeting away from the distractions of the office. Whatever the reason, you'll want to find the best location, a location that has the environment and services to make your meeting a success.

In Barrie, professional meeting space is limited. For small meetings you may be most familiar with coffee locations, Williams, Starbucks, Café Cappuccino and for larger gatherings your options include conference rooms at local Hotels and Inns or the Barrie Public Library.

SuiteWorks Meeting Room

We'd like you to consider another venue when it comes to setting up your next off-site gathering. At SuiteWorks we can accommodate groups from 1 to 50 in professional boardrooms. You can also set up multiple rooms, if for example you need break out sessions or space for training groups. Perhaps you're looking for professional space off-site to meet one on one with employees. We can handle small meetings or large.

The advantage to using SuiteWorks is that our meeting space and services are flexible to your needs. Boardrooms can be booked by the hour, 1/2 day or full day. We can even can set up your space for evenings and weekends.

Here are our meeting room capacities:

Private Boardroom - 1 to 6 people
Courtesy Office - 2 people
Simcoe Boardroom - 25 with a Theatre Set-up, 16 with a Boardroom Set-up
Muskoka Boardroom - 16 with a Theatre Set-up, 10 with a Boardroom Set-up
Town Hall Boardroom - 70 with a Theatre Set-up, 35 with a Boardroom Set-up



Flexible Space For Your Event

Our boardrooms come fully equipped with comfortable office furniture and the latest audio visual tools. Staffing can be arranged to handle every detail and we also provide full catering. Of course, we give you the free coffee, office space, and equipment for a great meeting. However, it's the experience that we provide that sets us apart.

 It starts with our technology. We have you wired, whether you need a boardroom, classroom, or theatre style room. Our members get full access to Barrie's best collection of presentation and audio/ video equipment, at no additional charge:

• Internet connectivity for laptops
• DVD and VCR players and monitors
• Multimedia projectors
• Full size projection screens
• Multimedia electronic whiteboards
• Flip charts, markers and all the other stuff
• Our equipment also comes with tech support, so you're free to run your meeting.

 

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including co-working space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

To be more productive make sure you take a break!

SuiteWorks Café Styled Lounge - Bright and Comfortable

Running a small business can often mean long hours and a demanding work day. Productivity experts are finding that one way to increase productivity and creativity is to make sure that you take regular breaks. Skipping breaks can lead to stress and exhaustion.

According to John Trougakos, University of Toronto, Rotman School of Management, mental concentration is similar to a muscle. "It becomes fatigued after sustained use and needs a rest period before it can recover", he explains. "Breaks can induce guild because they're this little oasis of personal time that we get."

Most employees need to detach from their work and recharge their internal resources. Options include walking, reading a book, chatting with a friend, or the all important lunch break.

"It's short-sighted not to take this time, or for managers to discourage employees from taking it", Professor Trougakos says.

When you're the owner of a small business or the only employee, it's easy to dismiss breaks and forget about yourself, skip lunch, or work long hours.

If you want to improve your productivity and increase your energy, make sure you schedule time for light physical activity or downtime.

At SuiteWorks our Business Centre includes an attractive lounge with café tables, beverages, and a flat panel TV. It's perfect for that well deserved coffee break and a great place to network with other businesses.

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including co-working space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

Want to Hold a Successful Meeting? Cultivate Meeting Management Skills

Tuesday at 3 PM represents the best overall time to hold a local meeting according to Inc. Magazine. Everyone has had time to recover from the weekend, the important backlog of work has been tackled on Monday, and the afternoon hour 3pm, encourages people to keep it short so they'll be able to go home on time.

The truth is that meetings can wreck havoc on productivity if not properly managed. The role of the meeting host is to keep everyone on the agenda and know when to end conversations and move to the next item. Even in brainstorming type sessions, time limits need to be observed. People may have allocated only a set time to attend because of other commitments and the host must make sure everyone is aware of the schedule.

Time management during a meeting is especially important when you book a conference room from your Business Centre. You want to ensure that you cover the agenda during the booked hours, and that your meeting is highly productive.

Here are some tips to make your meetings more successful and ensure your objectives are reached.

1. How many people should attend? Think about the  messages and decisions needed and who needs to contribute. Perhaps the whole group only needs to attend the announcements and discussion on the first few items? It's okay to segment the audience and have group size change during the meeting. Bloomberg suggests these categories for meeting size;
   Information Sharing: Unlimited attendees.
   Brainstorming: 20-35.
   Discussion: Fewer than 20.
   Agreement/Alignment: 6-14.
   Decision: 3-6.
   Action Planning: 25-40.
2. Optimum Meeting Length:  People seem to focus best in 45 minute increments. If your meeting needs to be longer than 45 minutes, break it up into segments with a 5 minute break in-between.
3. Time of Day: Generally people have more energy in the mornings and if you schedule your meeting at the beginning of the day you can take advantage of this. If clients are involved you may want to hold the meeting an hour before lunch so that you can finish the meeting and invite the client out. If your meeting is going to be long - the best stretch of time is the afternoon because people can get their routine or important tasks done in the morning and are more comfortable with giving up a block of time later in the day.
4. Meeting Location - If you don't have the meeting space you need, consider booking the meeting at a Business Centre. This can also be an advantage because it takes employees away from distractions at their desks and brings everyone together in a neutral environment.
5. Management - Meetings do not run themselves. Take on the role of the meeting manager or assign it to someone on your team. Make sure that decisions are properly recorded and that the agenda is covered. If it looks like more time is needed on an item, consider whether it is more important that other items on the agenda. Maybe something can be dropped to ensure you get the input needed or the decision made and understood by everyone. At the end of the meeting make sure the attendees are thanked for their contribution. Take a moment to sum up any decisions or action items. This will give you the opportunity to clarify anything that might have been lost in the buzz of conversation.

If you cultivate meeting management as a business skill, you'll find that attendees appreciate your leadership, are more positive about attending, and you don't lose out on productivity.

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including co-working space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

Let's Get SMART About Goal Setting

Goal setting. We know that it helps to have clearly defined goals but many of us don't take the time to write our goals out or think deeply about achieving them. It's a bit like setting off on a road trip without knowing exactly what town you want to end up in and when you want to arrive. We're heading off in the general vicinity of 'having a successful business year', but we don't really know how to define the end result.

One way of defining goals is to make sure they follow the SMART rule.

S - specific
M - measurable
A - attainable
R - relevant
T - time dependent

S – Specific. What is it that I want to achieve and why is it important? What are the benefits and who will be involved? How will the goal be achieved - do I need to set benchmarks along the way, overcome obstacles, take more training, connect with different people..?

M – Measurable.  Can my goal be quantified in any way? Is there a target number associated with the goal or with any steps along the way. If you can set a measurable goal you'll be able to gauge your progress.

A – Attainable. Goals need to be realistic and attainable. Sometimes it helps to bounce the goal idea off a close associate or friend. Getting some outside perspective can help you determine if the goal is realistic or needs to be modified. Remember you want to stretch yourself, but in the end you want to achieve your goal.

R – Relevant. To find out if your goal is relevant try asking yourself if this is the right thing for me to be doing at this time. Take a good look at the costs and benefits. The cost may not be monetary, but could be related to your time and effort. Will working hard for this goal take too much time away from another task that is important in my life?

T – Time limited. Can you commit to a timeline for your goal? Goals that are time specific can push us towards success because we can see more clearing when things need to be done to move forward. You can also track your progress against time and put more effort in if you are getting behind.

Setting SMART goals is a methodology used in many types of corporate performance appraisal systems. If you are working on your own or in a small business you can still benefit from this approach by taking the time to identify important goals and write them down. Validate the goals with SMART and you'll be on your way to accomplishing tasks and goals that support your business objectives.

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including coworking space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

Why you might need a virtual office for your small business.

Your work demands that you operate outside the standard punch-clock, 9-5 lifestyle so you need an office that does the same. You need all the perks and image of a fulltime office, without the commitment or the costs.

Our virtual offices are the perfect complement to a mobile worker’s home office. Just because you don’t need a traditional office, doesn’t mean you can’t still portray a professional image.

You’re in Barrie on Monday, then Mississauga on Tuesday, and Windsor the rest of the week, but your office is anchored with us.

Our reception services ensure that all your calls are answered professionally, and forwarded to you; wherever you are. Our phone services keep you in touch, wherever there’s an internet connection.

Technological advances have made the internet wireless, and phones smarter. However, the ability to make service portable is truly revolutionary.

Services

Your schedule may be all over the map, but you need your office to stay in one location.
Our flexible virtual offices come with included options such as:

• Phone Line with unlimited long distance to North America and 5 way audio conferencing
• Virtual Fax
• Reception services
• Mail box
• Listing on client directory
• Networking events
• Lunch and Learn Events

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including coworking space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

Is it time to re-think how you organize your desk? Start with PLACE

When you start work in the morning does your desk give you a clean fresh start, free from clutter, a workspace where you can be highly creative and productive, or does it bog you down and act as friction to getting things done?

If you're like most of us, your desk is probably not optimized for productivity and performance.

Let's start with the benefits.

1. When you have your desk set up well you minimize distractions and resistance to actually doing your work. You want your space to give you energy, not drain it.
2. You will work better when you desk is set up for workflow. Your desk surface is a place to do work, not store it. You'll have the space to spread out current work without overlap with clutter.
3. When the right tools are organized and at your fingertips your productivity increases.

One way to re-think your desk, is to use the PLACE system.

P - purge unnecessary items from the desk surface (this means material you are not working on, archives, junk mail..)
L - like items with like - group all your office supplies together, reference books etc.
A - access - frequently used items and tools need to be at your fingertips, others stored
C - contain loose items using a desk organizer or storage system
E - evaluate how well your system is working, make changes and get it right

After you have your supplies and tools organized - think about workflow. Since we operate processes from left to right, you might want to implement this approach to your desk. Productivity experts recommend keeping your inbox, phone, and diary or agenda (if you use one), on your left side, with work being processed in the middle and work that is complete or needs to be stored on the right. When you stop for the day, always make sure the middle and right side are clear.

It's easier organizing the permanent stuff: equipment, supplies, decoration, and reference.

Transient stuff, input to be processed, action reminders, and project support materials is the challenge, because to improve your productivity you may have to change the way you work.

Input to be processed - goes in your in-box (an old fashioned tray or basket). This unsorted, un-prioritized material, mail, requests, lists, folders - things others leave on your desk..

Action reminders - notes about to-do's go in your task management software or, if you are paper-based, your planner.

Support material - goes in files or, if it is too big to fit in a file, on a project shelf or project area away from your desktop in a binder.

Go through all the papers, books, folders on your desk and file everything away according to these groups.

Now you should have just an inbox and agenda/notebook on your left hand side.

Don’t manage your work from stacks of folders, manage your work from lists. Put what you need to accomplish on your action list and put the supporting materials in the pending files or a project shelf. When you are actually working on something, only then is it time to bring in the files and support materials. Be carefully about working on multiple tasks that require lots of support materials. If you can break down the task and only keep the materials for the task at hand on your desk surface you'll be much more focused and energized.

If you keep the idea below as a guiding principle, you just may find your desk surface not only more appealing, but you may get more work done and feel good about starting fresh tomorrow.

The desktop is for the work you are doing, not for storing the work that you have to do.

Boost Your Productivity With 20-Minute Intervals

You've got a lot to do, and feel the time pressure for the work ahead. You've cleared your desk, have your notes at hand, and now it's time to get the job done. Are you able to focus for several hours or do you find you need a break before the first hour has passed?

J.D. Meier, a project manager with distributed teams and productivity blogger, thinks workers would be better off to aim for 20-minute focus periods. He offers the following advice.

"The key is to know that sustained thinking takes energy, and it burns out. To address this, take breaks to recharge and renew. Five-minute breaks are a great way to stay focused."

Meier has other tips to increase productivity at your desk.

1. Prioritize: Each week determine the three most important wins for the week, your daily activities will mostly support those wins.
2. Visualize: See the end in mind - have a mental picture of what you want to accomplish
3. Manage Distractions: To rid your mind of distracting and conflicting ideas dump them into an email addressed to yourself and send it once a day.
4. Organization: Shelve projects you are not currently working according to your weeks priorities. Don't juggle 8-9 projects, focus on three. Meier creates project folders on his desktop and files projects not being worked on in a folder called Shelved.
5. Think how time spent aligns with priorities and benefits. "You shouldn't spend an hour on a $1 problem."

Do you have a desk-time productivity tip to share? We'd would be interested in your feedback and ideas.

Source: The Globe & Mail, July 22, 2013, How to Focus in 20-Minute Bursts | Harvey Schachter

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution including coworking space and virtual offices - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.

What Separates You From Your Competition?

Knowing your customer is one of the most important things you can do to better your relationship with them. The more you know about your customer the easier the conversations are as well as the more interested you become to assist your customer.  The value you provide with getting to know them is invaluable.  Your customer will see that they are not just a number etc and see that your business treats customers as family.

Keeping open communication with your staff, that will transfer to the customer and you will be efficient with solving and working with your customer’s questions and problems. Be ahead of your customer.  Your customer will feel that they have made a great impression along with you doing the same and they will feel like they are getting effecting and timely responses etc.

Every customer is different and each also responds and communicates differently.  Do not pigeon hole yourself into one form of communication? Get to know your customer and respond in the form they are best responsive e.g. Email, phone, walking to their desk, chatting with them on the run. Etc.  This will allow your customer to feel comfortable and you will learn so much more about them.

The customer is always right until you no longer want them as a customer.  Each customer has ways of expressing themselves whether subtle or intense. It is how you respond to them that separates you from your competition.  Be sure to listen effectively, and reassure your customer that you hear them and their concern and that everything will be taken care of. There is always a way, you can always find answers, sometimes you may need to dig deeper than before, but once you do, you will have learned from this and it will help you in being a better communicator.

Customer service and professionalism is what separates you from your competition.  Maybe its your receptionist who puts on smile on everyone’s face that comes into your facility or cleaning staff that has a remarkable way of getting to your know customers.  In any case, these qualities make a difference to whoever walks through your doors.

SuiteWorks is a world class business centre in serving all of central Ontario. Call us today to set up a complimentary Tour and learn how your business can benefit from a flexible office solution - Toll Free 1.866.967.5711 or visit our website to find out more about SuiteWorks solutions for your business.