Effectiveness of Workplace Environment on Productivity Effectiveness of Workplace Environment on Productivity  12 Effectiveness of Workplace Environment on Productivity Humadi Nussair Webster University Introduction Workplace environment of an employee is the most significant contributing factor in their productivity level and the quality of work done by them. The manner in which employees are engaged in a workplace affects their desire of learning the skills and their motivation level to perform (Antonsson&Hasle, 2015). Motivation level and skills afterward become the influencing factor for output rate, the rate of error, collaboration with others, innovation level, absenteeism, and service length of an employee. In this regard, this paper is an attempt to gather a detailed understanding of the level of importance of workplace environment in the corporate culture and its effectiveness on the productivity of the employees. In order to achieve this aim of the paper, the following paper will focus on identification of the opportunity areas in the existing scene of workplace environment that can be improvised in order to achieve increased productivity. This will be achieved with the help of studying various empirical researchers into this field. Further, the paper will also emphasize on providing some recommendations for improving the opportunity areas where efforts can be made in the direction of making the workplace environment an optimum place for maximizing the productivity while maintaining the employee satisfaction.Identification of Opportunity Areas in Workplace Environment to Increase Productivity In order to receive the optimized output from their most valuable asset, their people, all the businesses tend to go an extra mile in making the efforts for maintaining the employee satisfaction at the workplace. These efforts can either be tangible in the form of offering cars, money, or lavish gifts as rewards to the employees for maintaining the productivity and loyalty or can be intangible by applying more creative approach to the same formula that is in the form of providing an environment found to be the most comfortable one as an employees of any organization. It has been observed that the employees’ productivity and their morale is directly related to the working environment, so organizations need to provide a workplace conducive enough for the workforce welfare in the form of their comfort, safety, health, and happiness (Ruostela et al., 2015). The varying measures are suggested based on the type of the industry and nature of work being carried out by its workforce. Although the needs of office-based employees and manual workers will be different, for instance, an employee doing physical labor in a warehouse or the one working late at a reputed corporate firm, both of them will appreciate a place to take the break and have some rest. On this basis, four major opportunity areas have been identified as the key areas which can ...

1. Effectiveness of Workplace Environment on Productivity
Effectiveness of Workplace Environment on Productivity
12
Effectiveness of Workplace Environment on Productivity
Humadi Nussair
Webster University
Introduction
Workplace environment of an employee is the most
significant contributing factor in their productivity level and the
quality of work done by them. The manner in which employees
are engaged in a workplace affects their desire of learning the
skills and their motivation level to perform (Antonsson&Hasle,
2015). Motivation level and skills afterward become the
influencing factor for output rate, the rate of error,
collaboration with others, innovation level, absenteeism, and
service length of an employee. In this regard, this paper is an
attempt to gather a detailed understanding of the level of
importance of workplace environment in the corporate culture
and its effectiveness on the productivity of the employees. In
order to achieve this aim of the paper, the following paper will
focus on identification of the opportunity areas in the existing
scene of workplace environment that can be improvised in order
to achieve increased productivity. This will be achieved with
the help of studying various empirical researchers into this
field. Further, the paper will also emphasize on providing some
recommendations for improving the opportunity areas where
efforts can be made in the direction of making the workplace

2. environment an optimum place for maximizing the productivity
while maintaining the employee satisfaction.Identification of
Opportunity Areas in Workplace Environment to Increase
Productivity
In order to receive the optimized output from their most
valuable asset, their people, all the businesses tend to go an
extra mile in making the efforts for maintaining the employee
satisfaction at the workplace. These efforts can either be
tangible in the form of offering cars, money, or lavish gifts as
rewards to the employees for maintaining the productivity and
loyalty or can be intangible by applying more creative approach
to the same formula that is in the form of providing an
environment found to be the most comfortable one as an
employees of any organization. It has been observed that the
employees’ productivity and their morale is directly related to
the working environment, so organizations need to provide a
workplace conducive enough for the workforce welfare in the
form of their comfort, safety, health, and happiness (Ruostela et
al., 2015).
The varying measures are suggested based on the type of the
industry and nature of work being carried out by its workforce.
Although the needs of office-based employees and manual
workers will be different, for instance, an employee doing
physical labor in a warehouse or the one working late at a
reputed corporate firm, both of them will appreciate a place to
take the break and have some rest. On this basis, four major
opportunity areas have been identified as the key areas which
can be worked upon in all types of workplace environments in
order to enable the employees to work effectively and
efficiently while maintaining employee satisfaction at the same
time. These opportunity areas have been described below:
Air quality
It is suggested to not overlook the importance of quality of air
being breathed in by the employees as it can significantly affect
the general well-being of the employees. It has been studied that

3. poor air quality can substantially impact the level of
concentration of an individual and can also reduce the energy
levels (Antonsson&Hasle, 2015). Irregular checkups of air
conditioning systems may result in improper working which in
some cases is capable of dehydrating the workers.
Organizations' management often does not bear in mind the fact
that human brain is capable of working more effectively when
the optimum amount of oxygen goes to it.
Lighting and plants
The level of vitamin D in the bodies of the employees during
winters reaches its minimum resulting in weakening their
immune system and making them feel depressed. This
negatively affects their capability of working effectively and
efficiently. All the employees working from an office and
remain inside it for the whole day need to access the natural
light, hence this can be compensated by more number of
windows in the office buildings in order to increase the
employees’ exposure to sunlight(Leblebici, 2012). The right
amount of lighting will enable the employees to have more
positive, creative, and calmer attitude towards work. If the
office building is situated at a densely popular area surrounded
by other identical building, plants can be used as a solution in
order to enable the employees to connect with the natural
environment.
Music
Although music is not found to be appropriate for every kind of
workplace, its significance in maximizing the productivity at
most of the corporate houses through its ability to energize and
motivating the staff could not be overlooked. According to some
of the researchers, it has been found that owners of specifically
small and medium-sized organizations have claimed of being
positively affected by the music at their workplace by making
the employees be more productive and some believe this to be
helpful in increasing the sales for the business(Ajala, 2012).

4. Changing rooms
In order to make the line between home and work thinner by
enabling the employees to take up more physical activities as a
part of their daily routine for work such as coming to work on
cycle, head for a run during lunchtime, or participating in after
work sports activities, proper shower rooms and changing rooms
should be provided to the employees. Although providing these
facilities is not a big task for the companies, but the availability
of these facilities can actually transform the whole workplace
environment to create a health awareness amongst
employees(Epstein&Buhovac, 2014). It will also help the
employees in maintaining their work-life balance. Increasing
work hours as per the demands of the market have declined the
number of trips to gyms after work. Healthy and fit employees
take the least number of leaves or no leaves at all and are
expected to remain energetic and motivated throughout the
working hours. Recommended Improvements
If an employee is underperforming, it cannot be blamed totally
on the employee as it also has to do something with the working
environment around him/her. There are certain working places
which tend to put minimal efforts in the betterment of the
surroundings, instead, the pressure to provide the output is
enormous. The result is an unsatisfied, demoralized and
exhausted employee.However, there are certain
recommendations and ways to improve the working place which
in turn will provide employees who will go that extra mile for
the employer.
The 52:17 rule
According to a scientific study and research, if an employee
works for 52 minutes straight and then has a rest of about 17
minutes or engages in some playful activity, then his output is
increased by a significant percentage. The study was conducted
on employees all around the world in which there were three
groups, 1st group which followed the 52:17 rule, 2nd group

5. which followed 1-hour break and the 3rd group which followed
one half hour break and two 15 minutes(Khan et al., 2017). The
results were astonishing as the output by the group following
the 52:17 rule was significantly more than the other two groups.
This rule can be implemented in the workplaces for better
productivity and also make the employees feel happy.
Noise
A study has revealed that employees waste an average of 86
minutes every day due to the sound distractions around them.
More than 71% employees think that they can be more
productive if there were quiet rooms available for them or if
there were active noise-canceling headphones available when
needed(Ruostela et al., 2015). Addition of these small things
can do wonders in terms of outputs and also the employees will
have a better state of mind due to these small but important
facilities available for them at their workplaces.
Listening
If an employer listens to what the employees have been asking
for, it can somewhat have a good impact on the mindset of the
employee as there will be positive vibes all around the
workplace (Epstein&Buhovac, 2014). An employer who listens
to the employees is a good employer and employees will have
that desire to provide those output numbers as required.
Prioritize wellness and health of employees
A healthy employee is a better employee. If an employee has
good health, both mentally and physically, then the outputs
provided by the employee is also better. Workplaces must have
workout places and sessions, meditation sessions and yoga
sessions (Anitha, 2014). These small things can take output and
productivity to a whole new level and the level of satisfaction
of the employees is also there. This method is cost-effective as
it does not require the employer to burn a hole in his pocket for
the set-up in the office.

6. Imagine the hard work an employee is putting up and sitting all
day long on a single chair in the office, his eyes glued to the
screen. A yoga or meditation session at the end of the day can
not only take away the exhaustion but also can have a good
impact on the mental health also (Sageer et al., 2012). This
results in making an employee refreshed again with better
physical and mental health putting up good numbers for the
company.
Better opportunities for better employees
Opportunities are present for all the employees around the
office or the workplace. Promotion to a higher rank, hike in
salary, or better benefits is always desired by employees all
around the globe (Delmas, 2013). There should be a track down
of all the work and all the better working employees must be
provided with better perks and benefits for their hard work. It
will have a great impact on the underachievers as they would
also want to put up extra work in order to achieve the same
results so that he can be picked up for his hard work and
provided with better perks and benefits.
Celebrating milestones
There are milestones and goals achieved by the companies every
other time and celebrating them with the employees is a good
way to ensure that the working environment around the
workplace remains great. Celebrating with the employees on
milestone achievement can develop a little feeling and a
positive attitude into the minds of the employees about the
goals they want to achieve for the company (Ajala, 2012).
Celebrating also lets the employer connect with the employee
and a little chit-chat of all the things happening in and around
the workplace lets the employer connect better with the
employee.
Cultivate Good Managers
An employee has a direct interaction with his manager on daily

7. basis and the attitude and the behavior of the manager can have
a direct impact on the employee and his mood. The manager has
to adapt himself according to employees as it will be better to
understand the employee (Leblebici, 2012). If there is any
mismatch or any clash with the employees than the manager has
a tough task to complete as an unsatisfied employee will not be
as productive as he would have been if the behavior or attitude
of the manager was good or up to the employee’s
liking.Conclusion
On the basis of above discussion, it can be concluded that
employee is the most important supporting pillars for the
construction of a better company and the workplace must be
good enough to encourage the employees to give their best to
increase the productivity and output of the company. If a
workplace has negative vibes or is not good enough to work, has
disturbances all around, not hygienic or the management is
somewhat ignorant to the employees then it will have an impact
on the mindset of the employees in a bad way thus hindering the
output and productivity of the company. Certain ways are
adopted by the companies to provide the employees a better
place to work such as music sessions, yoga and workout
sessions, quiet rooms for working, better furniture, better break
time facilities, better perks and facilities, parties and
celebrations for achievements, good managers having positive
attitude towards the employees to improve the experience of the
employees so that they have positive mental and physical
attitude towards the company and help in achieving more,
producing more to the company. Betterment of the facilities for
the employees is as important to the employers as the building
pillars of the building. Without employees with a positive
attitude, there is no great workplace.
References
Leblebici, D. (2012). Impact of workplace quality on
employee’s productivity: case study of a bank in
Turkey. Journal of Business Economics and Finance, 1(1), 38-
49.

8. Ajala, E. M. (2012, June). The influence of workplace
environment on workers’ welfare, performance and
productivity. In The African Symposium (Vol. 12, No. 1, pp.
141-149).
Delmas, M. A., &Pekovic, S. (2013). Environmental standards
and labor productivity: Understanding the mechanisms that
sustain sustainability. Journal of OrganizationalBehavior, 34(2),
230-252.
Sageer, A., Rafat, S., &Agarwal, P. (2012). Identification of
variables affecting employee satisfaction and their impact on
the organization. IOSR Journal of business and
management, 5(1), 32-39.
Anitha, J. (2014). Determinants of employee engagement and
their impact on employee performance. International journal of
productivity and performance management.
Khan, H., McCue, M., McCue, M., Tate, C., Eck, A., Altucher,
J., &Altucher, J. (2017). Use the 52/17 Rule to Maximize
Productivity. 99U by Behance. Retrieved 6 October 2017, from
http://99u.com/workbook/38813/use-the-5217-rule-to-maximize-
productivity
Epstein, M. J., &Buhovac, A. R. (2014). Making sustainability
work: Best practices in managing and measuring corporate
social, environmental, and economic impacts. Berrett-Koehler
Publishers.
Antonsson, A. B., &Hasle, P. (2015). How can context affect
what strategies are effective in improving the working
environment in small companies?. In Understanding Small
Enterprises.
Ruostela, J., Lönnqvist, A., Palvalin, M., Vuolle, M., Patjas,
M., &Raij, A. L. (2015). ‘New Ways of Working’as a tool for
improving the performance of a knowledge-intensive
company. Knowledge management research & practice, 13(4),
382-390.
Activity Based Costing Peers Posting

9. 1.) Tamara Marquis posted Oct 21, 2017 1:24 PM
Subscribed Subscribe
If Activity Based Costing (ABC) was implemented production
of the digital scales additional cost that I would consider
manufacturing costs would include the team that tests the
tempered glass at the beginning of production, and the team
that tests scales for accurate calibration at the end of
production. These costs would be allocated based on the size of
scale and degree of accuracy. Larger scales will be using more
tempered glass therefore a larger portion of cost of the team
testing the tempered glass would be assigned to them. Smaller
scales will be used to measure smaller weight and will need a
higher grade of accuracy therefore a larger portion of the cost of
the team testing for accurate calibration be applied to them.
Activity-based costing gives a more realistic picture of my
divisions costs incurred to produce revenue because it breaks
down the cost associated with the manufacturing costs by the
varying products. This gives my division a more accurate idea
of how much each size of scale cost to produce. If I decide not
to activity-based costing I would have learned which products
are incurring more costs and at what stage they are incurring
these costs. This information would allow need to operate more
profitably because I would have a better understanding of how
much manufacturing overhead product is incurring.
2.) Tramaine Ashford posted Oct 18, 2017 5:06 PM
Subscribed Subscribe
When it pertains to manufacturing costs the additional costs of
running the division would be all rent/mortgage and utilities,
along with the cost of productivity, goods/services and parts
(including any shipping fee's), employee work labor and the
overall cost to run the division. I would find the total cost of
goods and services needed and order. Make sure work
productivity is where it is needed to be, along with tie in with
what is needed the supply and demand and weigh it out.
Therefore, when it's time to distribute I will know what is

10. needed, what have been done and what needs to be done, to get
it done. The cost of parts and employee's are a more realistic
approach to the revenue that would be generated in order to
produce revenue. I could weigh in the costs and benefits to see
what the outcome would be. The production that would be
actually being produced as well as the goods/services generated
will help me get a more feasible idea of the profitability that the
division will occur.
Running head: Cost Flows in an Organization 1
Cost Flows in an Organization 5
Cost Flows in an Organization
Name:
Institution:
Q1. Describe the company and identify the division you
manage.
ABBU Brands manufacturing company is a world-class
company which deals manufacturing of Automobiles. This
company was founded in the year 2010 with the vision
becoming top producer and distributor of office products
globally. The headquarters of this company is in Lake Zurich in
the United States of America. The area served by this
corporation in South America, North America and Europe. My
role as a Division manager is to offer managerial skills and
coordination in the Production unit. My responsibilities in this
division range from assessing the performance of the division,

11. recruiting employees qualified for this section, allocating
resources and running the companies programs.
Q2. Costs associated with developing and manufacturing your
product.
Making product costs estimates at the beginning enables the
developers to wisely manage the company’s resources and be
able to evaluate the viability of the product economically. The
manufacturing company uses The JD Edwards EnterpriseOne
Product Costing System. (Rasheed,2012). With accurate product
costing one can evaluate the manufacturing processes and be
able to determine how the methods affect the profitability of the
company. Manufacturing cost accounting which involves direct
labor, overhead and indirect labor costs. Secondly, we have
product design and accounting. The importance of this method
is to maintain accuracy and complete records of Inventory
value. The system enables one to store and retrieve the cost
information which helps in managing and plan. Besides, it helps
to track the expenditures, report any discrepancies and posts the
transactions to the general ledger. (Rasheed, 2012).
Q3. Identify the manufacturing costs involved in producing
your product and classify each cost as direct materials, direct
labor, or manufacturing overhead.
Manufacturing costs involved in the production of the office
products include the direct labor, direct materials and
manufacturing overhead. Direct materials refer to the cost of the
commodities that are used to form an integral part of any
finished product. The raw material variety used in production
includes; iron which is converted into steel, glass, aluminum,
petroleum products which are used to make rubber, plastics or
special fibers. The direct labor cost involved is assembling the
automobiles, fixing the windows, rubber, painting, and
electrification of the vehicle, interior design, workers’ salaries
and many others. Manufacturing overheads costs refer to
expenses that business incurs in manufacturing a product but do
not fall into the category of direct labor, direct material,

12. administrative or marketing and thus include mechanic repairing
an assembly line machinery, equipment maintenance,
depreciation, utilities, insurance, warehouse building cost,
supervisors who oversee manufacturing of different product in
the production process.
Q4. Discuss the most appropriate method for allocating the
manufacturing overhead. How would different allocation
methods affect the bottom line for your division?
Allocation of manufacturing overhead helps the realization of
the cost per unit of the product thus making the right decision
which enhances the management of the company. It also helps
in promoting efficient use of resources. The reference line
should be to ensure that the allocated overhead amount reflects
the actual overhead amount used in the automobile production.
There should be a correlation between manufacturing overhead
and the allocation basis.
The most appropriate method of allocating manufacturing
overhead is through departmental machine hours. Basing the
manufacturing overheads on the production of the company
departments is an improvement over using one rate for the
entire company. Some of the products being manufactured
require much more machine hours than in another unit while
some other goods may have used a different grouping of
machine hours. Another method of allocating overhead is
through direct labor. Since the company is an automobile
company, then direct manual work is minimal compared to the
machine hours thus it is not a valid approach in this company.
(Hyer & Wemmerlöv, 2002)
References.
Rasheed, K. (2012). Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 9.0 :
supply chain management cookbook. Birmingham, UK: Packt
Pub./Enterprise.
Blocher, E., Stout, D., Juras, P., & Cokins, G. (2013). Cost
management. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

13. Hyer, N., & Wemmerlöv, U. (2002). Reorganizing the factory.
Portland, Or.: Productivity Press.