An office library provides a space for employees to de-stress in the middle of a busy workday. They can spend their midday break in the room, reading up on business management and leadership skills. They can go over the day’s newspaper edition. Or they can choose to read about something unrelated to work.
A break spent in the library is productive regardless of whichever book or journal they choose to pick up.
There’s more to building an office library than visiting the bookstore, purchasing a random selection of books and displaying them on an unused corner in the office, though.
Choose the Right Location
Ideally, you’re going to add a library to the initial floor plan of your office. But you can still build a mini library long after construction or renovations. Clear up one room, preferably in a corner, where there usually isn’t heavy foot traffic. You want the people inside to focus on what they’re reading, after all.
Install Library Furniture
After selecting a room for your new office library, it’s time to install the shelves and benches. It’s okay if there isn’t much space in the room. You can opt for multipurpose furniture, like benches with racks underneath. Take advantage of bare walls by turning them into an eye-catching bookshelf.
Use Colours to Set the Tone
What mood are you trying to set in the library? Is it a serious space for employees to improve their work-related skills? Or are you going for a laidback environment where they can relax with a good book? The colors you use for the walls, furniture, and decor set the overall atmosphere of the room.
List Down the Books You Want
Office libraries are expected to have books that suggest ways to be more productive individuals and to be efficient leaders. Newspapers and industry-related magazines are also conventional. Make a list of the types of books you want your employees to read. From there, you can build your library to cater to their tastes.
Ask for Book Recommendations
What are your employees interested in reading? Is there any book they want to see on the shelves of your office library? When choosing books for your office library, you have to consider everyone’s opinions. Conduct a survey to find out what genres or which authors they’re interested in reading.
Organize the Books Accordingly
Once the initial set of books has been bought, it’s time to organize the bookshelves. Start with the default arrangement, which is to organize books by genre. After segregating them by genre, arrange them alphabetically. If you want something more aesthetically pleasing, group them by color. The choice is yours.
Regularly Clean the Books and Shelves
Finally, take note of your library cleaning schedule. No matter how often your employees visit the library, you can’t avoid dust from accumulating. This might trigger sneezing or, worse, allergies. Assign someone to wipe the shelves and the books so that everything stays squeaky clean all the time.
Are you ready to set up your office library?