Southcreek News

9 Ways to Save on Energy Expenses in Your Office Rental Space in Kansas City: Getting Employees Involved

Saving energy around the office is a great way to save money for your business and demonstrate to customers and clients your sense of environmental responsibility. Once you have decided to go green at work, be sure to incorporate the whole office in the effort:

Tip #8: Start a Committee

Jump-start your energy-saving campaign with a meeting of a committee to discuss priorities, strategies, and reasonable goals. Incorporating employees into the green process will prevent policies from coming off as sudden, arbitrary, or pointless. Get people invested by putting together an interested committee to keep the office accountable for their goals, and listen to input from employees who have ideas about going green. You might also consider getting a professional energy audit for some concrete ideas on where to start saving energy.

Tip #9: Make it a Habit

Once you have implemented your green office plan, make sure it becomes a habit. The best way to hold people accountable is by showing results. Keep track of energy costs and meter readings and let the office know about setbacks and advances. Consider celebrations for reaching landmarks, as well as recognizing and rewarding excellent energy saving ideas. Don’t forget to let your customers or clients know about your efforts to go green…you might find yourself surprised by their support!

Get started on saving money and energy at your office!

If your business is looking for commercial space for lease in Overland Park, give us a call at 913-685-4100 to set up a tour of one of our office suites for rent in Overland Park!

10 Things You Must Know Before Signing a Small Office Lease in Kansas City: Part V

Here are a few final things to keep in mind before you sign an office space lease:

9. Location. “Location, location, location” may be an old saying, but it is still a make-or-break factor for many retail businesses. Choose the best location for your business, factoring in as many variables as you can: who are the surrounding tenants? Are there any big name ones that would draw customers, and if so, will they stay? What is the traffic to the space and the demographics of that traffic? Is there enough parking? Will you be competing with any nearby businesses? Consider as many factors as possible and choose a space that will provide the best “return on location.”
10. Get everything in writing. As you prepare to sign the lease, make sure that any verbal agreements or promises are documented in writing. If something is not included in the written agreement, it can most likely be ignored on the basis of clauses in leases that say something to the effect of “this is the entire agreement.” Making sure everything you negotiated for is in writing could prevent unnecessary issues from arising down the line.

Protect your business from problems and ensure you will be setting up in a place that will foster growth by preparing yourself for the lease negotiation process!

If you have decided it is time for your start-up business to find a small office lease in Kansas City, give us a call at 913-685-4100 to discuss an affordable office space in Kansas City that could be perfect for your business!

9 Ways to Save On Energy Expenses in Your Office Rental Space in Kansas City: Screen Savers

Office spaces can be a major source of energy consumption, which hurts both the environment and your company’s budget. Learn how to go green and cut energy expenses by making some simple changes in your office:

Tip #7: Eliminate Screen Savers

Screen savers might be nice to look at, but did you know that they use full power from your computer monitor and the same amount of energy your computer uses when you are working on a spreadsheet? In addition, a study done in 2009 found that almost half of American employees who use computers at the office do not even shut them down before going home at the end of the day. This terrible habit costs American businesses almost $2.8 billion in unnecessary energy expenses annually.
To reduce this inefficiency, turn off your computer monitor or put the computer in “sleep” mode before heading out for a coffee or lunch break. Doing either one of these things can significantly reduce the amount of energy consumed by computers. The U.S. Department of Energy recommends putting your computer to sleep or turning off the monitor for breaks longer than 20 minutes, and shutting down the computer if you are going to be gone for 2 hours or more.

Asking each employee to do small, simple things such as eliminating screen savers and hibernating their computers can be a significant step in reducing your company’s electric bill.

Looking for office rental space in Overland Park? Give us a call at 913-685-4100 to find out about our available office space in Overland Park, KS!

9 Ways to Save On Energy Expenses in Your Office Rental Space in Kansas City: Paper

According to the Energy Information Administration, if commercial and industrial spaces cut their energy usage by just 10%, they could save the economy a yearly average of nearly $20 billion! Check out some information on saving energy by going paperless in your office:

Tip #5: Go Paperless

The Clean Air Council found that each American uses an average of 650 pounds of paper per year, and America on the whole disposes of enough paper annually to build a 12-foot wall from New York City to Los Angeles! Help reduce that amount of paper and energy by asking yourself before you print a document or an email: Do I truly need this hard copy? How long will I actually keep it? Could I find an accessible place to save it on my computer?
Keep any reference guides or employee manuals on a common server or some sort of public hub instead of handing out hard copies. This can potentially save you a lot of paper, and also ensures that employees will always have access to the most updated versions of these documents.
It is impossible to go completely paperless, so make sure that there are accessible recycle bins for employees to dispose of any paper waste. Consider buying paper with a high percentage of recycled content and refilling ink cartridges instead of pitching them. Set up printers to print double-sided if possible.

Save some money on paper and help reduce paper waste in general by implementing a few paperless strategies!

If you are looking for commercial real estate in Kansas City for your business, give us a call at 913-685-4100 to find out about our available office space in Kansas City!

9 Ways to Save On Energy Expenses in Your Office Rental Space in Kansas City: Stay Home

Did you know that about 17% of greenhouse gas emissions can be traced back to commercial buildings? Consider implementing some easy green business practices to save the environment and some money for your business:

Tip #4: Work from Home

Though 40-hour work weeks seem to be standard, a more flexible schedule might actually serve your office staff and business purposes better—plus help reduce utility bills. Think about trying out a four-day work week. If this is not feasible for your business, try flexing schedules that allow people to take on more hours four days a week for at least part of Monday or Fridays off, or close down the office after lunch on Friday.
Telecommuting might also be an option for appropriate workers. Educate employees on your company networks and experiment with allowing them to determine their own schedules. Video chats or teleconferences can also be a way of reducing business travel (and business travel costs).
Though this might seem like too much flexibility at first glance, studies have shown that offices have increased productivity under these circumstances. Flexible schedules often mean that workers have fewer experiences in which they have to take care of personal business on the job or take leave.

Allowing employees to do some work at home may seem like a major change for your business, but giving it a try has the potential to both increase productivity and reduce utility costs.

Is your business trying to find a new commercial space for lease in Kansas City? Give a DDI Commercial real estate broker in Kansas City a call at 913-685-4100 for some information on our available spaces!