Most Effective Ways Of Reducing Office Clutter

Many people used the lockdowns to declutter their homes. Now, with people returning to work (some of the time at least), attention has turned to offices. Clutter often builds up there at least as much as it does in the home. Fortunately, many of the decluttering strategies people use in their homes also work in offices. 

Minimise paper 

Paper is probably the number one source of clutter in offices, even above cables. The good news is that it’s relatively easy to tame, and although many of us may have been re-thinking our usage of paper over the last couple of years, there is still room for paper – we just need to be smarter about it.

Move to digital communications 

If you’re still receiving communications on paper then move them to digital. This not only reduces paper it also generally makes them easier to manage. With a handful of very niche, exceptions, HMRC is perfectly happy to receive digital files. These can either be files created digitally or scans of what were paper documents (as long as they’re clear). 

Centralise printing 

There are still legitimate reasons for printing documents. Human nature being what it is, however, the easier it is to print out documents, the more likely it is that people will do so without asking themselves if it’s really necessary.  

Having a centralised printing station that people have to walk to reach will encourage them to think before they print. Ideally, monitor your printing. If you see that someone is printing a lot of documents, see if you can work with them to reduce their printing volume. 

Digitise and shred documents 

If you’re still holding on to existing paperwork, then it’s time to take a deep breath and deal with it. Ultimately, you want all relevant paperwork scanned. You then need to decide if you want/need to keep paper copies of documents as well. This should, however, be very much the exception rather than the rule. Most documents should just be scanned and shredded. 

There are various ways you can tackle this. One effective approach is to start with an initial triage. Shred anything you know, for sure, you don’t need. Then scan everything else. Once you’ve scanned the documents, collect any documents you know or think you might need. Shred the remainder. 

Finally, organise your electronic documents and any remaining paper documents. Shred any paper documents you initially kept but have since realised that you don’t need. Generally, you can take your time with this process. In fact, it can often be worth doing so to make sure that you end up with a system that really works for you. 

Encourage people to photo/scan receipts and notes 

Receipts and sticky notes may not take up much physical space. They do, however, very definitely create the feeling of clutter. What’s more, these small pieces of paper are easy to lose. This can be a major problem if they’re important. Try to give staff easy access to scanners and/or digital cameras to photograph them. 

Likewise, encourage them to scan/photograph any notes they take on paper. This can square the circle between people using paper to capture their thoughts and employers wanting to minimise paper in the workplace. 

Keep items near where they’re used 

Employees will go and fetch anything they need precisely because they need it. The chances of them putting things back where they should be, however, often depend on how easy it is for them to do so. This means that keeping items near where they are used can go a long way to reducing office clutter. 

Have the right mix of storage 

In offices, the traditional approach to storage has been to hide everything away out of sight and out of mind. There is a lot to be said for this. In fact, it should probably be the default option for most items. With that said, there are times when it makes sense to take an alternative approach. 

One very overlooked option is to go for clear storage. This keeps items corralled in one place while still keeping them visible. Clear storage may sound like a potential eyesore, but it can actually be hugely useful for avoiding clutter.

People can see instantly where to find whatever it is they need. This means that they’re less likely to need to rummage around creating a mess. Crucially, they can also see instantly where there are empty spaces to put away whatever it is they’ve used. That means putting things away in their right place requires minimal effort on their part. 

It may even be worthwhile to use fully open storage solutions like pegboards. Again, the basic idea is that these make items easy to grab and easy to put back. What’s more, pegboards can use a variety of accessories. This allows you to customise them affordably to your exact needs. 

Make sure people know where items go 

Remember that employees can only put items back where they should be if they know where that is. They may not have picked up the item from its proper home. Even if they did, they may not remember where that is. It’s therefore advisable to have some kind of system for employees to find out where items should be kept. 

This can be as simple as putting a sticker on the item and having somewhere employees can reference what the sticker means. For larger items, you could use a proper label. Creating labels does take a bit more work (and a few basic supplies). This can, however, be worth it to eliminate excuses for not returning items. 

Give staff time to tidy up 

Even if putting something away only takes a minute, that’s still a minute out of someone’s day. If that someone is already working at maximum capacity, that is a minute they literally cannot spare. You, therefore, need to make sure that staff have enough time to tidy up after themselves. 

In theory, it’s preferable to leave staff to decide for themselves when they’re going to tidy up. In practice, however, some staff will use that time to do other work instead. It can therefore be easier to allocate time at the end of the day (or at least the week) for everyone to tidy up. This can also be a fun team-bonding exercise.