Category: Uncategorized

work life balance

In recent years, employee work-life balance has become an important focus in the business world. However, many employers worry about creating policies which promote work-life balance. They think, “who is going to cover these hours?” or, “I cannot have my support staff absent all the time!” Perhaps, you have had these very thoughts when employees request time off.

Despite what you may think, work-life balance can have tremendous positive benefits for both a company and their employees. A stressed employee is an unhappy employee and an unhappy employee is most likely job hunting. We all know the hiring and training process is costly for any business. Why not implement policy in your business to promote work like balance? For example, flexible work hour options have been proven to increase employee retention by 89% in 2012 by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).  Another option is offering telecommuting hours for your staff. They do not necessarily need to be in the workplace daily. Wouldn’t you like to work from the comfort of your own home? Think of the money your company could save! If you have few employees working from the office, then you could have a smaller more affordable office space, ergo lower rent. Indeed, both employees and employers could benefit from flexible hours or telecommuting.

Officense has the toolkit needed to assist you with creating work-life balance at your company. For example, our fully trained Executive Assistants can continue to live-answer your business calls even if you or your support staff leave the office at 3:30 pm! Your clients will feel satisfied speaking with a real person and not some pre-recorded automatic answering machine. We can even answer your calls and have them transferred to any number you request, so you can speak with clients, regardless of your location.  Lets talk about how you can save money and create a work-life balance for you and your staff.  Call Officense today at 410-814-7500.

4/07/17- Elena Goldsborough                                                                                                                                                                                   In recent months, news sites and social media have been abuzz with praise for bullet journals. The question is, why? We have a multitude of technological options to organize our life and business that claim to be user-friendly, quick, and convenient. However, time management doesn’t need to be linked to a fancy device. The same result can be achieved through the low-tech art of bullet journaling.

The creator of the bullet journal, Ryder Carroll, defines the method on his website as “a customizable and forgiving organization system. It can be your to-do list, sketchbook, notebook, and diary, but most likely, it will be all of the above. It will teach you to do more with less.” Ironically, Carroll is a designer of digital products, yet he has chosen an old-fashioned, screen-free method to manage his time.

A great number of you have likely written a to-do list. A bullet journal is no different.Having a customized method unique to your personal needs is pivotal in organizing oneself, and a bullet journal allows this tailoring. To begin, just get out a notebook and your favorite pen. Then, on a page, start by writing a title. You can begin listing with bullets “●” or whatever symbol you like best. Anything that pertains to the title could be included in your bullet journaling. Tasks, details, events, reminders, and pictures all could have a place in your journal. Just think, a user would certainly not have this freedom of style and formatting with the Google Calendar or iPhone Reminders app. These types of applications require you to use a specific template to set times, reminders, and alarms, but it’s unclear if these digital programs actually help you remember everything better than a simple bullet journal note?

Psychologists Pam A. Mueller and Daniel M. Oppenheimer would advocate for a simpler time management method. In 2014, they published a study, which found that “students who took notes on laptops performed worse on conceptual questions than students who took notes longhand.” The same is true in a business setting. We all know the feeling of adding a multitude of events and tasks to our virtual work calendars yet somehow, we still forget. From personal experience, I know that I remember my schedule and important tasks on a more frequent basis if I have handwritten them in my planner.  We could all benefit from starting our own bullet journals today.

Still, the best way to make sure everything in your business is done on time and precisely is by calling Officense. We will find a customized method that works for you and helps simplify your front end business processes. Whether you like using a high-tech scheduling app or you prefer a good old-fashioned phone call, Officense will be here to make sure you are never concerned with setting appointments but have the freedom to focus on the work that’s important to you. If you find your business in need of organizational assistance, give Officense a call! We have Executive Assistants to answer your call, schedule appointments, handle your mail, track leads, and so much more.  (410-814-7500)

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3/31/17 – EG                                                                                                                                                                                                  Starting tonight through April 8th, the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts is holding its’ 2nd free international light festival. The event turns Baltimore into a dazzling display of light with over 50 fun and whimsical exhibits for all ages!

This year’s festival is focused on innovations in business. There will be six conferences to highlight the health, social, food, educational, sustainability, and design innovations of Baltimore business. For all Shark Tank fans, the social conference will feature a startup business pitch contest. The six finalists will be competing for a sponsorship from the Baltimore Ravens. The sponsorship includes a generous advertising package and so much more!

If you’re a budding startup or an entrepreneur who is looking for assistance with your business, look no further than Officense! Our innovative business services will assist you in making your business a success. Officense’s Executive Assistants can answer your calls, handle your mail, greet your clients, and so much more. We have high-end offices ready and waiting for you one block from the Inner Harbor. Stop by our office today to place your business on the path to innovation, and do not forget to enjoy the amazing light festival.

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3-29-17 NJ

The hurdles of climbing a mountain can be metaphorically compared to every day obstacles in the business world. Susan Payton, the president of Egg Marketing and Communications, recently wrote an article entitled “6 Entrepreneurship Lessons We Can Learn From Climbing Mountains.” This article includes important lessons she learned from climbing the Dolomite Mountain during her travels in Italy. Payton relates her hiking experience to challenges faced in business.

Payton compares having the right tools to complete her trek to business owners having what they need to overcome any roadblocks. She needed blister pads, sunscreen, and water to conquer the physical challenges of her hike. As an entrepreneur you will need well trained employees to improve productivity. Or, you may need professional meeting space to provide a more sophisticated and polish image for your company. You’ll have to find the necessary tools that you need and use them to succeed in your corporation.

Are you busy climbing your own business mountain? At Officense, we can provide the tools that you need to achieve greatness. Let us handle your phone reception and front – end office needs. Officense has experienced, professional Virtual Assistants to help assist you from any location. Whatever obstacle you may face, we can provide a business solution for you. For more information, you can give us a call us at 410-814-7500.

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The Future of the Office

3/18 – NS

If you would have told someone 20 years ago, that you could handle work calls, manage your office, and save your business money, all from the golf course, they would have called you crazy. They might remind you that you were forgetting about putting on a suit, struggling through the commute, briefing your secretary on your schedule, and sitting behind your phone waiting for calls. Fortunately, they’d be wrong. In 2017 work is happening everywhere and anywhere except traditional office spaces, and employers and employees are loving it.

More and more, the brick and mortar office of the past is adding up to be a poor decision in the current fast paced, technology driven business world. The trend line is clear. Offices are falling by the wayside and new services are replacing them. Research from Global Workplace Analytics reports that work being performed out of an office and in nontraditional spaces has increased 103% among non-self-employed workers since 2005. The reasons behind this trend are easy to see. The costs of a traditional office are simply too much for some small businesses or start-ups and increasingly, entrepreneurs are rejecting these unnecessary expenses for more efficient solutions. Besides costing less, the advantages of virtual space are higher productivity and general job satisfaction. Anyone would be happier taking a work call while relaxing on the couch rather than in an office!

However, while the physical idea of the office is changing, the implications and thought process behind the word are not. People are interactive and social beings and still need a way to communicate face to face comfortably and efficiently. For this reason, the traditional office is dead but the temporary office space, conference facility, and hourly business setting are all alive and well. Working remotely and using technology doesn’t eliminate a need to present a professional office image occasionally, but it does make it foolish to pay for a traditional space year-round, 24 hours a day.
Maybe we’re a little ahead of our time here at Officense, offering creative alternatives to the traditional office for nearly 10 years. But it’s like Shel Silverstein said, “If you’re behind the times, they won’t notice you. If you’re right in tune with them, you’re no better than they are, so they won’t care much for you. Be just a little ahead of them.”

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