EN
Select location and language
Select location
Ubicación global
ACTIU Berbegal y Formas, S.A.
Give the gift of ergonomics: the Cofidis example

Give the gift of ergonomics: the Cofidis example

DECEMBER 2016 | 4 minutes

Investing in health is investing in the future, in concentration, productivity and in efficiency. All this can be achieved by investing in ergonomics. If you want the best version of your team then take care of them with a good product that makes them feel comfortable, where they can work at ease and where, in the long term, they will not have to deal with back problems as a result of bad posture. Take the following as an example: the company Cofidis, who decided to give their staff a custom TNK Flex chair designed together with Actiu. This is their story:

“Given the need to buy new chairs for a significant part of our workforce, we decided to take the opportunity to give an ergonomic boost to what we consider to be the most important work tool: the chair.” Marc Molins, head of the Facility Management Service at Cofidis, an entity that specialises in the granting of consumer loans, explains how the decision was made to choose, design and acquire a total of 150 office chairs for its employees, using the Christmas dates as an excuse for the present.

“The chair is a tool that allows companies to communicate and connect with their employees, sending them a real message about their importance and talent. In addition to offering them an ergonomic boost, it makes it easier for them to sit properly and feel better,” as Soledad Berbegal, director of Actiu’s Communication and Marketing Department, explains in regards to the Cofidis case.  “An example that we frequently talk about because of the company’s strong implication in the well-being of its employees”, she concludes.

“From the moment we decided that this change was necessary, we conducted an important market study in order to be at the forefront of ergonomics”, explains Molins. “With Actiu, we worked hand in hand to create a chair that would meet all those needs and we implemented their latest model: the TNK Flex chair designed by Alegre Design. For this reason, in the Cofidis model, each chair is signed by both the manufacturing company and by us”, he adds. Part of that personalization included, for example, adding individual labels that had the name of each person.

TNK FLEX
anticipates your movements

In order for the novelty to have the anticipated effect, previous organisation for the surprise delivery and its announcement was an absolute must. On the one hand, the team wanted to create expectations and, on the other hand, explain the benefits of the chair. “We wanted to generate shock, an impulse that would motivate all these workers to continue working as hard as possible for the company, but more comfortably and with a feeling of importance. The directors and managers of the commercial management team were involved in each step at all times, and they were trained to demonstrate how to adjust the chair, etc. They were an important part of the announcement, the surprise and the gift”, explains Paola Cabrera, head of the General Services area of the company.

Arrive at work… and find yourself with a new surprise chair

The Cofidis case is special not only for the decision to offer a chair to their employees, but also for its execution. They paid special attention to the whole process: building anticipation, announcing a surprise, getting management involved… and planning a final party in which, upon arriving at work, the employees found a new chair that was much more than just that. It was an excuse to create bonds, to team up and to unite the employees even more”, says Soledad Berbegal.

In short, those in charge at Cofidis were able to thank their employees for their commitment with a single action, to make them feel like a vital part of the company and guarantee them a comfort that in the long term could help to prevent health or back problems. “We wanted change to be as positive as possible. That the people felt involved and important, motivated to face a special period in the company that represents a greater challenge for each person”, explains Paola. “By changing the chair and the way of delivering it, we believe to have achieved this, that the objectives have been met and that, without a doubt, they now have a new work tool that allows them to feel better and more at ease”, she concludes.