Learn how to create appealing workspaces that address employee needs to boost productivity and increase a return to the office.
The modern office has undergone significant transformations over the past few decades, yet many employees still prefer the comfort and convenience of working from home. Steelcase has conducted extensive research to understand why employees often choose not to work in the office. Their findings reveal several critical factors that contribute to this preference, shedding light on areas where traditional office environments may fall short. By understanding these reasons, employers can take proactive steps to create more appealing and productive workspaces that meet the needs of their employees. Let’s explore why employees avoid the office and discover ways to create a more engaging and supportive work environment.
Key Reasons Employees Avoid the Office
From the challenges of commuting to the benefits of a personalized workspace, here are some of the primary reasons employees are opting to work from home rather than the office:
- Length of Commute: Long commutes can be exhausting and time-consuming, making the convenience of working from home much more attractive.
- Feeling Better Working from Home: Many employees report feeling healthier and more comfortable working from home, where they can control their environment.
- Stress in the Office: The office environment can sometimes be stressful due to noise, interruptions, and other distractions.
- Better Workspace at Home: Some employees have set up more ergonomic and personalized workspaces at home, which they prefer over the standard office setup.
- Lack of Privacy in the Office: Open office plans can lead to a lack of privacy, making it difficult for employees to focus and feel secure.
- Difficulty Focusing in the Office: The noise and activity in open-plan offices can make it challenging for employees to concentrate on their tasks.
How to Make the Workplace Better: What Do Employees Want?
To address these concerns, the office environment must evolve. According to Steelcase, the key areas where improvements can make a significant difference include privacy, spaces that support wellbeing, spaces that support virtual collaboration, access to enough power, and flexible furniture.
Here’s examples of how to incorporate solutions designed around what employees value most:
Office Privacy
Less Conventional Privacy
- Campers and Dens by Orangebox: These innovative structures provide semi-private spaces within the office, allowing employees to escape the hustle and bustle while still being part of the communal environment.
- Steelcase Tents: These adaptable and movable tents can create temporary private zones for focused work or meetings, offering flexibility and a sense of enclosure.
Workplace Privacy
- Lagunitas Lounge Seating by Coalesse: These lounge seats offer personal comfort zones with space dividers, where employees can relax, focus, or collaborate in a more casual setting.
- Steelcase Flex Personal Spaces: Designed to create adhoc and flexible personal boundaries in open-plan offices, these spaces allow for individual work without complete isolation.
Adaptable Privacy Solutions
- Everwall by Steelcase: This modular wall system can be reconfigured to create private offices or collaborative spaces as needed, adapting to changing acoustical privacy and aesthetic requirements.
- Pods and Phone Booths: These “drop in place “solutions provide enclosed spaces for phone calls, focused work, or small meetings, ensuring privacy and quiet focus anywhere in your office environment.
Spaces that Support Wellbeing
Outdoor Office Spaces
- Rooftop Gardens: These spaces provide a natural retreat where employees can enjoy fresh air, greenery, and a break from the indoor environment.
- Terraces and Balconies: These areas offer additional outdoor spaces for relaxation, informal meetings, or solo work.
Work Cafes
- Multi-Use Spaces: Work cafes that can transform daily places to gather into event spaces or breakout areas, fostering a sense of community and flexibility.
- Café-Style Seating: Comfortable seating arrangements that encourage casual interactions and spontaneous meetings.
Restorative Spaces
- Wellness Rooms: Dedicated spaces for physical activities such as yoga, stretching, or even short naps can significantly boost employee wellbeing.
- Mothers/Lactation Rooms: Providing private and comfortable spaces for new mothers to pump breast milk ensures their comfort and privacy.
- Reflection/Meditation Rooms: Quiet spaces designed for mindfulness practices can help reduce stress and improve mental health.
Spaces that Support Virtual Collaboration
Microsoft Signature Teams Room using Front Row Technology
- Immersive Video Conferencing: Immersive and inclusive spaces that foster seamless connections between remote and in-room participants, ensuring every voice is heard, and ideas can flow freely.
- Audio and Camera Integration: Spatial audio technology and an ultrawide-angle camera intelligently tracks meeting participants.
- Co-Creating Content: Microsoft Whiteboard facilitates collaborative drawing and inking for all meeting participants.
Logitech Conferencing Solutions
- Logitech Sight + Rally Bar: With Rally Bar at the front of the room, and Sight at the center of the table, you maintain a consistent front-facing view of in-person interactions as the conversation flows between in-room and remote participants.
- Logi Dock: All-in-one USB-C docking station with meeting controls and speakerphone.
- Logi Dock Focus Room Kit: Video conferencing solution for focus rooms, including the Logi Dock, webcam, and secure cable management.
Access to Enough Power
Flat Wire Technology
- Connectrac Wireways: These discreet wireways provide flexible power solutions that can be easily reconfigured as office layouts change.
- Commscope Flat Cable: Durable and efficient, flat cables offer a versatile solution for powering workstations and devices.
- Wiremold Over-Floor Raceway: An over-floor solution that provides easy access to power without the need for complex installations.
Steelcase Thread and Flex Mobile Power
- Flex Mobile Power: Portable power solutions that allow employees to charge devices anywhere in the office.
- Thread Low-Profile Power Distribution: A minimalistic solution that delivers power to workstations without cluttering the workspace.
Flexible Office Furniture to Meet Needs
Focus and Heads Down
- Height-Adjustable Desks: Allow employees to switch between sitting and standing, promoting ergonomic health and flexibility.
- Privacy Screens: Provide visual and acoustic privacy, helping employees focus on their tasks.
- Acoustic Boundaries: Reduce noise pollution and create a quieter, more focused work environment.
Collaborate Virtually or In Person
- Surface Hubs and Media Carts: Portable carts equipped with screens and cameras for easy setup of virtual meetings anywhere in the office that support collaboration, presentations, and brainstorming sessions.
- Board Carts and Flex Markerboards: Mobile boards that can be moved around for spontaneous meetings and brainstorming.
Connect and Shift Work Modes
- Perch Stools: Versatile seating options that support quick meetings and casual conversations.
- Active Frames: Modular structures that can be reconfigured to create different work settings, from individual focus areas to collaborative spaces.
- Slim Tables: Lightweight and mobile, these tables can be used for various purposes, enhancing flexibility and adaptability.
Making the Office a Magnet, not a Mandate
By addressing the key factors that drive employees to prefer working from home, offices can become more attractive and supportive environments.
Creating a workspace that caters to the needs of employees is not just about making them come back to the office; it’s about making the office a place where they want to be. By focusing on privacy, wellbeing, virtual collaboration, power access, and flexible furniture, companies can transform their offices into dynamic, supportive environments that foster creativity, productivity, and satisfaction. This holistic approach will not only help retain talent but also attract new employees who are looking for a workplace that values their needs and supports their best work. The future of work is flexible, inclusive, and employee-centric, and the office must evolve to reflect these values.
