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Following on from our last blog, we return to the research paperThe Enticing Workplace: Attracting People Back to the Office (see https://bit.ly/46q8Iyk ) and the supplementary discussion article(see https://bit.ly/3YleNdz ). These excellent resources delve into the comparative merits and challenges of homeworking and office working, using research into what factors influence employees’ preferences to answer the question, ‘How can we create offices that entice workers to spend more time there?’ Please read the previous blog to learn more about this research's approach and results. Here, we explore some of the key conclusions. Insights and thinking points Guy Osmond, MD of Osmond Ergonomics, says: “This is an exciting piece of work that seeks to define and codify what can be a bewildering set of considerations for most people. It picks out useful concepts, encapsulates important ideas, and clearly summarises the key factors employers should consider. It benefits from all those involved being people with real experience working in or with big corporations. “One of the key things to note is there is no one solution – people have different needs and different reasons for those needs. It also clearly illustrates that this is far more nuanced than the duality of ‘collaboration in the office’ vs ‘concentration at home’ as has often been presented. “Distraction is a topic that has kept cropping up. A sense of control is very important, and people report feeling a greater sense of control over the working environment in their homes. There is the psychology around feeling empowered to make choices – not just around controlling noise, but also air quality and temperature – all of which are automated and centrally controlled in large corporate offices. It might be something as simple as being able to open a window in your own home. Nigel points out in the discussion that the best example of air quality he’d come across was in an office where people could open the window – not a huge surprise there!” Adds Guy: “I was also particularly struck by the phrase ‘line of sight management’ in the panel discussion. It’s a term I haven’t come across before, but it neatly encapsulates the idea of middle managers managing employees’ output by ‘seeing’ what they are doing. It’s been seen as a rather ‘lazy’ reason to require people to return to the office. But, as pointed out in the discussion piece, line of sight management is also important for determining wellbeing and performance – managers ‘see’ how employees are doing, how they’re coping with workloads, the team dynamics and so on. “There is so much relevant material here that neatly summarises much of my experience and the experience of others with an interest in workplace wellbeing. Since Covid, I have been talking about the ‘magnetic office’ and the need to create workplaces that draw people in, maximising the advantages and supplementing them with further benefits that work for individuals, as well as ultimately serving the needs of the business. Together, this report and panel discussion are a great step towards unpickinghow you might do that – the factors at play, their influence, and the levers that employers can pull.” Ways to entice people back into the office The Enticing Office not only explores what influences whether people prefer home over the office or vice versa, but it also highlights the key areas employers can focus on to make the office more attractive and appealing and suggests actions they could take. Again, this is well worth a read in full – but a precis is below: Focus and Concentration, Noise and Privacy Reduce desk density to allow control of environmental conditions. Reduce distraction and noise and provide both visual and acoustic privacy—e.g. use screens, bookshelves, plants and pods to break up open-plan spaces. Provide spaces for focus and concentration – e.g. rooms, pods and booths. Collaboration and Socialising Provide spaces for interaction, collaboration, teamwork, socialising, and connecting. These have all been identified as key reasons for coming to the office. Travel and Flexibility Offer more options for travel, work hours, exercise, and childcare. Consider subsidised travel or loans for rail tickets. Consider on-site wellness facilities, subsidised membership in nearby gyms, spas, or clubs, and access to crèches and subsidised lunches. Purpose and Events Emphasise and enhance the reasons to visit the office—connection, culture, and sense of belonging—through meetings, social gatherings, and leadership. For example, regular team catch-ups, introducing new staff members, charity events, hobbies clubs and on-site fitness classes. Motivational Culture Create a motivating culture through leadership, encouragement, loyalty, and work ethic. Workplace design and the relevant facilities can help foster the organisational culture, though ultimately, it comes from the leadership team. Consider Differences Take account of individual differences and personal circumstances, including family or healthcare issues or the needs of those just starting out in their careers. Consider what attracts different personality types and design for their requirements. Assigned Desks Implement unassigned desking only with caution - a higher proportion of respondents with assigned or allocated desks reported they preferred working in the office than those with unassigned desks. Provide allocated desks to those who genuinely need them, not based merely on seniority, and manage usage to ensure that staff have a desk when choosing to work in the office. There is a clear call to arms here. As this research demonstrates, there is a great deal to recommend the office environment. Even with the appeal of homeworking, it remains a place that can better support key working behaviours, especially the need for privacy, teamwork, and a sense of purpose. By tackling issues like distraction and noise, improving technology, and boosting personal benefits by allowing for greater flexibility, a balance can be struck, meeting employees' shifted expectations and need to maximise wellbeing and productivity.

The Enticing Workplace: Attracting People Back to the Office – the home/office debate explored – PART 1

09/09/2024

Since the seismic shift from office to homeworking during the…

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Since the seismic shift from office to homeworking during the pandemic, we have all been trying to understand the benefits and challenges of each setting and find the right balance for all. This is a complex issue, with a multitude of considerations, both from the perspective of the employer and the employee; navigating it means taking account of the demands of different jobs, different working behaviours, and the wide range of individual needs and preferences. Clearly there is no one-size-fits-all solution, but with so many factors to think about, even knowing where to start can be difficult. So, we were very pleased to read an impressive research report, and subsequent extended editorial discussion, illuminating many of the key themes and thinking points connected to this conversation. The Enticing Workplace: Attracting People Back to the Office By Nigel Oseland and Gary Raw In partnership with MillerKnoll, Workplace Trends and Audiem (see https://bit.ly/46q8Iyk ) explores what factors influence preferences around place of work. By extension, it also asks the question ‘how do you entice people to spend more time in the office without obliging them to do so?’ This report was then the touchstone for a discussion by an expert panel, which included the two authors, reported at length in an In Magazine supplement last month (July)(see https://bit.ly/3YleNdz ). While we highly recommend you read both pieces yourself, we thought we would whet your appetite by sharing some of the insights here and in our next blog. The Framework The research sought to explore what might attract employees back to the office through understanding underlying workers’ concerns about doing so and investigating the employee benefits and advantages of working from home compared to the office. Respondents were asked to rate whether they considered the better place to work was mostly their home or mostly the office, across 51 ‘influences’. That information was gathered alongside background details about their lives and working circumstances to contextualise their responses. The ‘Influences’ The factors that impact preferences around places of work are clearly many and complex. But the report breaks them down into handy thematic groups: work activities, facilities and environmental conditions, personal benefits, sense of purpose, such as career, progress and connection. Then, from the responses, the authors have drawn out eight key factors which impact work/home preferences: (1) Organisational belonging, (2) Work interactions, (3) Health and wellbeing, (4) Concentration, (5) Workstation control, (6) Environmental control, (7) Workload management and (8) Personal time A whistle-stop summary Preference between home and office depends on the type of work being undertaken. Generally, home was felt to better support focussed work (so for example, conducting confidential calls or meetings, doing work requiring concentration, and for feeling productive overall). The office, by contrast, was better for teamwork and development activities (such as meetings, collaboration, managing or mentoring a team, improving knowledge through interactions or eavesdropping and socialising with colleagues.) A higher proportion of respondents reported they preferred being at home for the indoor environmental conditions - privacy and control over noise in particular. The office also appeared to compete most poorly with working from home in the area of personal benefits – especially “personal pressures”, such as travel costs and time, work life balance, access to childcare, managing health conditions, and taking best advantage of weather conditions. On the other hand, the office was regarded as better for reducing isolation and loneliness, and demarking boundaries between work and home life. Some also appreciated the consistent daily routine an office setting provides. Other areas in which the office fares well include supporting a sense of purpose, supporting connection and reward, aligning with the company culture, and experiencing leadership and motivation. When respondents were asked to choose three factors that most attracted them to the office and three that most discouraged them from returning, teamwork, socialising and connection were the most prominent reasons for favouring the office, while travel cost and time, work requiring concentration, and control over noise and distraction were the factors keeping them away. Overall, according to this survey sample, approximately one-half of respondents considered their home better, one-third preferred the office, with the remainder indifferent. In our next blog post we’ll explore some of the key thinking points and takeaways from this report and discussion article.

The Enticing Workplace: Attracting People Back to the Office – the home/office debate explored – PART 2

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