Evolving employee expectations require workspace transformation to better meet needs and support productivity
News summary:
• Employees believe that office layouts, seating arrangements, and meeting rooms are not conducive to in-office productivity.
• While employees are motivated to return to the office to collaborate, ideate and brainstorm with colleagues and foster a sense of belonging, most employers still allocate at least half of their office to individual workspaces.
While most employees in India are willing to return to the office at least a few times a week, a new Cisco study found that most employees believe offices are not ready for the new way of working. The study, which examines employee and employer attitudes about current workspaces, revealed that workspace design, layout and technology have not kept pace with changing employee expectations.
The study found that 96% of companies in India have mandated a full or partial return to the office with productivity, team communication and leadership pressure as key drivers.
Contrary to the popular belief that most workers are reluctant to go back to the office, seven out of 10 (76%) employees in India responded positively to their organization’s mandate to return to the office, and 82% of employee respondents expressed a desire to return to the office at least a few times per week.
Despite the positive reception to the office return, employees’ motives for in-office work have significantly evolved. The main reason for their return is not individual work, but rather to collaborate (80%), ideate and brainstorm with colleagues (53%) and foster a sense of belonging (58%). This shift signifies a change in employee expectations and needs for their workspaces.
Workspaces do not reflect changing employee needs. The study highlights that workspaces are not ready for this new way of working. Across India, when referring to office layouts and seating arrangements, 64% of employees feel these are not conducive to collaboration and brainstorming purposes. While there is a growing emphasis on collaboration, 85% of employers surveyed still allocate at least half of their offices to individual workspaces.
Employees feel that individual workstations (40%), large (48%) and small (58%) meeting rooms are ineffective at boosting productivity in the office, or only do so moderately at best.
