The post-Covid race back to the office is fast underway—albeit depending where you are in the world. British workers in the UK, for example, are coming back six times faster than their US counterparts. But fast or slow aside, bosses worldwide worry about keeping their people engaged once the initial novelty of the return has worn off.
Employers don’t have limitless money to spend on persuading workers to come back. Faced with inflation and an impending recession, like everyone else, they’re feeling pressure to be good financial stewards.
“Before Covid, workplace leaders made decisions knowing employees would be in five days a week,” says Remington Woo, head of customer success at Envoy, a workplace platform that helps companies manage hybrid work. “The job of workplace forecasting was a lot less complex and focused on space efficiencies.” Today, with new, hybrid-friendly approaches, that focus has evolved. “Leaders are also looking to optimize for productivity and employee engagement. And to do this, you need to understand exactly how the new office works.”
Businesses have always collected workplace data. But not every business uses the data. That’s starting to change as hybrid work models become popular and companies look for ways to stay competitive. Increasingly, employers are relying less on intuition, and more on the hard data that will help them make the most of their offices.
One mid-sized software company in the US recently wrestled with the decision to downsize its space. For six months, leaders tracked the number of employees going in to get a sense of the trend. Based on that data, they decided to sublet part of its office, consolidating the remaining space. It also brought together workers who were previously spread across multiple floors—a decision that's now saving the business tens of thousands of dollars each month.
“The move was a cost-saving measure,” admits Woo. “But as a bonus, by bringing everyone together in the same area, they’re increasing the chance that their employees will bump into one another. It’s unplanned moments of connection that help build stronger relationships at work.”
One way leaders are hoping to strengthen relationships is by encouraging employees to sit in specific areas, either by department, function, or activity type. If this sounds familiar, it should. Before Covid, this was the way most offices worked: You sat with your team. But many employees now split their working time between home and the office—and no longer have a permanent desk or a set schedule. Many businesses have downsized their space, and as a result, don’t have seats for everyone. Neighborhooding is an increasingly popular way for employees to book a seat for the day with people who have a similar job or who are on the same project. More than a third of workers post-Covid come in specifically to work in-person with others or for priority meetings.
For employees, the benefits of neighborhoods and hot desking are collaboration and connection. They have visibility—usually through a mobile app—into who’s coming in and when, and can decide the best days to reserve a seat.
Doing away with permanent desks can also have a positive impact on productivity and collaborative work, helping people make new connections or strengthen existing ones.
Businesses are also using data to identify and replicate workplaces that work. One technology company in California compared the rate at which employees returned in each of its locations. Armed with this data, the company ranked its offices based on which was most successful in getting workers back in. Leaders identified what worked at the top office, and by applying those learnings, recreated the results at their other locations.
That company is one of many turning to workplace platforms to make data collection and analysis efficient. A workplace platform helps companies check-in visitors, book desks and rooms, and analyze any workplace data. It also gives those who run offices an idea of what’s happening on the ground—how visitors or employees use the space and resources, such as desks and meeting rooms. Based on that information, those in charge can make adjustments for expected (and unexpected) changes in demand.
For example, a defense company located in Europe with more than 50 offices uses its data to understand more about the visitor process and how to staff effectively. The company tracks the number of visitors coming onsite to pinpoint the busiest times of day; facility managers then use this knowledge to schedule the right amount of coverage for reception areas during peak times.
One point of friction for workers is the challenge of finding a free conference room. Scheduling software can capture real-time data to reveal patterns in the way rooms are booked and used, or not. Are there certain teams who often book meetings but fail to show up? Are there times of day or days of the week when no-shows are more likely?
By keeping track of these trends, and how many people come in each day, leaders can plan for the future. “Who wouldn’t want to be able to predict how many desks, rooms, parking spaces, or how much food you might need and when you might need it?,” says Woo. “Getting rid of the hassle of uncertainty in a workplace, like whether there will be a room available, goes a long way in keeping employees satisfied.”
Still, convincing employees of the importance of offices as a place to gather and do work remains tough. But, according to an Envoy survey, the first step is letting them get comfortable with being in the workplace again. Once in the office, 90 percent of workers confess that being back is better than they expected.
“Businesses are relentless about returning,” says Woo. “But at the same time, are now under pressure to do more with less. To be successful, they will need to see the big data picture and adjust the way they work. After all, those of us that commute to an office have earned a better workplace.”
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
