As the leading experts in interior and office landscapes, we’re always looking to expand our knowledge and gain better insights into how offices are changing, and whether those changes meet the needs of the people that spend the most time there.
Most people would agree that the last 2 and a half years have resulted in changes to the world of work that we couldn’t have predicted. Many employees went home for lockdown, and now their employers are having to think of ways to entice them back into the office.
As office design plays a large part in what we do here at Ambius, we recently set out to learn more about what people who spend their time in offices really want – by conducting a study of 1,000 office workers in the United States and the United Kingdom.
We found that what office workers wanted fell into two distinct categories: their desires around their office layout or design, and their desires around their work benefits. Employers would do well to consider how their offices are changing – or should be changing – to meet employees’ requirements.
1. Office layout, design, and features
One thing most office workers agree on is the importance of the office environment to their overall job satisfaction. 90% of employees say that the layout and design features of their office are a major factor in whether they are happy at work or not.
Half of office workers (50%) say they wouldn’t accept a job offer without first looking at the workspace. Men appear to be a little more interested in their workspace than women, with 40% of men saying they have declined a job offer because they didn’t find the office space attractive or appealing (compared to 34% of women).
Surveyed office workers were asked to rank the importance of several office features:
The office features that employees rated as important differed strongly across industries. Play areas are twice as important to men (9%) than women (4%), while people who work in accounting, banking and finance are twice as likely (22%) to crave bright colours than health care workers (10%) or people in public services and administration (9%).
Unsurprisingly, workplace comfort and functionality ranked highest, followed by natural lighting and windows.
2. Work benefits
When it came to work benefits, we found that office workers value flexible working options more than any other employment benefit. But there are crucial differences between what men and women want from their employers.
Our survey found that men value health insurance above any other work perk, whereas women would prioritise flexibility in their office jobs, such as options for remote working or adaptable hours.
Health insurance is four times more important to US office workers (41%) than office workers in the UK (11%). The existence of the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) means that healthcare is often taken for granted by UK employees.
Time spent outdoors
Office workers spend less time outdoors than prisoners. Read that again. It’s shocking, really, but perhaps not that surprising given how most offices are designed.
Ambius found that the average office worker spends just 47 minutes outside during a typical working day. This is less than prisoners – who require at least one hour of outdoor exposure a day according to UN guidelines.
One-in-three office workers (35%) spend no more than 15 minutes outside during a working day. Based on that, it’s not surprising then that 64% of office workers say that natural lighting is a highly-important office feature. We’d suggest that adding interior plants could further enhance the satisfaction levels of colleagues, by not only making them feel closer to nature but also improving their wellbeing.
At Ambius we’d like to encourage companies who are prioritizing talent recruitment and retention to explore how offices are changing. Then to consider incorporating workplace design improvements that facilitate better health and wellbeing for employees.
The key to attracting and keeping valuable employees is to provide an environment in which they can thrive.
Contact the experts at Ambius today and discover how Ambius can help you make your office a place in which employees want to spend time.
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