Office still valued by UK employees, providing space for productivity and collaboration

New research from Nespresso Professional claims that the office space is still highly valued by employees, with office workers naming seeing their colleagues (39 percent) as the thing they like most about being in the office. While a proper desk setup (31 percent) comes in second, office camaraderie (30 percent) took the third spot, showing the importance of the office environment for team building and relationships.

The research, which polled 1,750 office workers from across the UK, delves into the way employees have felt about the office space and returning to the office since the pandemic, when they felt safe to do so, as well as exploring what they feel is most important about the office space.

When it comes to going into the office, more than half (56 percent) of respondents have returned to the office regularly since restrictions have eased and 44 percent expect to work in the office 2-3 days week, suggesting hybrid working will become the norm for nearly half of UK workers.

Interestingly, the office provides a space for greater productivity too, with more respondents (35 percent) saying they are more productive when working in the office than those who said they were more productive working from home (32 percent).

Of those that said they were more productive in the office, camaraderie and collaboration was named as the reason behind this. Nearly half (46 percent) said it was because they could collaborate more easily with colleagues and more than a third (34 percent) said the team spirit of being in the office gives them a boost.

Throughout the research, face-to-face interactions and colleague relationships continued to emerge as a driver for heading into the office. Six in 10 (61 percent) admitted that their colleagues are the best part about working in an office, with a third describing more than three of their work colleagues as proper friends.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”Being in the office and working directly with colleagues is really important for wellbeing, team building and increasing team spirit”[/perfectpullquote]

Sir Cary L Cooper, Professor of Organisational Psychology & Health, ALLIANCE Manchester Business School, said: “These research results highlight how working in the office is here to stay, with employees still valuing the office space and the benefits that come with it. Being in the office and working directly with colleagues is really important for wellbeing, team building and increasing team spirit. It’s clear that since the beginning of the pandemic, people have missed face-to-face interactions that working in the office used to provide on a regular basis.

“There is no doubt that hybrid working is becoming the ‘norm’ and enables employees to get the benefits of working from home and in the office. This flexible approach to working is something that should be embraced by employers, and employees should be encouraged to provide feedback on how they would prefer to work in the future.”

Considering the ideal personalities an office should have, three quarters (75 percent) said it was important to have a mix of personalities in the office, with nearly half (47 percent) having a ‘wise owl’ in their office – someone who has been there ages and knows everything.

Beth Langley, OOH Director at Nespresso Professional, commented on the results: “It’s great to see the office space is still valued by employees across the UK. While employee wellbeing is the main priority and people should only return to the office when they feel safe to do so, it can be a really fun and exciting place. The people are almost certainly the main reason why, as well as the coffee machine of course.”

“A mix of personalities is great to have in an office as they provide different solutions to a variety of problems. Having that face to face interaction can also help build team morale and form better working relationships.”

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