Search Results for: employee experience

September 13, 2016

Sensory response to workplace environment influences performance ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Knowledge, News, Workplace, Workplace design

Improving employees’ physical and emotional response to their working environment – from the look and feel of a workplace to non-visual sensory inputs such as smell, noise and temperature – can significantly improve productivity and cognitive performance, a new report suggests. According to Decoding the workplace experience: how the working environment shapes views, behaviours and performance, experience is not just about how well the workplace satisfies functional needs, it is about the overall impression it leaves on the user and the way an employee experiences an environment is emotional and occurs potentially at a subconscious level. Sensory influences such as the smell, noise and temperature of the working environment are among the main factors that influence employees’ experiences of the workplace and impact thier performance. Expectations of the workplace also change depending on personality, background and numerous other factors; which is why understanding your workforce is the key to creating an effective workplace experience.

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June 7, 2016

Office best place for productivity, subject to wellness, tech and design ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace, Workplace design

An increasing number of employees may be opting for telecommuting and on-demand workspaces, but 66 percent of American employees consider the office as the most productive place to get work done. Thirty-six percent say it’s the most inspiring place to work as well, more than any other location. But as workers spend more time in the office, the onus falls on employers to keep their employees healthy, productive and inspired. According to The Staples Business Advantage Workplace Index, 70 percent of US office workers and managers report working more than 40 hours a week, many of whom say they’re working longer hours simply to catch up on work they couldn’t tackle during an eight hour day. And that workload is taking a toll, with 64 percent of respondents saying their workplace has contributed to stress, nearly half feeling so overworked they’re motivated to look for another job and 13 percent having taken a workplace stress-related leave of absence.

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May 13, 2016

Graduates want meaningful work and a fully digitised workplace ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace

Millennials entering the workforce want employment that offers meaningful work, ongoing learning opportunities and a fun workplace culture. This is according to a new study by Accenture on the workforce of the future which reveals that new graduates are increasingly digital, embracing new technologies, both to find work and on the job. The fourth annual Accenture Strategy 2016 U.S. College Graduate Employment Study found that the majority (70 percent) would rather work at a company that provides an employee experience built on a positive social atmosphere and receive a lower salary – up 10 percent on last year’s graduating class. Almost all (92 percent) of 2016 graduates said it is important to be employed at a company that demonstrates social responsibility. They are also three times as likely to prefer to work for a small or medium-sized company (44 percent), versus a large company (14 percent), indicating their preference for a smaller team environment.

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July 28, 2015

Millennial ‘job hopping’ is the new normal according to US research

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Following a recent survey claiming that Millennials comprise more than one-in-three US workers, comes new evidence on the impact this could have on recruitment and retention. Over 1,000 US full-time Millennials who were questioned on their careers by RecruitiFi confirmed that ‘job hopping’ had become the norm. During the course of their careers, 53 percent have held three or more jobs. And while many have plans to stay in their current jobs for 3-5 years (33 percent), many respondents plan to leave after 1-2 years (20 percent). 34 percent acknowledged falling levels of employee morale in the office and 22 percent explained that their clients/customers have taken notice. While 83 percent of millennials acknowledge that job hopping on their CV could be negatively perceived by employers, 86 percent say that it would not prevent them from pursuing their professional or personal passions.

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November 29, 2013

The meaningful aspects of what we do give us the greatest rewards

by Annie Gurton • Comment, Workplace

Charles Handy recently explained to attendees at Worktech 13 London why money is not the main motivating factor for employees; while at the same event, Claudia Hamm-Barstow of Jones Lang LaSalle added that the dream workplace is “a place where the company adds value to the employee experience, people feel valued and welcomed, the organisation feels meaningful, the work is rewarding and importantly there are no stupid rules”. According to The Human Givens Institute neither of these statements should be at all surprising. But The Human Givens theory adds that we also need to be respected, to feel in control, to have self-esteem, privacy and community. And, most crucially of all, we need to have purpose and meaning in our lives. (more…)

November 21, 2013

Quality of the place and the pace of work is more important than money

by Sara Bean • Architecture, Events, Flexible working, Workplace design

O+A designed Aol’s new West Coast HQ

In a remarkable session on the future of work at Worktech 13 London this week – Charles Handy declared that organisations need passion, people and profit, in that order. Money isn’t the main motivating factor for individuals either, which is why Handy’s thoughts on the emergence of the portfolio worker should inspire anyone who dreams of quitting their corporate job to do something more interesting instead. Those who don’t have that option would have been cheered to hear the prevailing message at Worktech was that employers are waking up to the fact that the quality of the place and the pace of work (i.e. flexible working) is of equal importance to remuneration in attracting and retaining staff. (more…)

October 28, 2026

Are businesses missing the point of charity partnerships?

by Colin Dyer • Comment, Wellbeing

Increasingly, companies look to demonstrate meaningful social impact through their CSR, ESG and employee engagement programmes. And, partnering with a charity delivers a “win, win” for all parties, as it gives employees and customers a cause to align to, and the cause exposure and income from fundraising. But the most effective partnerships should be judged by the difference they make, rather than the category a charity occupies. At Leukaemia Care, we support people affected by blood cancer at every stage of life, including children and their families. (more…)

October 21, 2026

Unity Place shows how a day in the office can be worth the commute

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Flexible working, Property

Hybrid working may have changed how often people travel into the office, but businesses in Milton Keynes are becoming more intentional about what they want from face-to-face time. At Unity Place, the trend is being seen across coworking, informal workspaces, meeting rooms and event spaces, with people increasingly using in-person days for collaboration, team catch-ups, client meetings, networking and shared experiences rather than simply sitting at a desk. At x+why Unity Place (main image), there have been 868 meeting room bookings so far this year, with around 5,800 visitors year to date. The coworking provider has also seen regular repeat bookings from businesses that do not need a permanent office, but still want a flexible place to bring their teams together. (more…)

October 12, 2026

AI isn’t replacing meetings, it’s changing their purpose

by Brad Hintze • AI, Comment, Technology, Workplace design

Throughout the years in the workplace technology industry, I’ve heard one common question among organization leaders: How can we have fewer meetings and how can we make the ones we do have more effective? When AI came along, many thought that it would be the solvent to this long-standing challenge. But it turns out, as individuals utilize AI to help them automate routine work, the need to collaborate with team members on the outputs has become more prominent. Rather than focusing on reducing the number of meetings, organizations should ask themselves: Are we designing the workplace with intentionality for meetings that are actually worth having? (more…)

October 12, 2026

How to apply the lessons of World Mental Health Day every day in the office

by Annick Bessawa • Comment, Wellbeing

World Mental Health Day is always an opportunity for organisations to show they genuinely care about their people, but supporting employee wellbeing requires year-round commitment. This year’s theme highlighted the importance of listening to people with lived experiences of mental health conditions, helping to build understanding and reduce stigma in the workplace. By creating an environment where employees feel safe to speak openly and know where to find support, businesses can make a real difference to their wellbeing. St John Ambulance trainer Annick Bessawa shares six practical ways employers can acknowledge what we learn on World Mental Health Day and create a more supportive workplace throughout the year. (more…)

October 9, 2026

Cognitive access is a workplace design issue

by Nat Hawley • Comment, Workplace design

Workplace inclusion is still too often organised around a private conversation between an individual and HR. Someone encounters a barrier, decides whether it is safe to disclose a condition, explains what is happening and waits for an adjustment. That process matters, but it should not carry the whole weight of inclusion. Many barriers described as personal needs are predictable features of work: continuous noise, back-to-back calls, unclear priorities, scattered instructions and unwritten rules. When these conditions are treated as fixed, individuals must negotiate around a design problem.

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October 7, 2026

A sense of control over workplace technology may be linked to wellbeing and productivity

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology

A sense of control over workplace technology may have a significant impact on people’s wellbeing, productivity and attitudes towards technological change, according to new global research from Logitech. The technology company’s inaugural Ctrl Tomorrow Study suggests a growing divide between people who feel confident and in control of the technology they use and those who feel overwhelmed or frustrated by it. More than three-quarters (77 percent) of respondents agreed that people who feel more in control of their technology get more out of life, while around three in five said problems with technology can affect their mood after work and their sense of control over their personal lives. (more…)