What is workplace experience and why is it important?
Apr 25, 2023
Striking the right balance between remote and in-office work is one of the top challenges facing companies today. Working from home has staying power despite some acknowledged downsides, such as feeling less connected to coworkers and company culture. Americans report the highest levels of well-being when they spend up to six hours a day on social interactions, according to Gallup.
In response, workplace experience has increasingly gained attention, as organizations have realized the positive impact it has on employee satisfaction, productivity, and collaboration. Workplace experience enables opportunities to create personal connections and build mechanisms that create a high level of purpose and meaning between workers and the organization. It connects employees with each other, their company, and the workplace, wherever it may be.
Employers who wish to promote in-office working full or part-time, need to make returning to the office as attractive as possible and support employees in their daily life to ease the burden associated with in-office work. They must create a compelling environment that gives employees a reason to return to their workplace and promotes the benefits of working together in person.
In response, companies are emphasizing that when employees come into the office, they increase their sense of belonging when they are there.
Some companies are creating workplace experiences that aim to promote an emotional connection with the workplace and face-to-face interactions. These experiences can be big or small – from Friday get-togethers to inter-departmental sports events – and they can be used to nudge employees back into the office, either full-time or on quieter office days. The key is to identify activities where an employee’s presence matters the most and design shared experiences around those moments to encourage participation.
Other companies are opting for space and layout redesign and are swapping private offices and spaces for touchdown spaces and collaboration areas. These might take the form of “neighborhoods”, which resemble a family room or café with desks that can be reserved by the hour or day. More importantly, companies need to take the mental health and well-being of their employees in mind when designing new workspaces. Many companies are even going as far as providing meditation rooms, incorporating natural elements like plants and natural light, and even sleeping pods in their office spaces.
Employee benefits also come into play when considering overall workplace experience. Not surprisingly, benefits often play a large role in keeping employees happy and engaged. Given the growing expectations of today’s workforce, companies need to go beyond the standard health care and paid sick leave. Companies are considering benefits that help employees balance the demands of work and personal commitments.
Employee concierge and lifestyle services provide compelling value in many ways, ranging from providing employees a way to balance competing priorities to running errands to creating a sense of community in the workplace. Concierge and lifestyle services help create work environments that attract employees back to the office and are associated with a reduction in employee stress and burnout, improved wellness, and is used by top companies to deliver a fulfilling workplace experience for their staff.
