Research reveals the future workplace will have to become more human-centric as workforce priorities change

As workforce priorities change as a result of Covid-19, a new global survey by JLL has revealed that the workplace of the future will be versatile and hybrid, focusing on employee-centric solution.

Surveying more than 2,000 office workers across 10 countries, JLL’s new ‘Human Experience’ report measured the current sentiment of office workers, finding that the workplace of the future will be a hybrid one, mixing on-site and off-site collaboration to offer freedom and choice across a variety of spaces and locations. This new status quo of hybrid work models according to JLL will likely be a rich environment comprised of a large variety of spaces that accommodate the full range of working and workday needs.

The research also found that employees are eager to maintain the flexibility of widespread remote work established during the pandemic and are interested in working from home an average of two days per week. This hybrid approach is the most sought after, with nearly three-quarters of employees wanting to have access to an office. Further, JLL’s earlier Human Performance report found that 80 per cent of high performers have missed their office greatly during lockdown.

Flore Pradère, Research Director, JLL Corporate Solutions Research said: “The Covid-19 crisis has incited a massive paradigm shift in the world of work. To adapt to this new normal, the future of work must be reimagined to focus on the needs and preferences of a liquid workforce. This means offering employee-centric solutions that value choice and flexibility to optimise employee experiences and performance.”

Despite the willingness to work-from home on a regular basis post-pandemic, employees still retain a strong affinity for the office says JLL, especially as it relates to providing a sense of community and belonging – where remote work has led to gaps in supporting collaboration, leadership and managerial competencies. Seventy per cent of employees believe an office environment is more conducive to team building and management support.

JLL’s Human Performance research also found that this social aspect of the office was crucial to employee performance and that technology was struggling to replicate the experiences employees have historically shared in the physical space. Further, 97 per cent of high performers described their office as enabling easy collaboration, and 89 per cent consider their colleagues as a second family.

Traditional work priorities have also been deeply challenged during the pandemic. The research revealed employees cite work-life balance (72 per cent) as more important than securing a comfortable salary (69 per cent) and indicate that living consciously and healthily is as important as finding purpose in their job.

Dr. Marie Puybaraud, Global Head of Research, JLL Corporate Solutions concluded: “There’s no going back to the old ways of working. Those who are courageous and proactive in reimagining their workplace to address changing workforce preferences will be the future leaders of business in a post-pandemic world.”