Experience per Square FootTM Instant Insights
Welcome to our monthly Experience per Square FootTM Insight page. The goal of our Total Workplace Research & Innovation Team is to keep you informed about the latest trends in the dynamic commercial real estate industry. Each month, we will present our own insights and in-depth examination of emerging shifts that can help you make informed real estate decisions.
INSIGHTS IN YOUR INBOX
Subscribe to get our latest research and insight from Cushman & Wakefield’s Experience per Square Foot™ delivered to your inbox.
SEPTEMBER 2024
The Evolution of Remote Work TRENDS in Office-Using Industries
Remote work job postings surged to unprecedented levels during COVID-19, but we're now seeing an overall decline. However, the picture varies significantly across industries. The shift to remote work remains a major factor, though the extent and impact differ by industry.
This report explores current trends in remote job postings across key industries in the United States, highlighting notable variations. Moving forward, it's crucial to monitor these trends closely. Key questions remain: Will industries align in their downward trends? And how far will remote job postings fall?
Read more in the September XSF Instant Insight.
Source: LightCast job postings data for office-using, full-time, remote employees in the US from January 2019 to August 2024. Cushman & Wakefield
JULY 2024
Top 10 Building Amenities
In response to evolving market dynamics, companies and building owners are reassessing their approach to building amenities. Offering the most valued amenities for employees is essential for attracting and retaining top talent, which is in turn essential for securing and retaining top clients in a competitive office market.
We surveyed 1,100+ employees across 122 companies in six U.S. office buildings, asking them to rank 30 building amenities.
Read more in the July XSF Instant Insight.
Source: C&W Tenant Experience Survey powered by Experience Per Square Foot™ results from Q1 2023 – Q2 2024; n = 1,131 representing 122 tenants across 6 buildings. Statistical analysis used to measure employee preference for 30 building amenities.
MAY 2024
A Generational Approach to Improve Wellbeing
Wellbeing levels have experienced a precipitous drop since 2019 and have yet to recover. While all generations struggle, our youngest generations struggle the most. In this report, we delve into the primary drivers of wellbeing for each generation, highlighting both commonalities and critical differences. This understanding lays the groundwork for a targeted approach to enhance wellbeing across age cohorts.
Read more in the May XSF Instant Insight.
APRIL 2024
The Purpose-Driven Office
As the evolution of work shifts towards a blend of office, home, and alternate spaces, the role of the office has transformed too. Rather than serving as the one place where we once completed all our tasks, employees have highlighted the importance of the office as a hub for fostering community and connection.
According to employees, the main purposes of the office include facilitating collaboration, nurturing relationships, and promoting social interactions.
Read more in the April XSF Instant Insight.
FEBRUARY 2024
The Productivity Fall of 2023
Throughout the pandemic, we reported that employee productivity was maintained. But in 2023, productivity dropped 13 percentage points. The XSF Productivity Index is comprised of three components: Focus, Team, and Best Work. Each component declined from 2022 to 2023. The top 5 drivers of productivity—Inspiration, Energy, Learning, Belonging, and Cultural Connection—all dropped in 2023, with fewer than 50% of people reporting a positive experience for all drivers except Learning. Of the four drivers with less than half of people reporting a positive experience, only Energy was already below 50% before 2023.
Read more in the February XSF Instant Insight.
JANUARY 2024
Employee Experience Investment Guide
Many factors influence employee experience at a company including benefits, culture, manager quality, and senior leadership behavior. Beyond these factors, employers have an additional and powerful way to influence employee experience - the workplace. The challenge companies face is knowing exactly how to invest in the workplace to boost experience.
To address this challenge, we used regression analysis to evaluate 30 features of the workplace environment to uncover how effectively they each drive experience.
Read more in the January XSF Instant Insight.
OCTOBER 2023
What Drives Regular Office Attendance?
|
Read more in the October XSF Instant Insight.
SEPTEMBER 2023
The Impact of Office Attendance
Productivity is top-of-mind for many leaders in today’s market conditions and employee office attendance has long been considered a key factor in driving productivity. The prevailing belief is that those who consistently go to the office are going to be more productive than those who don’t.
This report reveals that “fixing” office attendance will not guarantee productivity, but there are other factors that can improve it. Focusing on these aspects of work will yield a higher ROI on productivity than a focus on office attendance.
AUGUST 2023
The Impact of Mandates
About one-third (34%) of employees who cannot choose where to work come into the office 3+ days/week, compared to only 20% of those who can choose. When comparing the choice and no choice group, this 14 percentage-point difference in primarily in-office employees comes from a 5 percentage-point difference in hybrid workers and a 9 percentage-point difference in primarily remote workers.
- Limiting employees’ location flexibility and choice through mandates can increase office attendance.
- However, employees’ engagement and ability to do their best work may suffer.
- Is the short-term attendance gain driven by mandates worth the potential impact to engagement?
JULY 2023
Choice and Flexibility Drive Experience
- Employees who have flexibility in when and where they work have significantly better employee experiences than those without choice.
- The younger the employee the larger the employee experience gap between those with location and schedule flexibility and those with no choice.
JUNE 2023
Does the Office Support its Main Purpose?
Our previous research in May indicated that the top two reasons employees go to the office are social connection and collaboration. In the June 2023 XSF Instant Insight, we compare employees’ top reasons to go to the office with how the office is currently supporting these reasons:
- Modest in-office boost for social connection. Primarily in-office employees report slightly higher social connection scores than primarily remote employees.
- Opportunity to improve in-office collaboration. Employees working primarily remotely report higher collaboration scores than in-office employees.
- Organizations can and should leverage space and policy to capitalize on face-to-face interactions to boost employee connection.
MODEST IN-OFFICE BOOST FOR SOCIAL CONNECTION | OPPORTUNITY TO IMPROVE IN-OFFICE COLLABORATION |
MAY 2023
Focus is a Key to Work-Life Balance
In the first May 2023 XSF Insight, we explore the relationship between employee work-life balance and the ability to focus while in the office.
- Employees with work-life balance are more productive and more likely to stay with their company.
- Employees who are given the space to focus and can minimize distractions in the office have better work-life balance.
- Organizations that invest in enabling focused work can improve their people's work-life balance and, ultimately, drive employee productivity and engagement