More and more businesses are gradually easing employees out of working from home and encouraging them to come into the office, at least as part of a hybrid working agreement. While the distractions of home can be a drawback in themselves, it can be a jarring change, going from the personalised comforts and setup of your home, back into what might be a hollow and uninspiring setting.

Investing time, energy and money into creating a ‘destination workplace’ is all about going beyond the bare minimum to design an incomparable employee experience that makes it exciting to come into work every day. Destination workplaces drive up employee engagement, and studies show engaged employees drive up productivity by 17%.

Within companies, there are five levels of internal customer service. Level 1 is considered to be a damaging workplace, one that repeatedly compromises the needs of their workforce, resulting in disengaged staff.

Level 5 is deemed a destination workplace. Most businesses sit between levels 1 and 3, so by striving to reach levels 4 or 5, you are immediately setting yourself apart from a sea of workplace competition, especially from rival businesses within the same industry as yours.

 

  • What Are Their Necessities? – these are survival needs such as pay and safe, good working conditions.
  • Accommodate to Personal Wellbeing Factors – such as feeling valued, rewarded and empowered, and ensuring no part of their professional integrity is compromised.
  • Offering the Opportunity to Grow and Develop – be it through training or further resources.
  • Helping Them to Reach Self-Actualisation – ensuring they have a sense of purpose and feel fulfilled by their role and responsibilities.

 

Addressing all of these areas with equal importance will have a profound effect on employee engagement, which will in turn drastically improve the results of your business.

A Harvard Business Review report showed that 95% of people view face-to-face meetings as ‘key to building long-term relationships’, whereas only 20% considered virtual connections to have the same results. The office can be a fantastic resource for connecting, and a far more efficient way of communicating between teams. Strive to capitalise on that ease, and make this a central hub for your employees.

Often in workplaces, not enough attention is paid to the design of the space, so that it accurately reflects the culture, brand and values of the business. Predominantly it’s important to consider practicality and function, providing a variety of spaces that are fitted to accommodate basic work patterns and processes. Is there the technology to support efficiency? Is the layout optimised to effectively cater to the size of your workforce?

But it is equally important not to sacrifice the feel of the workplace, ensuring that the space is inviting and comfortable, just as is essential in your own home. These elements aligning can create ‘an environment that becomes a catalyst for the culture you want to encourage at work’, as Lenny Beaudoin, co-lead of the U.S. Workplace practice at CBRE writes for Forbes.

 

Original ideas by Claire Brummell for Entrepreneur