September 2024
Serena Xtoumouzienne
When it comes to home versus office, women are very clear. The average office Lmi for men is 69.2, and the average home Lmi (H-Lmi) is 77.8. But for women, while the average Lmi is only slightly poorer, at 68.3, the H-Lmi is 80.7.
And while the office experience declines for both sexes with age, for women the decline is greater. It falls from 76.2 in under 25s to 66.9 in the oldest group, 55 and over. In men, it falls from 75.9 to 67.7: an 8.2 point drop compared to the 9.3 fall for women.
Leesman data also shows that, in contrast to their older colleagues, younger people of both sexes like being in the office. Employees aged under 25 have the best office experience, with a Lmi of 76.0. For people aged 45-54, the Lmi is 68.0, falling to 67.7 for those aged over 55.
Yet this is not a rehash of home versus office. Indeed, that debate needs reframing.
Hybrid working is popular, and here to stay: of the thousands of employees Leesman has surveyed in the last two years, 86% work from more than one location, while 91% enjoy hybrid working.
Instead, the focus should be on average versus outstanding. An outstanding workplace should be an integral part of any successful hybrid working strategy. Offices need to compete with personalised home set-ups, which allow for greater flexibility, a better work-life balance and even outperform traditional workplaces in key areas such as noise. Offices need to be far more than just average.
Yet Power of Place, Leesman’s 2024 analysis of the role of place in employee experience, showed that while some offices are indeed Catalysts, with Lmi scores of 70.0 or above, the majority (58%) are exactly that: average. Defined as either Enablers (with an Lmi above 60.0 but below 70.0) or Obstructers (an Lmi below 60.0), they fail to offer employees a great experience.
So, what does this mean for employers?
Armed with this knowledge – that women and young people have such different office experiences, and that many workplaces are merely average – how should they respond? How can they ensure workplace strategies support everyone, regardless of age or gender?
First, employers need to establish what employees need to best perform in their roles. This includes understanding how their lives impact their work and productivity.
We can make various assumptions about the data on age and gender, after all. For couples with children, women are generally, rightly or wrongly, the primary carer; working from home allows them to better accommodate family life.
Come middle age and many women – while still juggling work and childcare – will be caring for ageing parents, further reinforcing the need for flexibility and hybrid working.
Older people will also have built professional networks. Younger peers need the office to facilitate that; they also require opportunities and space to learn from, and interact with, more senior colleagues.
The home setup is often poorer for younger people too. In contrast to their older, more settled colleagues, under 25s tend to live in shared accommodation, or have little or no dedicated workspace.
But these are just that, assumptions. Companies need to understand the unique needs of their workforces, and then use that insight when designing offices and workplace strategies. Clear communication between employer and employee is vital.
Mandating people to come in on a set number of days, or at specific times, won’t fix an average office.
It will increase feet under desks. But it won’t support women, facilitate younger workers collaborating with older peers, or boost productivity.
Leesman has identified seven key features associated with outstanding, or Catalyst, offices, including quiet rooms for working alone or in pairs, informal work areas/break-out zones, general décor – and, perhaps most importantly, variety of different types of workspaces. But being able to provide the right variety will only happen with clear communication.
Offices need to actively support and encourage the people who use them, be they male or female, young or old. They need to enable collaboration and boost productivity. And they should be nice places to work. In other words, no matter who uses them, all offices need to be outstanding.
