People in unassigned seating are struggling the most - Workplace effectiveness has declined - Gensler
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U.S. WORKPLACE SURVEY 2020 A PUBLICATION OF THE GENSLER RESEARCH INSTITUTE Workplace effectiveness has declined. People in unassigned seating are struggling the most.
Unassigned seating and other paradigm
shifts are putting stress on the workplace.
After more than 15 years of researching the connection All this has resulted in rapid change and
between workplace design and employee and business experimentation in the workplace—and it’s taking
performance, the positive impact of providing people its toll on workers. In this period of flux, we need to
with an optimal work environment is well proven. pause and evaluate change, asking, “Are the shifts
What makes a work environment optimal, however, is transforming the workplace really delivering value?”
far from static.
One trend in particular shows signs of stress: an
Increasingly mobile and collaborative work, increasing portion of the workforce is being asked
experiments with unassigned seating and other to work without dedicated seating. This may seem
forms of mobility, globalization, and an always-on like the logical next step as work becomes more
culture are changing the nature of work and the distributed and dynamic, but its implementation
workplace. Evidence suggests that some of these warrants further consideration.
changes are for the better, while others are for
the worse. In line with the ongoing debate about open
environments, the right solutions for unassigned
With real estate costs on the rise, companies seating areas must consider the worker’s need
require flexibility to accommodate rapid growth and for private spaces and a sense of ownership, with
fluctuating head counts. In this volatile economy, attention to specific concerns such as cleanliness,
workplaces are being asked to do more than ever noise, ergonomics, and technology.
before—often within a shrinking footprint.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 Unassigned seating and other paradigm shifts 8 Is unassigned seating working? 18 In an era of choice, the office is still people’s
are putting stress on the workplace. preferred place to work.
10 How do you fix unassigned seating?
2 The workplace is more complex than 20 To create an optimal workplace, understand
14 Fixing unassigned seating requires more than
ever before. whatkindofworkplaceisrightforyourorganization.
just the right workplace.
4 Workplace effectiveness and experience 22 APPENDIX
16 Out-of-office mobility is also a key
have declined.
strategy to improve workplace effectiveness
6 What makes an optimal workplace? and experience.
The Collective, Seattle, Washington 1
INTRODUCTION
+5%
2020
Theworkplace
The workplaceisismore more complex
complex than
than ever 2019 2020
before.
ever before.
Organizations
Workersare areleveraging mobility to
more mobile,
2016
improve flexibility, and
more distributed, real-time
morechange, and efficiency.
collaborative.
10% 67%
have jobs that require
are currently in them to work with
The extended economic expansion in the The recent coworking craze represents
unassigned seating colleagues in other
U.S. has propelled office rents to record shifts in the way people work as well as
locations
highs; and as the population continues the desire for flexibility that comes with
its shift toward cities, downtown rents uncertainty. The U.S. is at the front of
have shown particularly high growth. this trend; 20% of the global coworking
Uncertainty means that despite continued footprint is here, representing 10% of
growth, employers are positioning for office inventory in some markets, and our
headwinds. With a renewed focus on data suggests 1 in 5 U.S. workers uses a
maximizing their real estate utilization, coworking space during a typical week.
employers are also delivering a flexible Instances of unassigned seating, and
workplace that can easily accommodate broader mobility both in and out of the
rapid changes in head count or team office also appear to be on the rise. 2020 2020
configurations in real time. 2019 2019
+6%
20% 43%
of workers use work in a variety
a coworking space of spaces throughout
during an average the day
week +24%
3x 25% 3.6%
increase in unassigned increase in urban U.S. unemployment
seating by workers at large Class A U.S. office rate, the lowest 2020
companies in past 4 years rents 2010 to 2019 since 1970 2019 2020
2016
(Source: CBRE Econometric Advisors) (Source: American Time Use Survey as of February 2020)
60%
20% 24% 48%
have choice
in where to work
of workers spend
time working away
from the office during
of the global coworking of U.S. workers do an average week
footprint is located in some or all of their
the U.S. work at home
(Source: GCUC—Global Coworking) (Source: America Time Use Survey)
+3%
Percent of respondents who exhibit each characteristic.
2 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 3
FINDINGS
Workplace effectiveness and experience
have declined, a consequence of continued Both workplace effectiveness and
dramatic shifts in the way people work. experience have declined since our last
Workplace Survey.
The effectiveness of the U.S. workplace that many forms of mobility—the ability WORKPLACE EFFECTIVENESS (WPI) WORKPLACE EXPERIENCE (EXI)
is declining across all the work modes to work away from the office for part
Gensler tracks, with 2020 registering of the week, then work in a variety of 2019
2020 66 70 2019 66
the lowest effectiveness numbers we’ve spaces in the office—are aligned with
measured since beginning our Workplace greater effectiveness. But overall, the 2020 66 2020 64
Surveys in 2008. decline in performance suggests that
increased mobility in aggregate has not 40 80 40 80
This comes amid a growth in a wide range yet improved employee effectiveness Gensler’s Workplace Performance Index (WPI) score Gensler’s Experience Index (EXI) score is a composite
of mobility solutions. Our data suggests or experience. is a composite measure of the effectiveness and measure of the overall employee experience, capturing
functionality of the physical workplace based on 30+ broad cultural, behavioral, and interpersonal factors.
individual variables.
WORK MODE EFFECTIVENESS
2008 2013 2016 2019 2020
4.4
FOCUSING
4.2
COLLABORATING
VIRTUALLY*
4.0 COLLABORATING
IN PERSON
LEARNING
3.8 SOCIALIZING
3.6
3.4
The workplace is becoming less effective
in supporting all work modes.
3.2
The effectiveness of the workplace in supporting each
work mode by year, as measured on a 5-point scale
where 1 is least effective and 5 is most effective.
3.0 *We began measuring collaborating virtually separate
from in-person collaboration in 2016
4 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 5
FINDINGS
What makes an optimal workplace? WORKPLACE EFFECTIVENESS (WPI) WORKPLACE EXPERIENCE (EXI)
Mostly open environments with on-demand 11%
TOTALLY OPEN
No walls—everyone +/– 0 PTS + 2 PTS
private spaces consistently prove best. in the organization
sits together
All the various forms of mobility studied effective mobility and the mostly MOSTLY OPEN
in this research continue to play out on open workplace typology. We’ve asked With on-demand +4 PTS +7 PTS
the platform of the physical workplace— respondents for the workplace typology 15% private space; offices
and the design of that workplace has a where they work—and what their ideal only when required
significant impact on the performance, typology might be. Roughly 1 in 7 by role
experience, and behaviors of workers. workers currently sit in a mostly open
In our 2019 report, we identified six environment—and when asked about Despite being the best workplace solution, only
“degrees of openness” that bring their ideal workplace, they tend to prefer
nuance to the open-office debate— more private environments. However, 15% of our respondents are currently in mostly
and showed that mostly open when our data is segmented to show open environments, down from 26% in 2019.
environments, those that supplement how each typology performs, mostly
open seating with on-demand private open environments support more choice,
space, tend to perform best. provide a wide variety of spaces, and are
correlated with greater innovation and SOMEWHAT OPEN
Those relationships hold true in our effectiveness overall.
2020 data, and also show a link between 38% Few in private offices; –3 PTS –3 PTS
desks with low/medium
panels for privacy
CHOICE INNOVATION
SHARED OFFICES
3.9 10% Mostly shared offices/ –3 PTS –1 PTS
3.7 3.7 3.7 team rooms that sit
TOTALLY OPEN 60% 3.6 3.6
3 to 6 people
MOSTLY OPEN 62%
SOMEWHAT OPEN 37%
SHARED OFFICES 50% MOSTLY PRIVATE
MOSTLY PRIVATE 50% 19% Individual offices for +1 PTS –1 PTS
most; the rest have
TOTALLY PRIVATE 60% medium/high panels
TOTALLY MOSTLY SOMEWHAT SHARED MOSTLY TOTALLY
OPEN OPEN OPEN OFFICES PRIVATE PRIVATE
Percent of respondents with choice in where to work, by degree of openness. How innovative respondents see their company to be, based on Innovation TOTALLY PRIVATE
Index ratings, by degree of openness. All scores are on a 5-point scale.
7% An enclosed, individual work +2 PTS +2 PTS
environment for everyone
AVERAGE WPI SCORE 66 AVERAGE EXI SCORE 64
Percent of respondents who currently sit in each type of workplace
environment, compared to how each workplace type scores on
Gensler’s WPI and EXI scores.
6 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 7
FINDINGS Gusto, San Francisco
Is unassigned seating working?
People without assigned seats are
struggling, even those who like it.
Unassigned seating is on the rise—our The reviews are mixed: many workers
data shows 10% of the U.S. workforce in unassigned seating want their seat
no longer has an assigned seat at work, back, while many are happy with the
doubling from 5% in 2019. While the scenario. Taken as a whole, our data
idea of unassigned seating (also known suggests unassigned seating has a
as “hot desking,” “dynamic seating,” negative impact on performance and
“hoteling,” etc.) isn’t new, its recent experience—a challenge to a dominant
growth in application is notable. The narrative centered around the increased
larger portion of working population choice and freedom that should follow
in unassigned seating now lets us suit. For the people who like unassigned
look more deeply into the qualities seating, the negative impacts are
of their experience at work, and begin diminished. Those workers report slightly
to understand the implications of lower performance, but a slightly better
this trend for workplace effectiveness experience than the average worker.
and experience.
1 in 10 U.S. workers don’t
have an assigned seat.
90%
ASSIGNED
WORKPLACE EFFECTIVENESS (WPI) WORKPLACE EXPERIENCE (EXI)
LIKE HAVING AN
DO YOU HAVE UNASSIGNED SEAT 50% LIKE HAVING AN
UNASSIGNED SEAT 64
LIKE HAVING AN
UNASSIGNED SEAT 65
AN ASSIGNED SEAT 10% UNASSIGNED
AT WORK? WANT AN ASSIGNED
SEAT BACK 50% WANT AN ASSIGNED
SEAT BACK 56
WANT AN ASSIGNED
SEAT BACK 58
ASSIGNED 66 ASSIGNED 64
AVERAGE WPI SCORE 66 AVERAGE EXI SCORE 64
The chart above shows 90% of workers have assigned seats and 10% have have an assigned company location.These percentages are among workers
unassigned seating. Of that 10%, 50% like having an unassigned seat, and 50% who currently sit in unassigned seating, representing whether they prefer that
want their seat back. Note that these percentages are among workers who scenario or would rather have an assigned seat.
have an assigned company location, excluding 5% of our sample who do not
8 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 9
FINDINGS
How do you fix unassigned seating?
The ability to focus is hardest hit; the most Most important design factors for unassigned seating:
important solution is privacy.
Ample private spaces,
Comparing data for workers in unassigned of time collaborating with others in
1 reservable and on-demand 5 Maintenance and cleanliness
seating to those with assigned seats, person may be the most apt to thrive
Spaces to support virtual
and those in top performing workplaces
overall, uncovers specific areas where
in unassigned seating. Those who need
significant amount of time to focus, 2 collaboration 6 Ergonomics and comfort
unassigned seating underperforms. This less so.
7
data suggests the fundamental challenges Enough work settings
that come with taking away someone’s
desk, as well as areas to focus on to
Providing the right suite of alternative
workspaces or amenities can make a
3 for everyone
Noise management
sizable impact—in particular, workers in
improve unassigned seating. Technology to support
The biggest difference: unassigned seating
unassigned seating struggle to find private
places to work, and places to take phone 4 Personal storage 8 group work
is a particular challenge to the ability calls. They also struggle with the basic
to focus and to work with colleagues issues that come with losing a desk—
virtually. And as a result, our data suggests storage, cleanliness, comfortable seating,
workers who spend a significant amount and overall noise.
Unassigned seating poses particular
ASSIGNED WANT AN LIKE HAVING AN
challenges to focused work and virtual ASSIGNED SEAT UNASSIGNED SEAT
collaboration. BACK
34%
Focusing Collaborating Collaborating Learning Socializing
30%
in person virtually 34%
4.7 4.7 4.7 4.6 FOCUSING
4.4 49%
4.1 Unassigned seating is more appropriate
3.9 3.9 3.9
for those whose work styles tend
3.5 3.4 3.3 3.3 3.3 toward in-person collaboration.
3.2
42%
51%
COLLABORATING 42%
IN PERSON
27%
COLLABORATING
VIRTUALLY 14% 10%
14%
15%
5%
5% 3%
AVERAGE TOP PERFORMING LEARNING 5%
ASSIGNED WORKPLACES SOCIALIZING 4% 5%
5% 6%
AVERAGE
UNASSIGNED
Work mode effectiveness scores for workers with assigned seats compared to Time spent in each work mode during an average week for workers with
those without assigned seats, and to workers in top performing workplaces as assigned seats compared to those without assigned seats but would prefer to
defined by the top quartile of WPI scores. All scores are on a 5-point scale. have a desk, and to those without assigned seats and are happy with it.
10 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 11
FINDINGS
1
Ample private spaces. The ability to
find privacy is paramount for workers,
even more so for those in unassigned
seating. Having both reservable and
on-demand space that is consistently
available and within close proximity to
workers is key.
2
Spaces to support virtual
collaboration. Workers in unassigned
seating struggle to find places to
take calls and video conferences;
provide a variety of places to Confidential Consulting Firm United Technologies Digital Accelerator, Brooklyn, N.Y.
collaborate virtually with others, with
considerations for both noise and
technology.
5
3 Maintenance and cleanliness.
Sharing spaces, and the increased
Enough work settings for everyone. utilization that comes with that
Even if workers are highly mobile, sharing, makes maintenance and
everyone should be able to be in the hygienic concerns even more
office at once—and workers should important—ensure all work settings
always be able to find the spaces they are sufficiently clean and ready
need to perform their best.
for work.
4 6
Personal storage. Create convenient
Ergonomics and comfort. As workers
places to store personal belongings
use a wider variety of spaces, ensuring
and work-related materials for
that all spaces are comfortable and
all workers. CBRE, Houston, Texas ergonomically appropriate for work
helps optimize worker well-being and
CBRE, Minneapolis, Minn
performance.
7
Noise management. Provide a
variety of spaces with varying noise
levels to accommodate different work
styles and behaviors; some should be
energetic and accessible, others more
quiet and private.
8
Technology to support group work.
Equip spaces and empower
workers with the right technology
to collaborate virtually.
NCR, Atlanta CBRE Headquarters, Los Angeles Zendesk, 989 Market, San Francisco
12 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 13
FINDINGS
Fixing unassigned seating requires more than What do U.S. workers think about unassigned seating?
just the right workplace. Worker perception and
participation are also a significant barrier. Stressful 65%
Confusing 65%
As unassigned seating grows in they are no more likely to be in unassigned
application, understanding how the seating at this time. Across industries
Difficult 62%
general working population perceives the studied, technology workers appear most
trend is important to informing when, and receptive, but on average only 1 in 4 see Fun 30%
how, the strategy should be adopted. For the strategy in a positive light.
workers not currently sitting in unassigned Productive 24%
seating, its perception is neutral to Ultimately, any workplace transition’s
negative—two-thirds of U.S. workers success will lean not only on the
appropriateness of the strategy to workers’ Efficient 24%
agree it sounds confusing and stressful,
while less than a quarter think it sounds needs, and organizational culture and
productive or efficient. processes, but also on how the change is For workers not currently in unassigned seating, the percent who agree with
communicated and managed. Similar to each of the above statements about unassigned seating.
However, perceptions around unassigned broader discussions around open working
seating are not universal. By role, those environments, a key barrier to adoption is
in more senior positions are more likely negative perception—that sentiment must
than other workers to express positive be addressed for any strategy to succeed.
impressions of unassigned seating, though
ROLE
SentryOne, Charlotte, N.C.
MANAGEMENT 17% 45% 38%
Workers in more senior positions RECEPTIVE NEUTRAL NOT RECEPTIVE
have higher receptivity to PROFESSIONAL/TECHNICAL STAFF 11% 27% 62%
unassigned seating. ADMINISTRATIVE 11% 29% 60%
INDUSTRY
TECHNOLOGY 27% RECEPTIVE 40% NEUTRAL 33% NOT RECEPTIVE
CONSUMER GOODS/RETAIL 20% 34% 46%
Those working in legal, government,
defense, or energy industries may be least MANAGEMENT ADVISORY 20% 38% 42%
receptive to unassigned seating. FINANCIAL/INSURANCE 18% 34% 48%
SCIENCES 10% 34% 56%
MEDIA 10% 59% 31%
NOT-FOR-PROFIT 10% 30% 60%
ENERGY 9% 32% 59%
GOVERNMENT/DEFENSE 9% 27% 64%
LEGAL 7% 28% 65%
Receptivity to unassigned seating by role and by industry.
14 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 15
FINDINGS
Out-of-office mobility is also a key TIME SPENT IN THE OFFICE
strategy to improve workplace 5 DAYS
50%
effectiveness and experience.
4 DAYS
23%
People still spend the majority of their far from universal. Overall, mobile workers
working time in the office—and that time, tend to have higher effectiveness (WPI)
and the quality of that environment, and experience (EXI) scores. These workers
are directly associated with higher are also the most engaged. Mobility may
performance. Interestingly, the ability to put pressure on how teams collaborate, but
work away from the office for a portion those who are most mobile are also highly
of one’s workweek also shows positive likely to have an awareness of what their
benefits—effectiveness outside the office colleagues are working on.
LESS THAN 3 DAYS
brings effectiveness back to the office too.
Increased mobility may have a greater 17%
While broad measures of autonomy and impact on those in more senior positions
mobility—like having choice in where compared to professional, technical, and
to work during an average day—are administrative workers. The relationship
unequivocally associated with higher of mobility to performance varies by the
performance, the right amount of time nature of the individual’s work.
3 DAYS
working in versus away from the office is
10%
WORKPLACE EFFECTIVENESS (WPI) WORKPLACE EXPERIENCE (EXI) Half of the workforce spend at least
one day per week away from their
MANAGEMENT
primary office.
LESS THAN 3 DAYS 81 82
Percent of respondents within each mobility profile.
3 DAYS 70 70
4 DAYS 67 66
5 DAYS 66 63
40 90 40 90
PROFESSIONAL/TECHNICAL
Innovation Job satisfaction
LESS THAN 3 DAYS 61 61
For professional/technical workers, time 4.4
3 DAYS 61 61
spent in the office doesn’t have as large an 4.2
4 DAYS 62 60
impact on effectiveness and experience. 3.7
5 DAYS 60 57 3.5
40 90 40 90
ADMINISTRATIVE/SUPPORT STAFF 5 DAYS LESS THAN 5 DAYS LESS THAN
3 DAYS 3 DAYS
LESS THAN 3 DAYS 60 58 Administrative and support staff shows
3 DAYS 66 66 the best effectiveness and experience
4 DAYS 63 62 when working three days in the office
5 DAYS 60 57
during an average week.
40 90 40 90
Innovation is measured by the Innovation Index, a composite score
Percent of respondents within each mobility profile, of how innovative an employee sees their company to be. Job
top performers compared to average. satisfaction is measured on a 5-point agreement scale.
16 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 17FINDINGS
In an era of choice, the office is still
people’s preferred place to work, but
only if it’s designed to support their work.
The more choices people have in where above all other places. For those whose
to work, the more important it is to workplaces aren’t performing, they would
understand their preferred work settings. rather work from home.
We asked respondents a simple question—
where would you prefer to work among The additional benefits of high-
four options: a coffee shop, a coworking performance workplace environments
space, your home, or your company’s are myriad and well-proven by both this
workplace? The workplace and people’s and prior Gensler Workplace Surveys.
homes consistently outrank the other Employees in high-performing workplaces
choices, but another interesting insight rate their company in a more positive
also emerged. When we segment our light, are more empowered to experiment
data between those with the highest and with new ways of working, are more aware
lowest WPI scores, we found that the of the impact of their work and what their
workers with the highest WPI scores— colleagues are working on. They’re also
those with the best performing, best more engaged, more satisfied with their
designed workspaces—prefer working jobs, and more likely to recommend their
from their company’s office location company as a place to work.
Confidential Tech Client, Santa Clara, Calif.
My company is I am empowered to I am aware of Job Likelihood to
PREFERRED PLACE TO WORK, PEOPLE IN PREFERRED PLACE TO WORK, PEOPLE IN considered a leader experiment with new what other teams satisfaction recommend company
LOWEST-PERFORMING WORKPLACES HIGHEST-PERFORMING WORKPLACES in its industry ways of working in my company
are working on 4.6 4.6
4.5
1 Home My company’s workplace 4.2 4.2
2 My company’s workplace Home
3.4
3 Coworking Coworking 3.0 3.1 3.0
LOWEST HIGHEST
WPI WPI 2.7
4 Coffee shop Coffee shop
Respondent rankings of their preferred place to work, lowest performing Measures of employee engagement and performance, lowest performing workplaces
workplaces vs. highest as measured by WPI score. vs. highest as measured by the WPI score. All scores are on a 5-point scale.
18 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 19CONCLUSION
To create an optimal workplace,
understand what kind of workplace is
right for your organization.
Create a workplace strategy with the granularity Be careful with unassigned seating—making it
and flexibility to support different worker needs. work requires extra attention, and often a wider
The complexity, dynamism, and rapid change of work variety of alternative work spaces. The general
mean the response time of the work environment is sentiment among workers: unassigned seating sounds
narrowing. As new forms of mobility—both in and stressful and confusing. Half of people currently
away from the office—continue to enter the workplace without assigned spaces would prefer to keep it that
ecosystem, continually measuring what does work, way; the other half would want an assigned seat back.
as well as what doesn’t, is imperative. Responses on Don’t underestimate the importance of consistency
the part of employers and those managing real estate and ownership provided by one’s desk, and weigh the
need to be just as fast as the impact of change on space-saving and collaborative benefits of unassigned
workers. When the impact of a shift appears negative, seating against the potential negative impacts on
that doesn’t mean reverting back to old modes of performance, experience, and individual work. And if
work—but it also doesn’t mean expecting workers to you do implement unassigned seating, make sure to
eventually adapt and fall in line. focus on design strategies that address the increased
need for on-demand privacy, and the acute issues of
cleanliness, storage, and ergonomics.
20 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 Etsy, Brooklyn, N.Y. 21APPENDIX | RESEARCH HISTORY
History
Gensler’s U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 is relates to employee effectiveness,
the latest iteration of ongoing research on business performance, and innovation.
the workplace, which began in 2005.
A subsequent survey in 2006 established This report represents the integration
the connections between workplace of our historic workplace surveys with Gensler 2013 U.S. Workplace Survey / Key Findings 3
design,
2
employee productivity, and
Gensler 2013 U.S. Workplace Survey / Key Findings recent insights into the nature of Gensler 2013 U.S. Workplace Survey / Key Findings 3
Gensler 2013 U.S. Workplace Survey / Key Findings 3
business competitiveness. In 2008, experience, drawing from the 2017
our research established a framework Gensler Experience Index. These
for understanding knowledge work questions, in addition to existing
HISTORY OF GENSLER
WORKPLACE
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modes”—focus, collaborate, learn, direct comparison with data collected
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uncovers thatPerformance
the effectiveness
of space for focus is a key
Index
driver
uncovers that the
(WPI)ofdatabase
Analysis
effectiveness
Performance
key drivers of satisfaction,
Gensler’s Workplace in the workplaceFocus,
performance,
Index (WPI) database
and innovation.
emerge
MIDDLE as EAST
balance,
in WORKPLACE
key drivers of satisfaction,
and choice
the workplace emerge as
61%
of local workers have a
private office; only 39% of
expat workers have one.
SURVEY 2016 of LATIN AMERICA
WORKPLACE
office. Employees at to
top-performing
WORKPLACE of the effectiveness of for
other work SURVEY
U.S. WORKPLACE
productivity. They also report of workers. Management-level productivity. They also report SURVEY
workers.2016
Management-level which
companies value work
understand
SURVEY emerge
modes more
time at the
as the framework through 52%
of workers would prefer an
of space
modes and workplace
focus is a keythat
uncovers
performance
driver
the effectiveness performance, and key innovation.
drivers of satisfaction,
2020
WORKPLACE
open environment as long as
the work environment as very respondents note workplace the work environment as very respondents note workplace office. Employees at top-performing of the effectiveness of other workis a key driver
SURVEY 2016 which to understand time at the of space for focus performance, and innovation.
private spaces are available.
2019
48%
2016 2017 2019 2020
of workers currently sit in
highly and have spaces that more as a whole. modes and workplace performance
shared offices of 2–6 people.
important to job satisfaction. has a positive effect on the important to job satisfaction. has a positive effect on the companies value workVery
office. modes
few
Employeesmore
people
at top-performing of the effectiveness of other work
bottom line and company
SURVEY 2017
bottom line and company effectively support
highlyeach
37%
one. spaces that more
andsay
have
of workers have to work in the
companies as a whole.
their idealvalue work modes more
workplace modes and workplace performance
same space most of the time.
51%
KEY FINDINGS | EXTENDED REPORT of the average Middle East
competitiveness. competitiveness. effectively support each one.
workers’ week is spent in the
highly is“totally open”that more
and have spaces as a whole.
México DF
office; locals spend even less,
only 40%.
U.S. & ASIA WORKPLACE SURVEY San José
Medellín
UK & LATIN AMERICA WORKPLACE SURVEYS effectively support each one.
Quiet zones in offices U.S. & GERMANY WORKPLACE SURVEYS MIDDLE EAST WORKPLACE SURVEY
Findings connect workplace design directly Additional global surveys uncover global have significantly higher Research integrates new questions focused on Data uncovers significant differences in the
Bogotá
impact than break rooms
to organizational innovation and an Lima
differences in social behavior, and problems One in seven corporate well-being and experience, and challenges the workplace experience of expats compared
employees use coworking
“innovation ecosystem.” Rio de Janeiro
São Paulo
with workplace equity. during an average week open/closed office debate. to locals.
Santiago
Buenos
Aires
74%
of employees at the most
I innovative companies work
away from their primary
workspace regularly.
22 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 23APPENDIX | GLOBAL COMPARISONS
The U.S. workplace is falling
behind its global peers.
The decline in performance for U.S. WORKPLACE EFFECTIVENESS (WPI) WORKPLACE EXPERIENCE (EXI)
workplaces represents a marked shift—
workplace performance lags behind recent MIDDLE EAST 2020 70 U.S. 2020 64
data collected in other global markets. As
a market that often acts as the bellwether
LATIN AMERICA 2017 69 GERMANY 2019 59
for global trends, this shift in performance
is worth noting. JAPAN
UK 2016 67 2020 47
While the dynamism of today’s workplace
40 80
makes it hard to attribute this shift to any
U.S. 2020 66
one factor, the various forms of mobility
studied in this report are likely at play. In
particular, a rise in unassigned seating and GERMANY 2019 65
continued challenges of open environments
may explain lower performance. JAPAN 2020 54
40 80
24% 27%
INDIVIDUAL OFFICE
38% 37%
LATIN
GERMANY JAPAN U.S. U.S.
OPEN PLAN AMERICA 41% MIDDLE EAST
2019 2020 2020 2020 2017 2020
42%
11%
18%
SHARED OFFICE OF 2
8% GROUP OFFICE OF 3–6
24% 18%
58% 55% 48% 12%
6%
21% 4%
26%
26% 15%
MIDDLE LATIN
AMERICA UK UK GERMANY JAPAN
EAST 2020 2016 12% 2016 2019 2020
2017
50%
17% 24% 24%
75%
42% 33% 30%
U.S. WORKERS ARE ONLY AVERAGE ON CHOICE SHARED OFFICES ARE UNCOMMON IN THE U.S.
By global region, percentage of workers who report they have choice in Type of individual work setting employees have, by global region. Data is
where to work. Data is from most recent Workplace Survey in each country, from most recent Workplace Survey in each country, conducted between
conducted between 2019 and 2020. 2016 and 2020.
24 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 25APPENDIX | RESEARCH METHODS APPENDIX | THE WPIx
Methods Applied Research Tools: the WPIx SM
400,000+
This survey represents data collected Survey questions included those from Gensler’s Workplace Performance Index to measure the success of the design
via an online survey conducted among Gensler’s WPI and EXI alongside additional (WPIx) is a proprietary, web-enabled solution. By using a core set of parallel
5,000+ anonymous, panel-based questions that asked respondents to rate survey tool designed to measure the questions, individual projects can then
respondents representing a broad cross their workspaces and companies across performance of an individual workplace or be directly benchmarked against the client respondents
section of demographics, including a variety of factors, including innovation, portfolio for our clients. The tool is used results of national surveys to put project
education, age, gender, and geographical motivation, choice, and technology, as well for both pre- and post-occupancy analysis work into a context of broader knowledge
50+ 11
location. Respondents do not work for as individual patterns of behavior to allow for comparisons and to document and trends in workplace design.
Gensler, are not necessarily working for and preferences. improvements in workplace effectiveness.
Gensler clients or in Gensler-designed At the beginning of a project, the WPIx WPI surveys are conducted as a part
spaces, and were recruited via a third- The Gensler Research Institute team is used to gather employee input on of direct client engagements. The
employed inferential statistics techniques, results of WPI surveys are collected in
countries languages
party panel provider. how they work, space effectiveness, and
such as multiple linear regression, workplace experience factors to inform a separate database from Workplace
Respondents were required to be full- bivariate correlation, and analysis of design decisions. Survey responses. The WPI database
time knowledge workers who work in an variance (ANOVA), as well as descriptive now has over 400,000 survey responses
office some or all of the time, and work for statistics, to derive these findings. For all Post-occupancy, typically 3 to 6 months from employees of Gensler clients.
companies with more than 100 employees inferential statistical tests, the Institute after move-in, employees are surveyed
within 10 designated industry segments. team utilized a p-value cutoff of 0.005.
WORKPLACE EXPERIENCE FRAMEWORK
LEGAL FINANCE
9% 10%
NOT-FOR-PROFIT
10% MANAGEMENT/
ADVISORY
10% MALE
36% CULTURE
ENERGY MISSION & INSPIRATION
10% INDUSTRY TECHNOLOGY GENDER
10%
EMPOWERMENT & AWARENESS
GOVERNMENT/ CREATIVITY & INNOVATION
CONSUMER GOODS DEFENSE
11% 11% FEMALE
64%
SCIENCES MEDIA
10% 9%
SPACE INTERACTION
FUNCTIONALITY & EFFECTIVENESS SOCIAL CONNECTION
GEN Z EXECUTIVE
BABY BOOMER 2% VARIETY & CHOICE TECHNOLOGY & TOOLS
ADMIN 10%
19% 21% AESTHETICS AUTONOMY
MILLENNIAL
GENERATION
43%
ROLE BEHAVIOR
MANAGEMENT
35% REFLECTION & EXPERIMENTATION
WORKING AWAY FROM THE DESK
GEN X PROF/TECH
34% WORK MODES
36%
26 U.S. Workplace Survey 2020 27Bibliography
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statistics-trends
Photo Credits
Cover Jasper Sanidad
C2 Gensler/Heywood Chan
9 Rafael Gamo
12 Nicole England (top), Gensler/Ryan Gobuty (middle), Garret Rowland (bottom), Benny Chan (right)
13 Garrett Rowland (top), Jasper Sanidad (middle), Jason O’Rear (bottom)
14 Connie Zhou
19 Jasper Sanidad
21 Garrett Rowland
C3 Jason O’Rear
Team Oversight Analytics Team Editorial Team Design Team
Diane Hoskins Michelle DeCurtis Tim Pittman Laura Latham
Janet Pogue Isabel Kraut Kyle Sellers Minjung Lee
Christine Barber Justin Chase
Jerde Analytics
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This document may not be reproduced without prior consent from Gensler.
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A publication of the Gensler Research Institute
The Gensler Research Institute is a collaborative combination of global and local research grants,
network of researchers focused on a common goal: and external partnerships, we seek insights focused
to generate new knowledge and develop a deeper on solving the world’s most pressing challenges.
understanding of the connection between design, We are committed to unlocking new solutions and
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