Employee Incentives News: What makes employees more productive in the office?

Surveying over 600 office workers, Peldon Rose, the office design specialists have come up with the answers to some pressing questions we all wonder.
What makes employees more productive in the office?
Should you invest in better air con or an environment with more outdoor space?

What may surprise you about The Happy Office Survey is that instead of wanting big bucks and to take the money and run, in fact, most staff are willing to sacrifice their salary and spend more time in the office in exchange for a refurbished office with enhanced facilities.

This hints that the importance of improving an office environment should not be underestimated in its powers!

Functioning facilities

It is vital for employers to provide their staff with the right facilities to help them keep mentally and physically healthy during the warmer months. Two thirds of staff claim the office environment is a key factor in keeping them happy at work yet, despite this, employers are failing to offer them the facilities to do so.
Staff value air conditioning the most (60%), followed by outdoor spaces (57%) and natural light (40%), yet a worrying 37% do not have air conditioning, nor outdoor spaces (66%), nor access to natural light (39%) during the working day. Furthermore, 34% appreciate showers and changing facilities to help them keep active and healthy, yet 65% don’t have any.

To appeal to and keep the best talent under their roof, employers must provide their staff with a comfortable environment in the summer months, with the means to maintain both their physical and mental wellbeing. Why not analyse how staff use your office to see whether underutilised spaces can be transformed into wellbeing facilities?

Salary sacrifice and longer hours

The survey discovered the sad reality that only 36% of the UK workforce enjoy coming to work every day, and 42% feel their current office does not have a positive impact on their happiness. This is a worrying trend given two thirds see the office environment as a key factor in keeping them happy at work. Yet, when asked how to address this issue, the survey generated some surprising responses. 31% of employees revealed they would sacrifice at least 1% of their salary for an office refurbishment with enhanced facilities, and 66% claimed they would spend more hours in the office if extra facilities were provided. Employers should take note, as our statistics have shown the vast benefits that a strategic allocation of funds to improve the workplace, by introducing facilities such as a canteen, gym or showers, can bring.

Team bonding

Providing staff with facilities that motivate them to spend more time in the workplace will in turn present them with more opportunities to bond with their colleagues and strengthen their team – essential criteria for a happy office. Imperative to staff happiness is building relationships with peers and colleagues (75%) and those managing them (68%) – a factor accentuated in the summer months, with 87% of staff stating summer perks would help them bond with their colleagues. Firms should take advantage of this during the warmer weather and ensure there are adequate opportunities for their employees to do so, by planning simple, relaxing and fun events for their workforce to get to know each other, boosting collaboration and building stronger teams.
So – whether you get the basics right with air conditioning, outdoor spaces and natural light or work to make a more social workplace to help team bonding, the right office space may be the secret to unlocking increased productivity!

Incentive and Motivation offers the latest news in employee benefits, rewards, incentive programmes and recognition. Discover the best employee engagement platform, learn about communicating your incentives or the latest tech in the HR space. Popular posts:

• Understanding motivation and incentives in the workplace
• How to align incentives with your business goals
• The importance of incentives
• Using incentives to win new business
• Creative rewards for employees
• Rewarding employees without cash
• How to reward employees for a job well done
• Rewarding in a global business
• Employee incentive program examples