A survey released by international real estate advisor Savills and the British Council for Offices (BCO) has revealed what workers in Cardiff really want from their offices.
The What Workers Want poll of 1,132 office workers across the UK investigates the factors that are important to employees in the workplace, and how much they believe that their current environment satisfies those requirements. In Cardiff, workers prioritise the length of their commute, having good WiFi connections and a clean office environment, and put more emphasis on good public transport connections than their counterparts in the rest of the UK.
Gary Carver, director of business space in Savills Cardiff office, says “ It is unsurprising that the length of commute and good public transport are key factors for workers. Employers are ever mindful of this when weighing up their relocation options and this is why developments such as Central Square in Cardiff city centre is proving so popular given its proximity to public transport. The availability of quiet space, food facilities and the design of the office are also factors that score highly and therefore it is important that companies take these factors into account when designing the layout of the office in order to create the right environment in which to work.”
According to What Workers Want, there seems to be a significant mismatch between what Cardiff office workers deem important and current levels of satisfaction. By comparing these, it is possible to identify the size of the ‘frustration factor’ and thereby what organisations need to address in order to attract and retain staff.
Steve Lang, director in Savills research team and author of the report, adds: “Providing employees with a quiet space to work and keeping the office clean are easy ways to improve satisfaction and enhance productivity in the workplace. The frustration levels reported by Cardiff office workers show that if organisations don’t get the basic office design and infrastructure right it can be a major drain on productivity and risk annoying and alienating the workforce.”
Mark Alker Stone, BCO Regional Chair South West, South Wales & Thames Valle and Director AWW Architects, comments: “Having the right style and arrangement of workplace and ensuring that it is supported with state-of-the-art IT clearly plays a key role in staff satisfaction and can impact significantly on productivity, recruitment and staff retention. Looking closely at business location, access to good public transport and investing in smart design ideas for the workplace to create the best environment for employees, must be a top priority for decision makers looking to get the best out of their workforce.”