Charging Up

The study polled over 2,000 employees about their experience in the workplace, including the office design, culture, and how mobility affects their workday and productivity. Industry experts then layered their insights on top of the research.

Workplace mobility gives employees the freedom and infrastructure to work anywhere, from different spaces throughout the office (and beyond) and from any device. However, basic requirements such as access to WiFi and power can limit mobility.

According to PowWowNow’s annual flexible working study, 81 percent of modern workers today want a job that offers flexible working opportunities.

There are real benefits for employers who adopt a mobile workplace strategy as well, most notably, real estate savings. When y assigned desks are only occupied 20 to 40 percent of the time, companies that offer mobile working options can maximize the use of space and reduce the significant cost of maintaining pricey office space.

The study and expert insights confirm the implementation of new technology that enables a mobile workforce, such as mass deploying smart wireless charging, has the potential to increase efficiency, employee engagement and ultimately, productivity. While WiFi is now widely available in public and private spaces around the globe, access to power is the next vital connectivity problem to solve. Nothing happens without power.

The first area of the study examined how office mobility and design impacts employee satisfaction and productivity.

Interestingly, the report finds that employee collaboration and sociability, which drives workplace design and has led to the widespread implementation of the ‘open’ office space, fails to consider the current expectations and needs of employees seeking quiet zones and private spaces to think and complete assignments.

Also, 54 percent of employees polled in the study claimed the ability to concentrate on tasks with private spaces to work in is the most enjoyable aspect of the workplace culture and design. Meanwhile, 48 percent said seeking a quiet place to think was the most enjoyable part of the workday. These requirements seem to go against the modern trends of open plan working, unless concessions are made using design and technology to address and overcome these challenges.

For employers, an open floor plan initially designed to enhance collaboration among colleagues and highlight flat hierarchies, could equate to a loss in productivity. Recent research by Enigma suggests nearly an hour and a half are lost every day due to various disturbances in an open workspace.

The report goes on to uncover some more insights in this area, stating that employees are clearly in need of spaces away from the hustle and bustle of their desks situated in open office floor plans, with 39 percent stating their current office environment does not make that possible. Additionally, more than 27 percent of workers polled said their workspace is not setup to allow them to work away from their dedicated desk.

The study found the youngest employees (those 18-24 years old) most prefer workplace mobility. Having grown up in a time when they have been able to communicate from anywhere, while on the go, it is natural to expect this same mobility in the work environment. Offering options such as hotdesking (employees are not assigned a desk, rather they can use any available desk), shared spaces with social hubs, and private quiet spaces, are much more attractive to millennials than conventional office design with assigned workspaces. Millennials want to be stimulated and excited by the company they work for.

Workplace mobility options must be built on sound technological foundations in order to drive real benefits to employees and employers.

However, the study finds that less than half of employees surveyed said their current office setup allowed them to work away from their desks. Furthermore, 18 percent of workers agreed the current available technology deployed in the workplace hinders their productivity. If an employee is tied to a dedicated desk, a full 20 percent agrees current workplace tech solutions do not meet their needs and expectations for achieving the greatest productivity during the workday.

To facilitate workplace mobility, facility managers and employers must address all connectivity barriers. One of the most important aspects to consider is convenient access to power. Wireless charging, the ability to charge a device when it is placed on a wireless charger, instead of carrying plugs, cords and finding spaces near electrical sockets (generally near the floor), throughout the office space will allow employees to take advantage of workplace mobility.

“Lack of ability to charge is the third strongest reason why employees are reluctant to move away from dedicated desks (68 percent of people have strong to middling concerns),” according to a recent Workplace Mobility study by WeWork.

For employers, wireless charging allows companies to make informed decisions about office space utilization and employee mobility. When integrated with workplace management platforms, smart wireless charging can capture real-time data on employee behavior and space availability/usage, giving insights on which meetings rooms are available, for example, and directing employees towards under-utilized facilities.

Also, powered devices mean continuous access to modern workplace tools and apps, such as Slack, Dropbox, Google Drive, allowing employees to work on the go.

When it comes to leveraging technology in workplace design to increase productivity, a very eye-opening stat emerged, 46 percent of polled employees said it takes them four minutes or longer to setup meeting room technology in order to facilitate meetings in a timely manner, including sharing presentations on screen, finding and plugging in to power outlets and establishing conference calls.

When the number of meetings for most employees during the average workday is taken into consideration, that is a significant amount of time wasted. The time wasted setting up meeting rooms has cost the US economy somewhere between US$70 to nearly $300 billion. Losing 5 percent of the workday due to technical issues equates to 21 minutes of lost productivity per day, 1.75 hours per week, or one full working day per month.

Implementing smart technology solutions can introduce efficiencies that reduce time wasted and increase ROI. Smart wireless charging is one technology that can streamline tasks, especially as it connects with other technology and creates triggers. For example, when an employee enters a conference room and places their phone on charging spot it could automatically trigger various tasks to happen simultaneously such as turning on the lights, showing the meeting room as occupied, and initiating conferencing software to begin. As the employee leaves and removes their phone from the wireless charging spot, the room recognizes the meeting has ended and initiates the closing of the apps, lights, system.

Key findings of the study summarized:

• Technology enables workplace mobility.

• Designing the workplace for employees seeking quiet spaces and different spaces to work in (workplace mobility) will improve engagement and productivity.

• Workplace mobility increases efficiencies in the workday.

What actions should FMs take to ensure they are keeping the best employees engaged in the workplace?

Audit the current workplace mobility status to find opportunities to provide the experiences employees have expect and want. Then work with the IT department to find the latest technology solutions that could create a more mobile, productive workforce.

Design separate spaces for various tasks throughout the office, creating opportunities for employees to find quiet time to think and complete work, as well as open spaces for teams to collaborate.

Find and implement technology solutions that will allow employees to work in a more mobile way, for example, smart wireless charging for convenient access to power on the go, or intuitive check-in to cut down on time spent checking in to meeting rooms or hotdesks and facilitating conference calls.