What do you want from your workplace? Amiable colleagues, a decent coffee machine and an open-plan office? Or your own space, flexible hours and high-speed internet access? Everyone's idea of the perfect working environment is different. But there are at least a few ideals we can all agree on.
first direct's Colourful Lives survey asked employees from a range of sectors what they thought was required to create the ideal workplace. And it found that, for many, what they want is surprisingly similar.
Perhaps unsurprisingly however (given the penchant for after-work drinks and office parties), "friendly colleagues" topped the most-wanted list, with 69% of the survey's respondents listing it as important.
Of the remaining top five most-wanted qualities listed in the survey, three highlight how 21st-century ideals are making their way into the modern workplace.
Creating a work/life balance
Flexible hours, an informal environment and a casual dress code are all recent additions to the expectations of the average employee. As working from home or part-time becomes more common, it also becomes more desirable. And when people shed their suits and ties in favour of smart jeans and funky trainers, they also shed the expectation that leaving the house for work means leaving their comfy clothes behind.
But employees are not the only ones to benefit. Respondents were most likely to feel that they were more productive if their employer and workspace suited their individual needs. Conversely, employees who attributed negative qualities to their company – that they are old-fashioned, slow to respond to change or boring – are significantly more likely to believe that they work in an unproductive environment.
But while those surveyed broadly agree on what they want from their workplaces, they are not all striving for the same ideal.
Although most could agree that new-age fads such as break-out areas and creative zones are unimportant (registering support levels in the survey of less than 7%), other modern working concepts tended to split respondents. Age was often a factor, with the older and younger generations disagreeing on what was important and what is and is not acceptable in the workplace.
Generation gap
The upper age groups were more likely to place value on the encouragement of ideas, but those aged 16-24 valued friendly colleagues more highly. Perhaps this age group are unlikely to have yet started a family and therefore are more likely to be looking to forge relationships at work. Whereas larger numbers of 35-54 year-olds –perhaps more likely to have families with school-age children – agreed that leaving work early occasionally was acceptable.
Similarly, flexible working was seen as more acceptable among older workers: 88% of those aged over 55 cited it as important compared with 71% of those aged 16-34. And this seems likely to continue, with 92% of those aged over 55 expecting flexible working to become more common. Only 74% of 16-24 year olds expect the same.
One thing that is obvious is that the workplace must respond to the needs of its workforce. With higher expectations and more demand for flexibility, the workplace of the future may be unrecognisable to the workforce of today.
But there is one thing which we can all agree on: the perfect workplace is a work in progress.
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