In our monthly surveys of 5,000 American workers and 500 U.S. employers, and in our numerous conversations with managers, a huge shift to hybrid work is abundantly clear for office and knowledge workers. An emerging norm is three days a week in the office and two at home, cutting days on site by 30% or more.
Why Companies Aren’t Cutting Back on Office Space
New survey data sheds light on three key reasons.
January 25, 2022
Summary.
As knowledge workers have shifted to hybrid, we’re not seeing an equivalent drop in demand for office space. New survey data suggests cuts in office space of 1% to 2% on average. There are three trends driving this: 1) Workers are uncomfortable with density, and the only surefire way to reduce density is to cut person days on site without cutting square footage; 2) Most employees want to work from home on Mondays and Fridays, which means the shift to hybrid affords only meager opportunities to economize on office space; and 3) Employers are reshaping office space to become more inviting social spaces that encourage face-to-face collaboration, creativity, and serendipitous interactions.