Data vs. Opinion - How to Spark Intelligent Workplace Design

What drives productivity, employee retention and a sense of belonging in the workplace? Employee experience—yet this remains one of the biggest dilemmas facing organizations right now.

Today’s business leaders recognize its importance. In a recent Deloitte survey, 84% of respondents said the need to improve the employee experience is an important issue, and 28% identified it as one of the three most urgent issues facing their organization in 2019.

To address this challenge, many companies have invested large sums into workplace transformation projects—from refurbishments to relocation fit-outs. But these are not always effective. In fact, research from Leesman shows that just 34% of these projects deliver high performance results. And that’s not for lack of energy and investment.

The problem is that all too often, workplace design is tethered to a top-down process where assumptions about the workspace are formulated by experts and the C-Suite. Those assumptions are then realized as actions with little to no benefit to the employee. In other instances, organizations may adopt a “copy & paste” strategy where they simply replicate what other companies have successfully implemented.

It’s a costly approach that can be hit and miss, or worse, counterproductive. The approach has to change—workplaces are complex and people are too. The solution to the employee experience challenge is rooted in meeting people’s needs through intelligent workplace design. And with the dawn of technologies and tools that make intelligent design a reality, organizations can embark on that journey, making the timely and informed decisions required to execute a best-in-class experience.

Yannick Villar, experience design expert and Co-Founder of Wx*, a consulting studio on workplace experience, shares two truths foundational to this type of design and describes how data-driven solutions are essential for effective workplace transformation.