OFFICE INVESTORS MUST SEEK TO INSPIRE

Last week supermarket chain Asda became the latest employer to demand its staff return to the office, insisting that staff at its offices in Leeds and Leicester spend at least three days a week at their desks from the new year, writes Kevin Atkins.

The supermarket is following a trend which has seen a growing number of businesses mandating a return to office, often with a minimum attendance per week, but with some (such as Amazon) telling their staff they expect them to be in the office full-time.

To sweeten the pill, Asda has promised to improve the working environment for its staff, equipping its offices with more meeting spaces, quiet-space working pods, new chairs and redecoration, as well as better on-site catering.

We are not immune from this trend here in Norfolk.  Whilst we haven’t seen many five-day mandates, we are definitely seeing more employers expecting staff to be physically present for at least some of the week.

Providing an attractive and inspirational place to work is part of this, and is perhaps the reason that demand for top-quality office space is outstripping supply – in Norwich at least.  This is despite there having been much investment in refurbishment and upgrading, in buildings such as Prospect House in the city centre, and on business parks on the periphery such as Broadland Business Park.

Creating a workplace which staff will feel happy attending is not about gimmicks such as ping-pong tables and slides.  Instead, it is the really important stuff which matters, including open plan design, natural light, soft furnishings and comfort (buildings which are warm in winter and cool in summer). 

Aesthetics are also increasingly important: an office must inspire rather than just offer functionality.  If employees feel uplifted by their physical environment they will want to be in it, and will give their best work when they are there.

This all means that for investors, bringing office buildings up to scratch is a must.  A building’s ESG credentials will have a direct impact on the potential for its capital and rental value, and it will be increasingly difficult to let lower quality offices to which occupiers will find it hard to attract staff back to work.

It is no longer enough to understand the needs of the occupier; satisfying the aspirations of their staff will play an increasingly important role in determining whether an office building is an attractive proposition or not.

We still don’t know what the situation will be when the WFH/RTO pendulum finally stops swinging (if it ever does).  But it seems certain that creating inspirational office environments will be a key part in investment success.