3 Ways to Create a Destination Workplace

Thousands of companies continue to offer their employees the flexibility to work remotely, but a large portion of those organizations still expect some time spent in the office. As employees have become accustomed to working offsite, companies are now faced with a new challenge: How do they make people want to come back?

Companies have to offer incentives to entice employees to give up their alternative work locations and happily show up to the office. That’s no easy task, considering the convenience of a home office or the quiet of a cozy coffee shop.

Not long ago, it was understood that if you worked somewhere, you physically worked there, at that location, every day. Nowadays, with so many people working remotely at least part of the time, that old concept becomes murky. When work can be done anywhere, getting people to come into the office, even for a few days a week, can be a real challenge.

To encourage employees to work onsite, many companies are striving to make the office a captivating destination with a healthy, happy culture that facilitates meaningful connections between employees, teams, and leadership. To achieve that, corporate facility managers can use their office real estate to connect the workforce across the onsite and offsite divide. The office essentially becomes a “destination workplace” that draws people back.

So, how do companies make the office into a destination workplace? Here are three ways.

Give employees extra incentives they can’t get at home that offer a sense of belonging and community. Those can include things like in-office health and wellness checks, nutrition classes, team-building events, and ways to unwind during lunch breaks – think 15-minute massages or a quiet room dedicated to mental breaks and meditation. You can even hold annual onsite flu vaccinations as part of your workplace wellness program. Encourage employees to take advantage of these perks, and make sure to stress that they’re only available onsite. Leverage your office real estate to create dedicated spaces for different uses.

Here’s another big incentive: Free stuff. Who doesn’t love to get something for free? Free food, free drinks, free Wi-Fi, free cable in the breakroom… it’s all good. This doesn’t have to mean a full buffet spread for everyone every day. Most budgets won’t allow for that. Even if it’s just free coffee and cookies, it’s still something employees can only get by coming into the office. Plus, free coffee and snacks in the office means employees don’t need to stop what they’re doing to leave and get it themselves, which maximizes time in their workdays.

Becoming a destination workplace isn’t just about the physical location. Employees don’t choose to work for a company just because it has nice offices (though it doesn’t hurt). Now that remote work is the norm, the state of the office isn’t nearly as important as other factors like salary, benefits, and bonuses like flexible schedules.

Find ways to make it worthwhile to be at your organization. Amenities and benefits add value, plus they’re crucial to attracting new hires and holding onto the people you have now. Think about how your company onboards new people who don’t come into the office or meet their peers in person. What’s that experience like for them? Employees choose companies not just because of what they do, but also because of how they do it.

Having a pulse on what workers want and need can help you add more value. Employee surveys, reviews, and evaluations can give valuable insight into the factors that are most important to workers. Use that information to make things better for current and future employees. Don’t stop at just one survey – continue to listen to workers and always maintain an open, honest dialogue.

Another intangible selling point is the reemergence of work-life balance. Working from home definitely has its good side, but it’s much harder to disconnect once the day is done. It’s tempting to read after-hours work emails when all you have to do is take a short walk from the couch to the computer. By working in the office again, employees can truly walk away from work at the end of the day. There’s a hard “closing time,” letting people unplug and shift focus back to their personal lives.

Bottom line: You want employees to come into the office and use the space. Shared office spaces like conference rooms or classrooms are excellent places to collaborate with peers, entertain clients, or hold trainings. But if booking shared spaces is too complex of a process, no one will use them regardless of how great they are.

Make it easy for people to book shared space by using technology. An online booking platform lets employees reserve rooms for in-person meetings and brainstorming sessions that can help strengthen relationships, establish trust, and amplify productivity.

A dedicated booking platform can transform your workplace into a destination by improving connectivity and mobility. The portal lets people check space availability, see event details, and make bookings quickly and easily. Employees get an ideal booking experience that encourages them to meet in person, boosting the sense of community across the entire organization. Larger, more complex events can be handled, too, with convenient self-service tools that guide users through the entire booking process, from space selection to audio/visual requests.

A destination workplace is a purposeful and carefully designed experience that promotes an emotional connection to company and colleagues. We know it’s hard to compete with home offices and coffee shops. But with onsite-only perks, attractive employment packages, and online space booking technology, you can turn your office into a place where people want to be.