flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Ability to focus, not perks, is top concern for office employees

Office Buildings

Ability to focus, not perks, is top concern for office employees

Open-plan offices found to worsen distraction problem.


By Peter Fabris, Contributing Editor | June 16, 2016
Ability to focus, not perks, is top concern for office employees

Open concept meeting space in an office in Redmond, Wash. Photo: Wonderlane/Creative Commons.

Employees’ top priority in an office environment is to be able to focus without interruptions, according to research by Oxford Economics.

A global survey of more than 1,200 senior executives and non-management employees found that employees want office designs to foster the ability to concentrate, more than any other factor.  Amenities like free food, for instance, are far less important, the research shows.

Managers and employees have much different views on this issue. Nearly two-thirds of executives say employees are equipped with the tools they need to deal with distractions at work; but less than half of employees agree with that notion.

The research suggests that the growing popularity of open-plan offices comes with a cost: Difficulty for many employees to get their work done without distractions. In addition, most managers do not have the technology or strategies in place to deal with these problems.

Related Stories

Wood | May 14, 2021

What's next for mass timber design?

An architect who has worked on some of the nation's largest and most significant mass timber construction projects shares his thoughts on the latest design trends and innovations in mass timber.

Steel Buildings | Apr 17, 2021

Speed Core wall system is used for the second time in office building in San Jose

The construction method is expected to knock off three months from the project’s schedule.

Office Buildings | Apr 5, 2021

FXCollaborative selected to create new lobby, amenity space for 3 Times Square

FXCollaborative designed the original building in 2001.

Office Buildings | Apr 5, 2021

Innovation One completes at University Research Park in Madison, Wis.

Valerio Dewalt Train designed the project.

Office Buildings | Mar 30, 2021

WELL Institute certifies a gigantic office complex with its highest health and safety rating

Poland’s Olivia Business Center one of the first to install ion air purification devices.

Office Buildings | Mar 26, 2021

Finding success for downtown office space after COVID-19

Using the right planning tools can spur new uses for Class B and C commercial real estate.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category



Sustainable Design and Construction

Northglenn, a Denver suburb, opens a net zero, all-electric city hall with a mass timber structure

Northglenn, Colo., a Denver suburb, has opened the new Northglenn City Hall—a net zero, fully electric building with a mass timber structure. The 32,600-sf, $33.7 million building houses 60 city staffers. Designed by Anderson Mason Dale Architects, Northglenn City Hall is set to become the first municipal building in Colorado, and one of the first in the country, to achieve the Core certification: a green building rating system overseen by the International Living Future Institute.


MFPRO+ News

San Francisco unveils guidelines to streamline office-to-residential conversions

The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection announced a series of new building code guidelines clarifying adaptive reuse code provisions and exceptions for converting office-to-residential buildings. Developed in response to the Commercial to Residential Adaptive Reuse program established in July 2023, the guidelines aim to increase the viability of converting underutilized office buildings into housing by reducing regulatory barriers in specific zoning districts downtown. 

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021