Dive Brief:
- Employees prefer working in the office at least four days a week much more than fully remote work or fully on-site arrangements, according to a new report by Lincoln Property Co.
- Nearly half of the 1,000 office workers polled across more than 20 sectors expressed a preference for four to five days in-office, while less than 20% expressed interest in fully remote work.
- Asked to name their top 3 amenities and motivators for in-office work, 50% of respondents said dedicated seats, 43% said private offices, and 36% said workplace functionality, per the real estate firm’s 2024 Workplace Survey report.
Dive Insight:
Every generational cohort named dedicated seats and private offices as a highly ranked motivator for in-office attendance, the report said.
Other amenities that Lincoln’s survey respondents ranked among their top three drivers of in-office attendance include access to dedicated meeting spaces (20%), events and activities (19%), shared informal meeting areas (18%), access to outdoor workspaces (17%), fitness centers (16%) and a pet-friendly ambience (15%).
Shorter commute times came in as“the most important office location consideration by a wide margin,” with 47% of respondents listing commute time as a key factor, the report says.
The importance of commute times comes as many organizations have shifted their real estate portfolio plans and increased desk-sharing, according to CBRE’s 2024 Americas Office Occupier Sentiment Survey, which polled 225 corporate executives with office portfolios across the U.S., Canada and Latin America.
About three-quarters of respondents in the Lincoln Property Co. survey said they wouldn’t even consider going into the office if it meant a round-trip commute longer than 45 minutes. Despite this sentiment, LPC noted that these shorter commutes are difficult to find in the nation’s most populous metro areas, with round trips averaging over an hour across the 15 largest office markets.
Thirty percent of Gen-Z respondents said childcare is a key driver, compared with 24% of millennials. Gen-Z respondents also rated shared meeting rooms and social events more strongly than millennials, Gen-X and baby boomers.
In contrast, Gen Z valued dedicated seats about half as much as baby boomers, who also placed nearly twice as much importance on commute times and workplace functionality then Gen-Z respondents. More than 60% of baby boomers said commute time is their single most important office location feature, compared with 32% of Gen Z respondents, the company noted.
Education levels of employees also exercise an influence on their work preferences, with employees lacking college degrees far more likely to be in the office than college graduates, Lincoln Property Co.’s report says. “Although employees lacking college degrees are happier to come to the office, many wish they could work an extra day or two per week from home,” the report says.
