Written by Lillian StoneReporter Features
Getty ImagesBusinesses are seeking to bring back pre-pandemic perks and that “family” feeling — but employees want something more tangible.
Many employers are calling employees back to their offices, trying to restore the workplace of pre-pandemic days. Besides filling seats, they're also looking to bring back another impact: office culture.
Before 2020, office culture was synonymous with the “cool” office: think breakout spaces, stocked pantries, and all-you-can-eat office happy hours; Or luxury retreats and team building exercises aimed at fostering a sense of “family”. In years past, these perks have attracted many employees to the office — and in some cases, Entire companies have defined themselves by their office cultures.
The world of work looks very different than it did just a few years ago – yet many companies are still intent on recreating the office cultures that employees left behind when they left their desks in 2020. While these companies are making some gestures to adapt – for example by redesigning Spaces to accommodate new preferences and hybrid work habits – many are still intent on bringing back what attracted workers before the pandemic.
However, large segments of employees are simply not interested in going back. Instead of losing trust and waiting, employees are demanding flexible work, fair wages, and a focus on humanity in the workplace beyond the perks they sought years ago.
Georgina Fraser, head of human capital at global commercial real estate firm CBRE, says workers' changing priorities are a natural consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic. “The pandemic has given us independence in a way we didn't have before,” she says. “It gives us the opportunity to choose how we organize our workdays.”
Getty ImagesNow that workers have experienced this level of work-life balance, they will settle for nothing less. “After the pandemic, we've seen people become more vocal about what they want and need, not just from office culture, but from the wider world,” Fraser adds.
She says employees now aren't ashamed of “wanting to be seen as a whole human being — and that applies to their physical position, how [employers] Their management, what support they receive and how [employers] Integrating technologies between home and office in order to support them.”
A key factor in this changing situation is that many employees feel that office culture simply isn't viable in a remote and hybrid world., Where a physical office can feel unnecessary. Now that the workplace is no longer the cultural hub it once was, “companies are really struggling to redefine the role of the office,” says Louis Beck, head of workplace at CBRE in Europe. The office culture that was supposed to excite employees no longer has the same appeal when workplaces are only a third full.
And the workers who We are Those interested in office work — or being asked to do it — aren't looking for many of the perks that defined the culture before 2020. This is especially the case for younger employees.
“We call Generation Z the ‘activist generation,’ and we see them demanding more accountability,” Fraser says, pointing to amenities like gender-neutral restrooms, eco-friendly snack options, and office space that provide more opportunities for community building. She also points out: “We are seeing increased expectations around those moments that are not work-related – whereas, before the pandemic, people were focused on things.” [more strictly] At work.”
Plus, as younger people make up more of the workforce, they're not only unenthused by the office culture of the past — they've never experienced it.
“I've never known an office culture that wasn't remote,” says Jamie Masterson, 24, a digital marketing professional who entered the US workforce in 2021, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. “I've heard about the notorious 'fun' activities in the office – cool stop zones, ping-pong tables, things like that. I don't think I've ever been interested in them at all.”
Instead, Masterson is more concerned with tangible benefits like pay, health care and flexible leave. “People take breaks in their own way and can make connections in their own way. [Office perks] “Seeing them as ‘benefits’ compared to something that is actually useful — something monetary — during a time when people are in crisis and our country is in crisis, it seems a little tone-deaf.”
Amid years of mass layoffs that continue at a steady pace, workers have become more concerned with financial security and well-being. This can make the focus on office culture seem particularly distant to workers like Masterson.
Ultimately, there's nothing wrong with fun office perks — but if a company can't back them up with tangible benefits to improve employees' lives, they'll miss out on talent. “The next generation feels very comfortable advocating for their needs,” says Juan Franco, 32, an associate director of operations for higher education. “And if a company doesn't adapt to their needs, it can't expect to keep that employee happy.”
“Obviously culture is great, but at the end of the day, we all need to survive,” Masterson agrees.
