How do I get my employees back to the office? And why would I even want to?

This article is part of the column "wow: New Ways of Working" by Martina Rahmfeld at OfficeRoxx, the blog for the future of work.

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"My right, right seat is free...": What reminds us of childhood games has found its way into the office. Although employees are able to return to the corporate office after the pandemic, we see many empty desks. Why should employees even come into the office at all?

Sitting together doesn't mean working together

Just because colleagues sit next to each other doesn't mean they collaborate better. Forcing employees back to the office as a matter of principle usually backfires, as Apple and Allianz-Re have impressively demonstrated. The question is: What problems are we trying to solve or avoid? And is returning to the office the best answer for that?

Let's try to find some answers: As early as the 1970s, Prof. Allen showed that people who are in close physical proximity communicate with each other more frequently. The positive impact of communication is well-documented. Interestingly, follow-up studies have shown that this correlation between physical proximity and communication intensity has not changed due to digital tools. We communicate more with people we see more often, even digitally.

"A nice, attractive office alone will not create enough of a pull to bring people back."

Furthermore, we know that over 90 percent of a message is conveyed non-verbally through tone, gestures, and facial expressions—levels that are only limited in digital environments. However, especially for important, emotional, or creative topics, it is crucial to utilize all levels of communication. For this, synchronous interaction, such as in the office, remains the best channel.

But why aren't employees coming into the office? Are incentives missing, or can they work better at home? Is it convenience? Commute time? Flexibility?

Work has decoupled from location

The office has competition. Functionality, quality, and atmosphere must be compelling to make the trip worthwhile. Who wants to voluntarily stand in traffic or wait for a delayed train just to hold video conferences in a dreary, light-gray open-plan office and be pulled out of their focus by loud colleagues?

What must the office offer in the future? First and foremost, working there must actually function. Anyone who has looked into approaches like Activity-Based Working knows that the "old office," consisting only of a desk and a meeting room, is the studio flat of the office world.

By adding spaces that support different activities, I gain added value. And yet, a nice, attractive office alone will not create enough of a pull to bring people back. As part of professional development, it will be important to learn how to work remotely, communicate digitally, and work efficiently in flexible office structures in order to assess the pros and cons of each working method and location.

A game-changer in my eyes

The shift in perspective from me as an individual to the team. How can my team achieve the best results? Let your teams (the entire company is too abstract) decide together when it makes sense to come together and develop binding guidelines. Because the team is a unit where we instinctively want to be liked and are willing to compromise.

What speaks for this? A study by D&S showed that employees come to the office more often when they can freely decide how often they come. If you set an upper limit, it is usually maxed out. If we remember the reasons why employees should return to the office, the office serves synchronous communication, including non-verbal levels, and fosters informal exchange.

Hybrid meetings are always difficult and generally only work well when it comes to pure information sharing. We should be aware of this. Digital communication forms the backbone of hybrid teams, holding remote and on-site workers together. It has become enormously important, even for informal exchange. According to the MIT Media Lab, teams that communicate informally a lot—both digitally and in person—are on average 33 percent more productive.

Remote work is here to stay—let's use the best of both worlds to collaborate better.

👉 To the column at OfficeRoxx