According to a Cisco study, the current workspace design, layout and technology have not kept up with changing employee expectations as the Filipino workforce believes that offices no longer fit their purpose.

The study “From Mandate to Magnet: The Race to Reimagine Workplaces and Workspaces for a Hybrid Future,” examined employee and employer attitudes about current workspaces. It found that 93 percent of companies in the Philippines have mandated a full or partial return to the office with productivity, team communication, and leadership pressure as key drivers.

“Our study reveals that employees in the Philippines have embraced hybrid work and are willing to return to the office more often, but with a caveat, workspaces must adapt to their evolving needs and expectations,” said Zaza Soriano-Nicart, managing director, Cisco Philippines. “In the era of hybrid work, employers need to reimagine their workspaces as a hub for collaboration and connect people in new ways with the right connectivity, collaboration tools, and culture.”

Contrary to the popular belief that most workers are reluctant to go back to the office, eight out of 10 (80 percent) employees in the Philippines responded positively to their organization’s mandate to return to the office, and 89 percent of employee respondents expressed a desire to return to the office at least a few times per week.

Despite the positive reception to the office return, employees’ motives for in-office work have significantly evolved. The main reason for their return is not individual work but rather to collaborate (82 percent), ideate and brainstorm with colleagues (65 percent), and foster a sense of belonging (45 percent). This shift signifies a change in employee expectations and needs for their workspaces.

Workspaces vs employee needs

Across the Philippines, 37 percent of employees believe that their office needs to be fully fit for purpose to do their best work. In fact, 73 percent of employees feel these need to be more conducive to collaboration and brainstorming purposes when referring to office layouts and seating arrangements. While there is a growing emphasis on collaboration, 78 percent of employers surveyed still allocate at least half of their offices to individual workspaces.

The study further highlights that workspaces must still be ready for this new working method. Employees feel that individual workstations (47 percent), large (55 percent), and small (69 percent) meeting rooms are ineffective at boosting productivity in the office or only do so moderately at best.

Technology infrastructure and integration are also an area of concern. Among employers who find meeting rooms ineffective in boosting in-office productivity, the main reasons are inconsistency in the experience for remote and in-office participants (50 percent), lack of inclusive audio and video endpoints (46 percent), poor quality of audio-visual expertise (43 percent) and insufficient audio and video endpoints (29 percent). On average, just over half (61 percent) of the meeting rooms across organizations are equipped with video and audio capabilities.