4 tips to encourage employees to return to the office

Since the generalization of teleworking, Many employees have taken a liking to remote working and no longer want to return to the office. At least not as much as before.

Why do some employees not want to return to the site? What initiatives have businesses put in place to make them want to come back?

In the rest of this article you will find all our tips and best practices for organizing the return to the office.

Discover m-work to organize the return to the office

Why are some employees reluctant to return to the office?

“Today, there may be a lack of desire to return to the site. And if it is to return to the old life, it is not certain that everyone will benefit”, analyzes David Mahé, director of Syntec Conseil and president of Human & Work.

In fact, Some employees are not ready to give up the advantages that teleworking offers them :

Saves transport time;
Better work-life balance;
More flexibility in its organization and its place of work and life

For others, the subject is return to the office in the same conditions as before the crisis.

Indeed, 70% of employees fear that their employer will not adapt their workplace, regulations, or requirements to hybrid work. (Owl Labs study, State of Hybrid Work 2022: France).

For a majority of employees, teleworking has become a must. So much so that, according to a study by the ADP Research Institute, 64% of workers are considering quitting if asked to return to the office full time.

Our advice to encourage your employees to return to the office

#1: Transform your offices

Work habits have changed and that is why offices must also evolve.

In fact, the office is no longer just a workplace but a meeting place. Employees must experience a convivial moment and are looking for a real added value in relation to their homes.

It is then a question of offering better equipped infrastructures and rooms. We can mention, for example, double screens or quality seats. That is everything that you cannot find at home and that allows you to work in better conditions.

For example, to motivate his teams to come back, the CEO of Zenchef decided to transform his offices.

“The real challenge was to bring the teams back when it worked well remotely,” he said.

To attract them, the Parisian company went to Flex Office. Employees now have a bar, a professional kitchen to organize events or receive customers, or even collaborative and comfortable spaces.

The place therefore only offers 35 positions for 60 employees. The office space has been divided by 3 and half of the remaining area is dedicated to living spaces.

Thus, to attract employees, offices must offer real added value, for example by offering relaxation areas, welcoming premises or even allowing employees to meet each other, something that when teleworking it is not possible to implement.

“In an office, you need to provide different types of environments. This ranges from community spaces where you're going to connect with people - that's why we're going to be back in the office - to spaces for “solo” work, and where you can have private calls.” . (Owl Labs)

#2: Offer more services than at home

Providing employees with offices and services that they do not have access to elsewhere is one of the keys to motivating them to return.

As we saw earlier, the office must offer innovative and collaborative workspaces. but if you do not have sufficient resources to completely transform your offices, providing services may be an alternative.

For example, the consulting firm Meritis organizes daily events to create a link between its collaborators:

Masterclasses;
code contests;
Meetups or networking evenings;
sporting events...

In addition, according to the Association of Workplace Environment Managers (IDET) businesses should “offer new experiences to employees, by focusing proposals on personalization”

For example, it is possible to offer employees services and activities that teleworking does not allow:

Of seminars or days devoted to creating relationships;
Offers from healthier restaurants, varied and in a short circuit;
Of wellness services (break room, mediation room, etc.).

#3: Strengthen the bond between employees

The workplace, unlike teleworking, allows employees to meet up to share a moment of conviviality. They can hold informal discussions there or work on a project during a face-to-face meeting.

“The days in the office are spent talking and seeing colleagues,” says Arnold Zephir, co-founder of Prevision.io.

So, the strengthening social ties is a key lever in order to motivate employees to return to the office.

Whereas two years ago, 60% of employees said they were satisfied with their work environment, they were only 48% in 2021, according to JLL.

“They certainly want to meet their colleagues again, but they are waiting for a new office. To meet the new requirements, businesses will have to offer an exceptional work experience,” adds JLL.

It is therefore imperative to maintain a high level of cohesion and connection. It goes through the good integration of new employees and the follow-up of the “old” ones.

#4: involving employees in decisions

In order to make employees want to return to the office again, Involve them in decisions, ask them for Feedback and thus showing that they are important in the eyes of your business is essential.

Thus, including your employees in important decisions can promote their engagement and their return to the office.

It is appropriate to Survey each employee, for example, through an anonymous internal communication tool, or during an individual interview.

The points to be addressed may include the following:

Do the Balance sheet From the employee's experience on the teleworking until then;
Understand his reticence as for returning to the office;
Understand What work organization is best for him (hybrid work, 100% remote work, etc...);
Specify together The goals of a new organization.

Supporting employees is the key to finding solutions adapted to everyone.

However, if that is not enough, a external support can be set up, as with Meritis.

“There are few of them, but we have had a few cases of people who are a bit phobic about going back to the office. We also invite our managers to pay attention to this point and to support employees”, indicates Eric Varache, HR Director at Meritis.

The consulting firm has thus decided to extend the use of a psychological support platform.

m-work and employee engagement

M-Work Is a tool that makes organizing hybrid work simple for businesses, managers and employees.

With a simple app offering visibility on coming to the office and team organization, m-work generates an average of 10 to 15% more return to the office. To find out more, Let's talk about it!