In a market that is evolving at an ever-increasing rate, companies need to focus their attention not only on the external environment, but more importantly on internal spaces, aiming for what is known as organisational well-being, or rather the ability to promote and consolidate the physical, psychological and social well-being of employees – the key to being ever-increasingly competitive.

Achieving organisational well-being means above all focusing attention on the true driving force of the company – people – in order to have a positive influence on their health and increase their productive performance.

How can people’s well-being be improved?

There are many ways for a company to take action for the benefit of its employees. One of the most effective is to organise and optimise the company workspaces, developing new strategies for involving employees.

It is workers themselves who are ever increasingly demonstrating the need to be connected, to be a part of a community rather than an organisation, but above all to be involved in an experience that goes beyond their own workspace.

The real challenge is therefore the creation of workplaces that promote security and inclusion, contribution to the construction of a new generation of offices that radically change the perception of employees with regards to work.

The keyword is “involvement”

This magic word comes to life when employees are immersed in their work, when they are driven by enthusiasm, proactively and positively responding to the challenges presented by work.

However, there are still many companies that do not look at what is happening within their own walls, unlike other organisations that aim to involve their employees by creating a veritable experience within their offices.

These experiences are the result of the interaction between culture, technology and the physical environment in an organisation, as stressed by Jacob Morgan, the international best-selling author, in his book “The Employee Experience Advantage: How to Win the War for Talent by Giving” (2017).

Culture and technology have an influence on the perception that employees have of the workplace and the physical environment represents the key to providing them with a purpose and of lending value to everyone’s work.

When a company adopts this approach, excellent levels of organisational performance can be achieved.

Enviroment for work and performance 

Organisational well-being can be achieved with a targeted strategy that focuses mainly on the working environment.

A workplace that does not favour well-being has a negative effect on employee performance, creating unease and negative effects on output.

Disorganised workspaces and offices also cause increased stress, which according to the study by Wrike carried out on approximately 1,600 employees, affects 94% of people.

But is it worth redesigning the space and layout of an office to bring about radical change in employee well-being?

According to a report by the World Green Building Council aimed at examining the impact of action taken in United States companies concerning workspaces, 69% of these led to substantial improvements in employee satisfaction and involvement.

Furthermore, these companies experienced benefits such as:

• lower levels of absenteeism
• increased productivity
• more collaboration between employees

The answer, therefore, is yes, it is worth redesigning new offices and taking action with regards to the experience within the company.

It is estimated that people are 12% more likely to claim they are satisfied with their job when they have a sense of autonomy and freedom within their working environment.

This is why open-space layouts are ever more popular, as they favour sharing and collaboration between employees.

A workspace must therefore be designed not only in order to optimise the space, but also to focus on the employees, their needs and their requirements.

Where to intervene in order to achieve organisational well-being

Before defining the factors on which to act in order to achieve the maximum results from a workplace, it is necessary to stress how important it is to adopt a design approach rather than an implementational approach.

A design approach is seen as a new way to take on the construction of an office, a vision that is based on requirement and then leads to the setting up and verification of company spaces.

Without design, the risk is for workplaces to be created that may be visually attractive, but not functional with regards to actual company requirements.

Design is the true challenge for companies, which need to move beyond the vision of the traditional office and not limit themselves to aesthetics.

A complete design is aimed at studying every single factor that may influence company performance, such as spaces, which need to promote connection and sharing, without neglecting design, internal air quality, lighting, acoustics and layout.

Mobility also plays a fundamental role in office design.

According to a survey conducted by CBRE, 85% of people involved predict an increase in mobility within the workplace via offices that promote collaboration and favour movement. This also includes remote working, which in any case needs to be integrated into the in-company experience.

All these factors have a direct influence on the well-being of the employees, and if they are well-managed, they can increase levels of concentration and quality of life for people, also leading to tangible economic benefits for company success.