Workplace experiences as push and pull factors – How are perceived office conditions associated with teleworking preferences?

Abstract

Purpose The increase in teleworking has highlighted the role of office design in hybrid work. The purpose of this study is to examine employees’ workplace experiences as push and pull factors for working on-site. The study investigated which aspects of perceived office conditions are associated with employees’ preference to increase or decrease teleworking, taking into account other potential predictors of these preferences (i.e. demographic factors, psychosocial factors, employee well-being and work ability). Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional survey was conducted in four Finnish workplaces in autumn 2022 (n = 923). The offices mostly represented a modern activity-based design. The authors analysed the data using multinomial regression, and adjusted for gender, age and education. Findings The workplace experiences were mainly a push factor as, for example, insufficient workspaces for quiet work and spontaneous collaboration and the amount of work and storage space were associated with preferences to increase telework. Only task privacy was both a push and pull factor: better privacy was associated with a preference to decrease telework, and vice versa. The current amount of telework was related to telework preferences, whereas psychosocial factors, employee well-being and work ability were not. Practical implications Ensuring satisfactory task privacy and providing adequate workspaces for work requiring concentration appear particularly important in making the office more attractive in hybrid work. Office design should be considered an integral component of organizational models of hybrid work. Originality/value The study bridges research on telework and office design. It provides novel evidence on the role of the office in post-pandemic workplaces.