September/October 2021 - Bay of Plenty Business News

20 BAY OF PLENTY BUSINESS NEWS September/October 2021
NEWSBRIEF
Results Released: The EMA
Workplace Wellbeing Survey
Nearly 600 respondents participated in
the inaugural EMA Workplace Wellbeing
Survey 2021 which was delivered in
partnership with nib New Zealand.
The results highlighted challenges, and the
connections between wellbeing and engagement,
retention and productivity for businesses.
Small business choices have the most significant
everyday impact on your people – and
ignoring them could be a huge risk to your
business.
While 84% of survey respondents strongly
agreed that staff wellbeing initiatives contributed
to the retention of high performing
employees, the most common methods of measuring
staff wellbeing relate to turnover and
retention levels (65%), absentee rates (63%)
and exit interviews (48%).
Survey findings indicated that one in six
companies do nothing to track and measure
wellbeing, and of those, 33% were small
businesses with less than 15 employees. On a
positive note, small businesses were seen as
particularly good at responding to requests for
flexible hours, with 62% of respondents from
organisations with less than 15 staff saying their
employers did so ‘really well’, compared with
43% overall.
nib highlighted that strong communication
and support during the height of the pandemic
saw 55% of respondents report improved job
satisfaction over that time, but that worryingly
these levels have since dropped.
In addition, 32% of respondents were concerned
about the health of their family (up 10%
from pre-pandemic levels), one in four had concerns
about their own health (up 11%), closely
followed by 23% being concerned for the mental
health and wellbeing of their family (up 6%).
Given that one-in-three employee respondents
also believed their employer could be
more proactive at prioritising, adapting and
implementing wellbeing strategies, it’s time for
businesses to do something different.
Office extras prove worth
When viewed in the context of productivity, culture and employee appreciation, it’s the extras in the
office environment that are proving their worth in today’s marketplace.
Bayleys’ global real estate
partner Knight Frank
recently released its (Y)
OUR SPACE report, which drew
on responses from almost 400
international businesses. It found
that within the next three years,
47 percent of firms will seek to
improve the quality of the real
estate they occupy, with 46 percent
looking to improve the
amenities available to employees
within the workplace.
Steve Rendall, Bayleys
national director office leasing,
said amenity-rich offices were
making their mark pre-pandemic
as companies sought to differentiate
themselves in the market and
take their corporate culture up a
notch.
“However, after the events of
2020 and the enforced work-fromhome
experiment, the office of
today needs to offer tangible value
to employees who have demonstrated
that it is possible to work
remotely.
“Employers need to look
beyond merely providing desk
space and a staffroom, and not
only give people reasons to come
back to the office, but give them
an environment that supports
them on many levels.
“Innovative spaces that bolster
the physical and mental wellbeing
of staff like collaborative lounges,
breakout spaces, gym facilities –
even on-site childcare – are making
their way up the list of amenities
that are now seen as global
best practice.”
Knight Frank’s (Y)OUR
SPACE report found that the top
four amenities identified by at
least 45 percent of respondents
are all well-being related. These
include healthy food and beverage
offerings, the provision of gym
and changing facilities, along with
other amenities that support mental
wellbeing.
Think dedicated rooftop gardens,
meditation spaces, sleep
pods, yoga classes and biophilia-related
amenity for that feelgood
factor. This could include
plenty of natural light, loads of
fresh air, green spaces, the use
of natural materials and water
features.
Rendall said that in a post-lockdown
world, people want to feel
valued and appreciated, and there
is also an innate need for social
connection.
“Balancing a company’s
productivity goals against the
well-being of its staff has been
thrown into sharp focus,” he said.
“One of the world’s biggest
developers, Lendlease, claims the
pandemic may have shifted the
dial with the physical location of
an office now having less importance
than the connectivity, amenity
and sense of place it offers.”
Within mixed-use precincts,
office workplaces are often integrated
with retail outlets, hospitality/food
and beverage options
and fitness studios and this convenience
factor is proving useful
in staff recruitment and retention.
Office workers can easily tick
multiple life admin and recreational
tasks off the list during
their working day, meaning that
once they get home, they can
relax.
Having onsite childcare could
facilitate even greater efficiencies
and while many mixed-use precincts
include childcare centres,
globally, this is being taken further
within office tower developments.
In the United States, a proposed
multi-billion Child Care Growth
and Innovation Fund would create
an expanded tax credit to encourage
companies to build onsite
childcare facilities which, with the
widespread uptake of more flexible
work models, may encourage
parents to return to the office.
Rendall said whether New
Zealand goes this far remains to
be seen.
“But there is no question that
forward-thinking developers and
landlords will continue to value
the availability of high-quality
childcare solutions when positioning
their office buildings in the
market.”
www.bayleys.co.nz/workplace/
office/insights
At Bayleys, we believe relationships are what businesses are built on and how they
succeed. We understand that to maximise the return on your property you need:
Professional property management
A business partner that understands your views and goals
Contact the Bayleys Tauranga Commercial Property Management team today.
Bayleys Tauranga
Commercial Property Management
07 579 0609
jan.cooney@bayleystauranga.co.nz
SUCCESS REALTY LTD, BAYLEYS, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008
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