Facility Management Prioritizes Employee Health And Wellness

New Facility Management Trends & Insights survey from CORT reveals that employee health and wellness is top-of-mind as facilities continue to explore flexible workspace.

Concerns about employee experience and well-being are on the rise in today’s workplace, with nearly half of facility professionals expressing interest in design trends related to employee health and wellness, according to a recent CORT survey. Profitability and hiring more employees are also top priorities for businesses moving into 2020.

CORT surveyed over 1,000 industry professionals during IFMA’s recent World Workplace conference to uncover the greatest challenges to creating a productive and accommodating work environment for employees. The overwhelming majority of survey respondents are facility managers tasked with ensuring that buildings and amenities accommodate the needs of the people they serve.

Highlights from CORT’s Facility Management Trends & Insights survey include:

  • 43% of respondents are interested in trends related to employee health and wellness, such as sit-to-stand desks, adjustable lighting in their workstation areas, and ergonomic seating
  • 57% are focusing on adding people in the next 12 months, as compared to only 34% in 2018.
  • 63% said that a combination of open and closed workspaces is important, indicating a trend towards offering employees space to work privately or collaboratively with coworkers.
  • 36% said cost is the greatest organizational challenge when it comes to providing furnishings.

“With a high number of respondents focused on hiring over the next year, businesses must be nimble when it comes to creating the ideal workspace for existing and new employees,” said Peggy Moore, Senior Vice President of Sales at CORT. “CORT’s Furniture as a Service (FaaS) approach enables businesses to change the work environment as needs arise and effectively minimizes concerns about the associated cost of furnishings for companies. FaaS is all about access to what you need at a particular moment in time, and having it gone when those needs change, rather than owning long term.”

CORT has been conducting its facility management survey at IFMA for nine years in order to uncover their customers’ primary business concerns. While the results year-over-year indicate that employees have always been a primary consideration, facility managers and companies today are not only looking at expanding their workforce more than in years past, but also showing an ever-increasing interest in how to maximize space for employee experience, wellness, and sustainability.

“When the idea of open workspace was first introduced, companies were very resistant to changing their office design due to concerns about cost and privacy,” said Ron Sauter, Vice President of Facilities Management for numerous commercial and residential properties in Baltimore, MD. “But now, many are starting to see the tangible results of creating a synergistic workplace that promotes collaboration and productivity. I think these survey results indicate that companies understand employee happiness and wellness is the key to long-term business success, and furnishings are a helpful tool to accomplish that goal.”

employee health and wellness

Want to learn more about workplace culture and facility management topics?

Looking for updates? Check out all the latest facility management news related to Workplace Culture.