Whether smoothie bar, power nap unit or coffee garden: Employers are pulling out all the stops to lure their employees back into the office after the Corona crisis. Architectural offices, among others, are noticing this and, according to their own statements, are receiving more inquiries for this type of furnishing product. The popularity of (partial) home working has made the office more than ever a social meeting place, experts say.

And in this time of labor shortage, office setup and staff activities are a means of attracting and retaining people. Because there is still a lack of staff and this leads to concerns among employers. According to a recent study by human resources agency Robert Half, more than half of executives expect it to become even more difficult to find employees by 2023.

Seats from old Boeing 747

“The office landscape is changing. The huge office garden is no longer from that time,” says office designer Nienke Schram. Flexible noise protection walls, advice boxes, complete smoothie bars: According to Schram, it receives many more inquiries for such products. “Working at home is nice and quiet, these days the main reason you go to the office is to meet people and work together. In order for everyone to be productive, you have to adjust the setup, especially in the office.”

The town hall in Amstelveen is one such place that has undergone a metamorphosis. Designed for hybrid working, according to architect Orlando Tjin Asjoe from the PD Group, it offers space for encounters in thematic environments. “In Corona times we learned that remote working is possible. Today it is therefore more than just a place of pure production and a meeting place. You have to make something like that possible.”

Since July there have been various rooms for Amstelveen officials, known as ‘gardens’. There is a Japanese garden, a library garden and a coffee garden of the future. And in the “Beach and Aviation Lounge” the seats are taken from an old Boeing 747 belonging to the Emir of Kuwait.

Curious? This is what the “office park” in Amstelveen looks like:

The starting point for the town hall was a park. “We brought nature into the office. This is perceived as very pleasant: by leaving the familiar environment, other processes are set in motion,” says designer Tjin Asjoe.

For several years, Arbo Unie has been promoting the introduction of a minimum number of quiet workplaces in the office, for example to reduce absenteeism among office workers. Now that some people are still working from home, one would say that it has actually become quieter there.

According to ergonomics scientist Erwin Steklé, this is only partially true. “Because video telephony has also become more common in the office. And that also creates a lot of noise,” says Steklé.

According to him, the fact that the device is adjusted helps. Though he says there’s still plenty of room for improvement. “I visit a lot of offices and see that this happens mostly in the top tier of companies. The majority of employers, think of small and medium-sized companies, are simply happy that they can work again after Corona. the open plan office is not functional in most situations, this has been researched in detail.”

Movie nights and paddle lessons

Steklé says hybrid working poses dilemmas for employers. “You have competition with working from home: they have good coffee and good internet. You have good internet in the office, but you don’t always have the peace and quiet to work in a concentrated manner. What companies need to enable is that you want to go there without your office visit being obligatory and saying you have to work here twice a week.”

This can also be done without a complete renovation of the office, says Jeroen Peters, director of marketing and communications at D&B, a facility services provider. He called for his own company a cultural club in life. “This is what I recommend to clients: turn your office into a clubhouse. With activities and training you can spread your culture among employees. Think drinks, but also games, breakfast sessions, movie nights and padel lessons.”

According to Peters, doing nothing is not an option. “This is urgently needed because I want to interact with people war for talent rages furthest now. If you’re not careful and someone isn’t in the office much, you’ll miss a meeting with a new colleague who’s been on the job for two weeks. On evenings I say: come with me, take your partner with you, then you will get a lot more connection.”