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Article
Publication date: 5 December 2022

Marc Rücker, Tobias T. Eismann, Martin Meinel, Antonia Söllner and Kai-Ingo Voigt

The aim of this study is to investigate whether activity-based workspaces (ABWs) are able to solve the privacy-communication trade-off known from fixed-desk offices. In fixed-desk…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study is to investigate whether activity-based workspaces (ABWs) are able to solve the privacy-communication trade-off known from fixed-desk offices. In fixed-desk offices, employees work in private or open-plan offices (or in combi-offices) with fixed workstations, which support either privacy or communication, respectively. However, both dimensions are essential to effective employee performance, which creates the dilemma known as the privacy-communication trade-off. In activity-based workspaces, flexible workstations and the availability of different spaces may solve this dilemma, but clear empirical evidence on the matter is unavailable.

Design/methodology/approach

To address this knowledge gap, the authors surveyed knowledge workers (N = 363) at a medium-sized German company at three time points (T1–T3) over a one-year period during the company’s move from a fixed-desk combi-office (a combination of private and open-plan offices with fixed workplaces) to an ABW. Using a quantitative survey, the authors evaluated the employees’ perceived privacy and perceived communication in the old (T1) and the new work environments (T2 and T3).

Findings

The longitudinal study revealed a significant increase in employees’ perceived privacy and perceived communication in the ABW. These increases remained stable in the long term, which implies that ABWs have a lasting positive impact on employees.

Originality/value

As the privacy and communication dimensions were previously considered mutually exclusive in a single workplace, the results confirm that ABWs can balance privacy and communication, providing optimal conditions for enhanced employee performance.

Details

Journal of Corporate Real Estate , vol. 25 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-001X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 August 2020

Michael Halinski and Jennifer A. Harrison

This study investigates the moderating role of employee office location in the relationship between support-related job resources (i.e. organizational support for development…

Abstract

Purpose

This study investigates the moderating role of employee office location in the relationship between support-related job resources (i.e. organizational support for development, supervisor support) and work engagement among public sector employees.

Design/methodology/approach

An online questionnaire was completed by 2,206 digital services branch of public service employees in Canada. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test office location as a moderator of job resources and work engagement.

Findings

The results indicate that office location moderates the relationship between organizational support for development and work engagement, such that this relationship is stronger for head office employees. Conversely, results show office location moderates the relationship between supervisor support and work engagement, such that this relationship is stronger for regional office employees.

Research limitations/implications

The questionnaire was self-report in nature and from a single department. Future research should consider multiple sources of reporting and additional departments.

Practical implications

The current study suggests that to increase work engagement, public sector organizations need to offer head office employees more organizational support for development and regional employees more supervisor support.

Originality/value

The literature on public sector work engagement tends to study job resources as having universal effects on work engagement regardless of employees' place of work. This study suggests that certain resources matter more depending on office location.

Details

International Journal of Public Sector Management, vol. 33 no. 6/7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3558

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 February 2022

Shirley Jin Lin Chua, Nik Elyna Myeda and Yuan Xi Teo

This study aims to examine the key components to facilitate flexible work arrangement (FWA) and the issues and challenges arisen in preparing the workplace for FWA during…

1728

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to examine the key components to facilitate flexible work arrangement (FWA) and the issues and challenges arisen in preparing the workplace for FWA during Covid-19, and to recommend better approach of FWA implementation in workplace.

Design/methodology/approach

This study adopted extensive literature review and case studies approach using interviews and observations to determine the key components to facilitate FWA and the issues and challenges arisen in preparing the workplace for FWA during Covid-19, and to recommend better approach of FWA implementation in workplace. Three offices that owning FWA experience during Covid-19 and featuring flexible workspace concepts, elements and layouts in Klang Valley, Malaysia were chosen as case studies.

Findings

Findings have suggested that there are four components required to form flexible workspace for FWA adoption, such as open plan workspace design, task-oriented space, hot desking policy and IT infrastructure. Interestingly, the interview findings do not support the idea that the flexible furniture can facilitate FWA; instead, they believe that versatile, acoustical and aesthetical furniture may be installed when necessary. Among the issues and challenges faced were rearranging and designing open office plan layout, hot desk relocation and reconfiguration of spaces where people may congregate. Lastly, this research recommends that innovative planning software and tools, smart technology and apps, modern IT technology and infrastructure, and digital apps can be introduced to the workplace to help FM manage and monitor the facilities operations, workplace situations and occupancy rates.

Originality/value

Since the outbreak of Covid-19, FWA such as “Work From Home” and remote working have become the mainstream in the workplace, affecting how the workplace looks and feels as flexible working is fundamentally related to the flexible workspace. From Facilities Management (FM) perspective, FWA is the biggest consequence of Covid-19, but it also presents opportunities and certain challenges to incorporate a new office environment and employees’ needs in terms of FWA into the corporate culture.

Details

Journal of Facilities Management , vol. 21 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1472-5967

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 May 2023

Muhammad Imran Malik, Shabir Hyder, Saddam Hussain, Niaz Muhammad, Muhammad Sabir and Farida Saleem

The aim of the study is to test the integrated model involving work stress, office clutter and employee performance with the moderating roles of training and self-discipline (SD…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of the study is to test the integrated model involving work stress, office clutter and employee performance with the moderating roles of training and self-discipline (SD) after the re-opening of the banks after the COVID-19 wave.

Design/methodology/approach

The study used 333 respondents from banking industry, whose responses were recorded using a closed ended questionnaire. The authors used partial least square path anaysis to analyze the data.

Findings

Work stress significantly increases office clutter, which harms the employees’ performance. Moreover, SD and training significantly improve employees’ performance by reducing work stress and thereby office clutter. There are various mechanisms through which both these factors reduced stress and office clutter.

Practical implications

The employee’s performance can be enhanced with lower levels of office clutter. The office clutter can be managed through having lower levels of stress and providing people with training and inculcating SD among them. A greater understanding of the factors that count toward office clutter might help bank managers and employees to address the issues related to their performance.

Originality/value

The authors have proposed a new framework involving conservation of resources theory for the employees’ performance. They posit employees’ performance is an organizational resource, which can be conserved as well as enriched both by employers and employees through their own contribution.

Details

Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2051-6614

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 4 July 2008

Suining Ding

The purpose of this paper is to explore managers' and employees' opinions regarding privacy in open plan offices and also investigate the relationship between the perception of…

3166

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore managers' and employees' opinions regarding privacy in open plan offices and also investigate the relationship between the perception of managers and employees on visual and acoustical privacy in order to provide better design solutions in an open plan office setting.

Design/methodology/approach

The research method is a structured interview. The categorized data are analyzed with percentage of frequency distributions and Chi square analysis. A total of 42 subjects were interviewed and separated in two groups as managers and employees.

Findings

It was found that lack of privacy still exists as an unsolved negative aspect in open plan offices. Findings indicated that there is a strong desire for employees to change and control their physical working space when both visual and acoustical privacy is needed in an open plan office setting. Another finding is that there is a difference of opinion regarding visual privacy between managers and employees.

Research limitations/implications

The limitation of the paper is that the sample is small and all subjects' occupations are computer‐related. Future studies are needed to further investigate diverse subjects in a larger population. Any future research instrument would have to be different from a structured interview.

Practical implications

Research findings provide valid recommendations to system furniture designers and manufacturers. System furniture design needs to be modular and easily changeable and adjustable for open plan offices.

Originality/value

The significant contribution of this research is that it provided valid data and makes a valuable contribution to the body of knowledge in open plan office design.

Details

Facilities, vol. 26 no. 9/10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-2772

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 February 1993

Nancy Stephens and William T. Faranda

Tests the effectiveness of three different types of service companyemployees as advertising spokespersons in an experiment involving printadvertisements for a bank and a hotel…

Abstract

Tests the effectiveness of three different types of service company employees as advertising spokespersons in an experiment involving print advertisements for a bank and a hotel. Reveals that front‐office employees functioned best as print advertising spokespersons and that CEOs were adequate and back‐office employees were least effective.

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 7 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 April 2017

Treasa Kearney, Gianfranco Walsh, Willy Barnett, Taeshik Gong, Maria Schwabe and Kemefasu Ifie

This paper aims to undertake a simultaneous assessment of interdependence in the behaviours of front-line and back-office employees and their joint effect on customer-related…

3113

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to undertake a simultaneous assessment of interdependence in the behaviours of front-line and back-office employees and their joint effect on customer-related organisational performance. It also tests for a moderating influence of the emotional intelligence of front-line salespeople and back-office employees.

Design/methodology/approach

The sample comprises 105 front-line sales employees and 77 back-office employees. The customer-related organisational performance data come from a UK business-to-business (B2B) electronics company. With these triadic data, this study uses partial least squares to estimate the measurement and structural models.

Findings

Salespeople’s customer orientation directly affects customer-related organisational performance; the relationship is moderated by salespeople’s emotional intelligence. The emotional intelligence of salespeople also directly affects the customer-directed citizenship behaviour of back-office employees. Furthermore, the emotional intelligence of back-office staff moderates the link between the emotional intelligence of salespeople and back-office staff citizenship behaviour. Back-office staff citizenship behaviour, in turn, affects customer-related organisational performance.

Originality/value

The emotions deployed by employees in interactions with customers clearly shape customers’ perceptions of service quality, as well as employee-level performance outcomes. However, prior literature lacks insights into the simultaneous effects of front-line and back-office employee behaviour, especially in B2B settings. This paper addresses these research gaps by investigating triadic relationships – among back-office employees, front-line employees and customer outcomes – in a B2B setting, where they are of particular managerial interest.

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 31 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 December 2017

Mirte Horrevorts, Johan Van Ophem and Paul Terpstra

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the cleanliness of a work environment has influence on the productivity of employees working in office environments of…

1433

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the cleanliness of a work environment has influence on the productivity of employees working in office environments of non-profit organizations in The Netherlands.

Design/methodology/approach

In the study, an online survey (including questions about the perceived cleanliness) and two objective cleanliness assessment methods (particle counts and surface cleanliness) are used. The data are collected using an online questionnaire to determine the workers’ perception (of productivity and cleanliness) and to measure the cleanliness (visual assessment of the surface cleanliness and measured [dust] particle counts in the ambient air) at five different non-profit organizations in The Netherlands.

Findings

It is found that a higher objective cleanliness correlates significantly with a higher perceived productivity of employees working in office environments of non-profit organizations in The Netherlands. A higher measured cleanliness also correlates significantly with a higher work satisfaction level of employees working in office environments. Finally, a significant correlation is found between the satisfaction of employees with their work as a whole and the perceived productivity of the employees; a higher satisfaction leads to a higher perceived productivity.

Research limitations/implications

The cleanliness is measured in five non-profit organizations, so it is not possible to draw any strong generalization. Future studies are needed to confirm or contradict the findings in this research.

Practical implications

The results highlight the aspects of the cleanliness in the office environment that influence the perceived productivity. This concerns the measured cleanliness. Employees evaluate their own productivity lower at a higher level of particle counts in the ambient air in the office environment and when more dirt and stain are found on the surface (lower surface cleanliness). In response to these findings, it is recommended to carry out regular cleaning activities in the office environment where the employees perform their work. Overall, to maintain or achieve maximum personal productivity, a clean office environment is important.

Originality/value

This research is the first to identify the relationship between perceived productivity and measured cleanliness of the office environment.

Details

Facilities, vol. 36 no. 9/10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-2772

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 July 2019

Kemal Yıldırım, Elif Güneş and Gülcan Pervan Yilmaz

The purpose of this paper is to determine the effects of environmental factors in open-plan offices with the same characteristics but with different workstation partition heights…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to determine the effects of environmental factors in open-plan offices with the same characteristics but with different workstation partition heights (1.10, 1.40 and 1.65 m) on perceptual evaluations of office employees.

Design/methodology/approach

In this research, the effects of environmental factors on employees’ perceptual evaluations in open-plan offices at the Gölbaşı Region of Ankara were measured with a detailed questionnaire. The research data were obtained from 81 employees who agreed to fill out the questionnaire and who use open-plan offices.

Findings

It was found that the office environments with 1.65 m workstation partition heights were more favorably assessed for each of the items of planning and of privacy that form the dependent variables compared to the office environments with 1.10  and 1.40 m partition heights. On the other hand, the office environments with the 1.10 and 1.40 m partition heights were more favorable for lighting items than the 1.65 m partition height office environments. In addition, young employees had a more positive tendency toward the perceptions of environmental factors, including different workstation partition heights in open-plan offices, compared to older employees.

Research limitations/implications

Results of this research provide a fundamental contribution for the impact of various partition heights that have substantial implications on the perceptions of open-plan office environments. At this point, as open-plan offices have important effects on the quality of employees’ work experiences, the influence of various partition heights on the performance of employees should be emphasized in future studies. The diversity of performance (reading comprehension, calculation, design, drawing, etc.) will be an important decision.

Originality/value

The significant contribution of this research is that it provides valid data and makes a valuable contribution to the body of knowledge in open-plan office design.

Details

Journal of Corporate Real Estate , vol. 21 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-001X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 June 2019

Antonio Cobaleda Cordero, Maral Babapour and MariAnne Karlsson

This paper aims to investigate employee well-being in relation to office landscapes in a post-relocation context. The aims are to identify spatial attributes of the office

1463

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to investigate employee well-being in relation to office landscapes in a post-relocation context. The aims are to identify spatial attributes of the office landscape that influence employee well-being and underlying contextual factors that explain employee well-being post-relocation.

Design/methodology/approach

A mixed-method approach was adopted. The data collection involved 16 semi-structured interviews with employees, an interview with the leading architect of the office renovation, study of a dossier on the renovation project and observations.

Findings

Most of the informants experienced the new office landscape positively despite few shortcomings. Spatial attributes were identified that influenced the informants’ well-being positively in terms of affects, satisfaction, social relations and environmental mastery. Conversely, negative influences on well-being were also reported regarding affects, satisfaction and environmental mastery. Conflicting views on some of the spatial attributes and contextual factors related to the planning process and the former office landscape were identified.

Originality/value

The value of this paper lies in investigating the office landscape at the spatial attributes level, despite office type, and their influence on hedonic and eudaimonic components of employee well-being. The research approach adopted proved its usefulness for in-depth studies of the interrelations between office landscapes and employee well-being.

Details

Journal of Corporate Real Estate , vol. 22 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-001X

Keywords

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