Office makeovers: giving employees what they want

A prime example could be incorporating more smaller, non-bookable meeting rooms with house rules to prevent overuse and with incentives to encourage more or less usage during specific time periods.

“The physical changes required to optimize a space are less drastic if we possess the right utilization data and can identify utilization patterns,” Portellano says. “By leveraging predictive AI analytics, real-time sensor data, and personalized workspace recommendations, we can create office environments that truly cater to employee needs while also boosting their performance.”

This aligns with the findings from a years-long study by JLL, which shows that employee performance thrives when they have control over their environment — including factors like the choice of space, privacy, and access to quiet, focused work areas.

Employees crave a holistic experience the moment they step into the office, one where the workspace adapts to their needs, as an employee and as an individual, throughout the day.

“The office should be a space that eliminates friction and provides the tools and environment they need to perform at their best,” says Portellano. “Consider the office a gym for the minds, where a well-equipped gym with a personal trainer can improve someone’s physical performance.”

In the Asia-Pacific region, where the return to office is largely stable, Portellano believes the time is ripe to take longer-term decisions on changing workspace configurations to cater to the new employee demands for workplace use.

“This could be through increasing the number of focus areas or rethinking collaboration areas, driven by data findings and user experience, not anymore by pre-conceived industry standards or assumptions,” Portellano concludes.