5 ideas to encourage employees to return to the offices

After months of working remotely, most employees have gotten used to the new routines and are reluctant to change them again. That might explain why many people are frustrated about the prospect of going back to the office whether full-time or at least a few times a week.

So how can your company motivate employees to return to the office?

First and foremost tell your employees why they may actually want to go back to the office. Start by listing out what they are missing out on when working from home.

Based on a survey among companies of all sizes, these are the things remote employees miss the most:

1. In-person workplace conversations (61%)
2. The regular and daily structure of an office (42%)
3. Lunches and happy hours with colleagues (40%)
4. Reduced interruptions by kids during the workday (37%)

These are reminders of how in-person work can actually benefit your employees – not just the company. It’s about collaboration, a sense of belongingness to the community and face-to-face interactions with colleagues – which can make the working life easier.

Organizations should avoid pressurizing people, but take steps to encourage employees to be in the office.

In addition to explaining the benefits of coming back to the office, here are 5 ideas to attract your employees to show up on site.

As Covid is still lingering around us, not all employees feel safe and comfortable about coming back to the office. Organizations should therefore have a health and safety measure plan in place to make sure that the office is absolutely safe and clean.

Regularly disinfect and sanitize the office, provide mouth masks, hand sanitizers and wipes, and encourage employees to maintain social distancing where possible. The goal is to make employees understand that their health and safety is still the top priority.

This gives your employees a meaningful reason to come in. Consider hosting onsite charity events or fundraisers for special causes in the community. Organize different volunteer activities so that employees can pick what interests them.

For example, dog lovers can help a local shelter, green thumbs can grow a community garden, environmentalists can pick up plastic at a local area, etc.

In recent years and even more so today, employee health and well-being has become one of the top organizational priorities. Today’s employees are also more aware of their health plans and benefits.

Many organizations are rolling out new fitness perks as a way of promoting employee well-being and giving people incentives to come back to the office. Wellness initiatives can include adding new exercise equipment or workout machines to the company gym, organizing yoga classes or meditation training sessions in the office, or offering memberships at a fitness center near the office.

Meet our gym in Involv office!

Make the re-onboarding special by adding some (fun) activities such as a meet and greet event with leadership (where employees can have a Q&A with management around employee-selected topics), an “office warming” party, team building day, etc.

Such events are great opportunities to catch up with colleagues, boost employee morale and increase engagement. Attending a work event also helps returning employees to bounce back to the office routine.

Never underestimate the power of food. A survey from grocery-delivery Peapod found that providing free food to employees increased job satisfaction rates from 56% to 67%. Only 16% of employees said they get free snacks and treats at work though.

Consider adding some food/snacks in your office, providing catered breakfasts/lunches on a few days of the week, introducing a happy hour on Friday with a juice bar, etc. There’s plenty of options. Food not only keeps us healthy and productive but also brings people together.

Your intranet too can help encourage employees to return to the office. Here is how organizations are using their Involv intranet to roll out their return-to-office strategy.

• Communicate the company’s return-to-office policies and procedures to the entire workforce or to a targeted group of employees.
• Provide resources, guidance and checklists that help employees prepare to come back.
• Launch and promote new wellness programs with helpful videos.
• Showcase company events and manage registrations with ease.
• Publish a return-to-office FAQs, allow employees to search and find answers easily.
• Allow people to discuss and share their thoughts.

If you want to learn more about Involv intranet and how other companies are using their intranet to create a happier workplace, schedule your free demo!