Aude Grant has been following the Paris Workplace since 2014. As Deputy Managing Director of Asset Management, she led several emblematic projects at SFL such as the #Cloud (headquarters of Facebook and BlaBlaCar) and has witnessed first-hand changes in the Paris tertiary sector.
Aude Grant
5 years on! What major trends have you seen emerge over the last few years?
Over the last 5 years, the office has become an increasingly important part of corporate life. In 2017, we interviewed 10 flagship French Tech companies (ManoMano, Criteo, etc.).
In these pioneering companies, the office is seen as a 'totem pole': the place par excellence where the company's culture and strategy are embodied. In 2018, we looked at mobility in and around the workplace. By encouraging encounters, mobility generates a whole series of beneficial effects on the well-being, creativity and performance of employees.
In short, the notion of relationships (frequency and quality) is omnipresent. So the theme of this year's event was somewhat self-evident. We live in a society that increasingly isolates the individual. But despite this, we are still social animals: we need to meet up and live together. The office, where we spend a third of our lives, has become THE place where we are recognised (for our work) and where we participate in the collective (the team, the company). I don't think anyone had anticipated that the office would take on such social importance.
What are the main lessons you have learnt from this 2019 edition?
What strikes me in particular is that for 43 % of the employees surveyed (almost half!), office space was an important factor in their choice of company. This is a trend that has been gaining strength over the last 3 years, and which particularly concerns the younger generations. At a time when the economy is becoming increasingly dematerialised, employees are attaching more and more importance to their offices.
In reality, the paradox is only apparent. Whereas in the past, going to the office was a constraint to work, today we have the choice, because our workspace fits in a pocket (or a bag). And this choice reveals, by contrast, the importance of the office. We live in a world that is increasingly individualised, segmented, and exploded in time and space. Loyalty to the company has eroded over the years. So people are less attached to their company and more attached to their colleagues.
People need physical places to meet up and get together. By enabling and facilitating interaction, the office (re)establishes points of reference and becomes a real tool for building loyalty. At the end of the day, these reflections on the workspace bring us back to what we are: social beings in search of direct exchanges and interactions, in search of belonging to a social group.
Basically, these reflections on the workspace bring us back to what we are: living beings (...) in search of a sense of belonging to a social group.
So property is the solution to the disengagement of French employees?
This social and almost 'animal' dimension means that today there is no alternative to the office. Teleworking and third places can complement it from time to time, but never replace it. This echoes to the results of Paris Workplace 2018 on the theme of mobility. For the office to remain a physical meeting place, it needs to be accessible and central (within a 40-minute commute).
This social dimension (...) means that today there is no alternative to the office.
A company that invests in workplace (the place, the working environment) kills three birds with one stone: it invests in a lever for performance, loyalty and recruitment. The office has even become a condition sine qua non to attract the best profiles. This is part of the recruitment strategy of companies like Leboncoin and Orange, which we interviewed this year.
But even with the best of intentions, the workplaceIf it's not part of an overall strategy, it's just a building without a soul. Real estate is a catalyst for managerial strategy and corporate culture, but without impetus at the highest level, without exemplary leaders, it remains a dead letter. This is what General de Villiers, this year's guest of honour, has to say.
