 Redefining the office: Uncovering the future role of corporate working environments and elucidating their value contributionRobin Alexander Ganninger Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) from Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) Abstract: The corporate office is currently experiencing an ambivalent dynamic. It has never been easier to decouple work from physical presence in the office, and yet many companies are pushing to increase the proportion of on-site work. The future role of the office is therefore being renegotiated within companies and wider society. Over the past decades, knowledge work has become an integral part of modern economies and a key factor in the success of businesses. Consequently, the corporate office has evolved into a key locus for the creation of business value. Meanwhile, the role of the office has been subject to a continuous process of adaptation to changes in the world of work, driven in particular by technological, organisational and societal developments. The recent Covid-19 pandemic has significantly accelerated the ongoing development dynamics and engendered a shift towards hybrid forms of work. The flexibility that results from this change in terms of time and location makes the office one option within a flexible arrangement of different workplaces and calls into question the traditional role of the office as the primary place of work. On the one hand, this presents novel prospects for the generation of value for the company, for example by supporting work-life balance and employee satisfaction. On the other hand, concerns have been raised regarding the maintenance of team culture, as well as issues of management and leadership. Companies find themselves in a state of flux in this increasingly complex environment, caught between complete flexibility and a forced return to the office. This has led to significant challenges in the organisation of office work, and the associated quality and quantity of corporate office spaces. To understand the future role of the corporate office in the modern world of work and to generate value in the context of the new operating environment, it is necessary to take a holistic view of the transformation process. In this cumulative dissertation, relevant developments at the macro, meso and micro levels are analysed through five research articles and situated within the holistic research framework of multi-level perspective theory. The first article examines the factors underlying the decision to attend or not to attend the corporate office from a behavioural psychology perspective. In the context of the pandemic-induced changes in working practices and structures, the findings offer a comprehensive understanding of the evolving perception of the office within the hybrid working environment. The article thus contributes to an understanding of the macro-structural developments driving the transformation of corporate working environments. Concurrently, it elucidates the organisational and design aspects that shape the appeal of office space in the modern, hybrid working environment. In practice, behavioural decisions regarding office attendance can therefore not only be understood but also positively influenced by specifically addressing the aspects outlined. The second article builds upon the findings of the first by introducing the temporal dimension. A longitudinal study examines developments in utilisation behaviour and the underlying psychological decision-making structures. While office usage in the post-pandemic period was predominantly influenced by users’ individual attitudes, the results of the study indicate a shift from individual to socially anchored decision-making patterns. This process can be interpreted as an expression of the maturing and stabilisation of office utilisation behaviour, and points to an increasingly strong integration of the corporate office into employees' social and private structures. The study thus demonstrates, on the one hand, the dynamics in the macro-environment and the ongoing pressure for adaptation on existing office structures, and, on the other hand, underlines the need to strategically position the office within the hybrid working environment. It becomes evident that the role of the office as a social hub has become increasingly solidified. The office's capacity to offer a physical space conducive to social structures is thus emerging as a salient factor in a work environment wherein employees demonstrate heightened awareness of their individual needs, constraints and work-life conflicts when selecting their place of work. The third article examines the potential value contributions that activity-based office concepts can deliver in the context of the contemporary, hybrid working environment. In a case study of a German IT company with approximately 6,000 employees, a holistic evaluation framework was developed and applied, integrating both the cost and benefit perspectives of various design alternatives for the office environment. The findings indicate a positive value contribution from the activity-based working environment across both dimensions, thereby generating a holistic added value of 17% compared to a traditional office design. On the one hand, this underscores the necessity to adapt office concepts to the evolving conditions of the working world. On the other hand, it exemplifies the merits of activity-based office concepts within the prevailing development dynamics. At the meso level, these findings support the strategic positioning of the office between innovative processes at the micro level and the pressure to adapt from the macroenvironment, by making the value contribution of various office design alternatives measurable. This enables companies to navigate the transformation towards activity-based concepts in a value-driven manner, measure success and identify potential for improvement. The fourth article examines the influence of the office on a company's attractiveness in the labour market and the extent to which corporate real estate management has the capacity to influence this through strategic decisions. This broadens our understanding of the meso level regarding the external perception and positioning of the company in the labour market (macro-environment). The results indicate that workplace-related characteristics (e.g., equipment and design, or accessibility of the company's office) are as relevant for employer attractiveness as traditional criteria (e.g., salary, job security, or opportunities for further training and qualifications). The findings thus emphasise the mounting significance of the office as a strategic asset in the labour market. However, the potential for corporate real estate management to influence relevant factors is not yet being fully exploited in practice. Through targeted measures regarding the implementation and outward communication of relevant workplace-related characteristics, the untapped potential of the corporate office to signal employer attractiveness can be harnessed. The fifth article derives design principles for modern, activity-based working environments. Employing a zone-specific post-occupancy evaluation, the study examined the influence of various indoor environmental qualities (e.g., thermal comfort, acoustics and privacy) on the suitability of activity-based zones for specific tasks. The results reveal that employees hold zone-specific expectations, and that the perceived suitability of a zone is highly contingent on the fulfilment of certain specific indoor environmental qualities. By contrast, most indoor environmental qualities appear to be losing relevance, as the need for them to be met at a specific workstation is offset by the general freedom of choice regarding workstations within the office environment. The increasing adoption of activity-based concepts and practices from the micro level into prevailing office structures therefore also requires a more nuanced understanding of indoor environmental qualities. These findings have two main implications. First, they contribute to the development of suitable workspaces for various cognitive functions during the design phase. Second, they provide a basis for zone-specific performance measurement to guide further conceptual development in practice. This dissertation provides a comprehensive investigation into the evolution of the role of the corporate office in the modern world of work. By examining the interrelationships at various levels, it enables a profound understanding of the multi-dimensional dynamics of the systemic change. As such, it emphasises the mounting significance of the office as a resource for both employees and companies in the hybrid working landscape. The thesis not only provides theoretical background to deepen the current academic discourse, but also derives practical recommendations, facilitating a proactive management and value-oriented positioning of the corporate office in practice. The insights gained thus represent a starting point for further research and a foundation for investigating future development dynamics. Date: 2026-09-22 Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:dar:wpaper:162579 Access Statistics for this paper More papers in Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) from Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) Contact information at EDIRC. |
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