Agents could be hampering the productivity of employees by neglecting the set-up of their workplace, a new study suggests.

A survey by workplace creation company Unispace found that the majority of workplaces are not set up to enable staff to work to the best of their ability. This could mean many sales and lettings negotiators are not being given the suitable workspaces they need to perform to their full potential.

The results of the survey, which polled 3,000 office workers and 2,750 employers across Europe, found that despite 78% of businesses stating that their office had been set up to enable staff to be creative and productive, over half (52%) of employers noted that creativity and innovation among their employees increased while work-from-home guidance was in place.

Unispace believes the data suggests there is a mismatch between what employers believe is a productive environment and what staff really want. For example, according to the study, 22% of staff who were reluctant to head back into the office felt that they were more effective in a quiet environment at home, and 20% believed they were more productive away from their current office space due to the set-up.

Meanwhile, over three quarters of office workers (77%) said it was easier to bond with and get to know colleagues in the office. Unispace said this suggests that workers need separate spaces for individual work and in-person collaboration to be truly productive, with 74% of office workers indicating they are keen to see this separation.

“Following the pandemic, with new habits and preferences having been formed, employers now have the opportunity to reassess how their staff most effectively utilise workspaces and how people can best be equipped to be productive when working both in and out of the office,” said Matthew Zych, regional director, central Europe at Unispace.

“The modern workplace needs to strike a balance between enabling collaboration and individual work. That includes having separate breakout areas for group socialisation and spaces for focus work, private conversations and meetings,” Zych added.