Exclusive workplace experience survey cites need for better technology

Your office makes an important statement about your company. But are you giving the right impression? If you’ve got a cluttered reception area, clunky visitor management system, or outdated workplace technology, it might be time to reimagine your workplace experience.

We were curious about how workplace technology affects the workplace experience for visitors and employees. To find out, we commissioned Wakefield Research to conduct a study of 1,000 U.S. office workers about their workplace experience.

The findings revealed what people actually value in their work environment, which type of workplace technology can boost efficiency, and what areas need improvement. In fact, when it comes to workplace experience, it turns out first impressions are even more important than you might think.

Overwhelmingly, survey responses clearly indicate two trends due to lack of adequate workplace technology:

1. Significant time and productivity loss
2. Negative impact on overall workplace experience

Here are our top takeaways from the workplace experience survey, as well as suggested solutions to ensure your workplace isn't falling behind.

Workplace technology is falling short

Over a third of respondents (34%) described their offices as having outdated tech and in need of a complete makeover. Printer malfunctions and spotty Wi-Fi topped the list at 46% and 44% as the most common workplace technology inconveniences. This represents a real loss of productivity.

On average, office workers waste 24 minutes a day dealing with workplace technology problems. Clearly, there’s a need for reliable, modern office tech to ease people’s workplace experience pain points.

First impressions matter to the workplace experience

The workplace experience not only affects employees but also people visiting the office. That’s because first impressions matter.

Imagine going into an office for a job interview. The lobby is piled with packages and the receptionist hands you a pen to sign-in. The pen doesn’t work. The receptionist hands you another pen. This type of visitor management is uninspiring for you as the interviewee and cumbersome for the receptionist.

What’s the main takeaway? You might be a little less impressed with the company now. This inefficient sign-in experience has risked losing you as a job candidate, and wasted valuable company time and resources on a subpar experience.

This is an unfortunate common scenario. The Wakefield study found that 75% of respondents have negatively judged an organization based on their first impression of the lobby. So what can you do to avoid leaving a negative impression on interviewees? Nearly a third (32%) of respondents listed technology—like new or sleek-looking office tech, as one of their top factors.

Having a sign-in app streamlines visitor registration and upgrades your workplace experience. Instead of signing in with pen and paper, guests use a sign-in app on an iPad kiosk. This is modern visitor management.

What’s more, a cloud-based visitor management system can easily be tailored to your company’s custom branding. If you have an NDA (Non-disclosure agreement) your guest will be asked to review and sign it right in the sign-in app. A really good sign-in app will even take the guest’s photo and print a custom name badge. Your employee will receive an alert with the photo so they always know who to greet.

The latest workplace technology trends: the answer to your workplace experience woes

Can any workplace technology tackle the mountain of packages cluttering reception? The survey results show that there’s clearly a need. The workplace experience study found that:

• 69% of office workers have had at least one personal package delivered to their office.
• 63% percent cited convenience and not being home during delivery windows as the reason they like to have packages sent to work.
• 50% listed security as a concern, saying they’re afraid their packages might get stolen at home.

With so many people having personal packages delivered to their office, it’s no wonder the deliveries can pile up in reception.

Fortunately, quality mailroom software can help your receptionist handle deliveries quickly. The receptionist simply scans each package with the mobile app. The recipient is alerted and confirms pickup on an iPad. A deliveries app improves workplace experience by:

• Making mailroom management more efficient for the receptionist
• Helping keep packages secure
• Encouraging employees to pick packages up faster, keeping reception tidier

The right workplace technology makes a real, tangible difference in improving the workplace experience for your employees and visitors alike. Employees can do their work more efficiently and visitors get a great first impression of your company.

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