In an environment where workforce competition is fierce, companies are notching up recruitment strategies — everything from revising those onboarding employee routines, offering new health and wellness benefits, and experimenting with non-traditional work scheduling, like telecommuting. 

Businesses looking at revamping their office space as part of that attraction have a lot to think through, said Jennifer Mertz, an interior designer with DLR Group. That includes the initial new hire attraction, but also the next step: talent retention. 

“Just when you think you’ve got the whole thing figured out, all of the sudden it’s just like, ‘nope, that wasn’t it,’” Mertz said. 

GETTING IN THE DOOR

For companies competing to hire, it starts with attraction. 

Holmes Murphy spent two years searching 50 properties for a new location before settling in to its new office campus in Waukee this past January, with 350 employees. 

“We very much thought of our existing talent as well as new talent. We’re a fast-growing company, we’ve doubled in the last five years,” Chairman and CEO Dan Keough said. “Thinking about not where we are today, but where we’re going to be five to 10 years down the road, and what we need to look like to get the talent is very important.”

At Holmes Murphy, where the average employee retention rate over the last three years is 90 percent, Keough believes the extra design effort was worth it. 

Having the amenities and technology to even attract workers is crucial for companies hoping to stand out, Mertz said, who was not directly involved in the Holmes Murphy project. 

“The technology is probably the crucial part to making sure that people are attracted to it,” Mertz said. “Somebody wants to come into a space and to know are they doing the right work, what work are they going to be doing? But also when they get in here, how comfortable is it?”

It also means taking a hard look at how the office layout supports new policies, including telecommuting and “free address” workspaces, instead of assigned desks. Mertz also recommends that companies tune in to how current employees want to work — starting with what they love about their current workspace, and what they would change. 

“Free addressing, I think that’s one thing that everybody is still struggling with. I think it’s becoming more prevalent and I don’t think it’s fully hit yet in this area,” Mertz said. 

“People are very traditional in the Midwest, and it is very hard for them to go to that next phase of being a little more open,” she added. “It’s not what they’re used to.” 

REDESIGNING OR RELOCATING? 

Around the time companies start working with Mertz, decision-makers are considering whether to stay and rework a current location, look  to the suburbs to expand, or seek a location downtown, close to public amenities — although parking is a consideration.

Companies building a campus in the suburbs have more space to build on wellness initiatives, such as walking paths or gym space, but a downtown location will let employees take advantage of already existing amenities, like Gray’s Lake, the YMCA or the Simon Estes Amphitheater. Every company’s priorities are different, Mertz said. 

“Some people do not like to come downtown. They think it’s a terrible commute,” Mertz said. “I come from the western suburbs, and I love it here.” 

During the relocation process for Holmes Murphy, leadership started with a much different vision of where the company would go.

“Our goal was not to build,” Keough said. “What led us to that point was, we partnered with some customers … to design an experience that our employees would love, and ultimately create the right kind of teamwork and collaboration.” 

“We’re very healthy and aspirational that way. We wanted to create that environment for our team members and create the energy to serve our customers,” Keough added. 

From the location decision, Mertz works with clients to start designating spaces for individual workflow and group collaboration, which Mertz calls a “hive environment.” 

“It’s where people can get together and really hash out some things. But then there’s also private areas that you need to have,” Mertz said. “You need to have huddle rooms, you need to have conference rooms, because if you have all these open spaces, if somebody needs to make a phone call, everybody can hear them.” 

Mertz also prioritizes getting daylight to reach employees, putting plants around the office and playing off the building’s existing quirks or character. 

“Because most companies have multigenerational workforces, it is important to have all those amenities for those people so that they are able to get the best work, and enjoy being at work,” Mertz said. “How I work is not necessarily how you would work. Knowing that, you just have to gear it toward that particular person. Giving options within the space itself not only helps that person, but it also helps culture and how they want to work.” 

SUPPORTING NEW SCHEDULES

Businesses that are changing the workday to accommodate telecommuting and other non-traditional schedules are revisiting how that will impact life around the office.  

“Technology is probably the biggest thing that we have to consider,” said Mertz, who works with companies during the design process to meet employee concerns with solutions like assigned, mobile lockers that store bags, coats or files. The freedom of locker movement means employees can choose between lounge seating, collaborative group seating or individual, free address workstations.

“They don’t necessarily have any plants or pictures, or anything like that, but it’s a work station. It may be something like a 30-inch by 60-inch workstation, adjustable height, where they can plug in their computer and be,” Mertz said. 

“When they’re done, they’ll be at home tomorrow or the next couple of days. But they come in twice or three times a week,” she added. “It may be only two to three people, it may be dozens of people. It just kind of depends on what the office, the corporate culture, wants to do.” 

That model can also work well for small startups with limited budgets to spend in the office.

“For a startup company it’s a lot of money for them to invest if they’re not going to have employees in a station every day. But if they can do it at a shared station or a free address station, then it makes it much easier for people,” Mertz said. 

DESIGNING A NEW ENVIRONMENT

When designing, Mertz relies on her team’s electrical engineers and IT specialists to understand the client’s technical needs for each workstation design. 

“For us, it’s understanding how their processes in that particular job that they’re doing — it could be an [information technology] firm, so some people have like six monitors. With six monitors you probably aren’t going to do a free address. But somebody from Wells Fargo or Principal, they may be,” Mertz said. “If we have an adjustable height desk, we have to make sure that the electrical engineer knows how that’s going to affect that technology.” 

Planning for flexible or transformative furniture also makes a big impact.

“It is a big thing when it comes down to it,” Mertz said. “If everybody had an adjustable height workstation, it wouldn’t matter who came in, you know — if I was 6 feet tall compared to somebody else that was 5 feet tall, they can adjust that. … If somebody likes standing more than sitting, you have a couple of choices.” 

It’s expensive to transition employees over all at once, Mertz acknowledged, which is why DLR Group is converting workstations for 1,200 national employees over a three-year period. 

“I like standing most of the day, I am up and down all the time. To me, sitting just gets in the way, but I am constantly moving because I’m moving samples, I’m showing people things, I’m talking to people, but not everyone is like that,” Mertz said. 

“It’s just really knowing what employee is going to benefit from this and is going to help them in the long run.” 

Holmes Murphy’s previous building in West Des Moines spanned three floors, with about 22,000 square feet on each floor. The new building in Waukee only has two floors now, with about 45,000 to 46,000 square feet each. 

“The flow was not there to be collaborative and open. So when they got here they were extremely happy with the openness, the light, the ability to have places to meet and collaborate around,” Keough said. 

Today, there are walking trails throughout the campus that hosts multitudes of walking meetings during the day, and a gym to support employee’s personal health. The company even adopted “employee” Max, a 7-month-old goldendoodle puppy who has the run of the building and his own email account. Employees schedule Max for runs or walks around the grounds, and he stays busy — with an average of four to five walks a day.

There’s also a coffee shop within the building, and an open bar that employees can take clients to for a drink. Holmes Murphy employees also partnered with Barn Town Brewery for its own style of beer, Liquid Assets, which is served in the building and sold out in the community. A percentage of those profits are donated to charity, Keough said. 

There were a number of professionals behind the project, including Substance Architecture for design, Confluence for landscaping, and Raker Rhodes for structural engineering. The furnishings were selected by Holmes Murphy working with WorkSpace. Also, Weitz Co. was the contractor, and Knapp Properties is the building owner.

“We have a very engaged employee population. I believe that is really critical when you’re a growing company and you’re trying to meet customer needs,” Keough said. “People are connecting at a much different rate than we did at our old building. Being on two floors is easier than three floors; being in an open floor plan versus walls everywhere — the connection and engagement is really the thing that stands out.” 

EASING THE CHANGE FOR ALL

When planning around an office revamp, companies have to think about the needs of longtime employees as well as attracting a new workforce, Mertz said. 

“There are some people that do not like change. It’s anxiety on them,” Mertz said. “Change management is keeping that open, having a dialogue with them. This comes from the company, the people making this change.”

That means helping employees “buy into it,” Mertz said, and giving them choices about what their workstation will look like. 

“Giving them choices makes it a lot easier for them to say, ‘OK, they’re thinking about my comfort. They’re thinking about my well-being and how I’m going to be in the space,’” Mertz said.

“Sometimes management has more of an issue changing than the actual employee does,” she added. 

During Holmes Murphy’s location search, Keough said it was input from current employees that shifted focus from moving downtown, to moving out to Waukee. 

“When we led the conversation back to our employees about the process, listening to them and their input, this just turned out to be a natural destination that met their needs, and they felt most comfortable with this,” Keough said. 

When attempting to reduce stress on employees during a redesign period, leaders will misguidedly leave employees out of the conversation so they aren’t overwhelmed with change. That can backfire, Mertz said. 

Mertz encourages business to survey current employees about what they like and need out of their workstations.

“Transparency is probably the biggest thing,” Mertz said. “It’s giving them choices, having the transparency of letting them know what’s going on all the time. That is huge.”

“I’m proud of the team that we put on the field to bring it to life. I feel like we had a world class team, and what we have now — where our employees come to work every day in a world class building — that’s rewarding after a pretty long process of planning and execution and building,” Keough said.