GLOBAL WORKPLACE SURVEY 2024

GENSLER RESEARCH INSTITUTE
A group of people in a room.
Gensler’s workplace survey reveals what matters most to design high-performing workplaces.

Gensler’s Global Workplace Survey of more than 16,000 office workers across 15 countries and 10 industries reveals that companies need to adopt a people-first lens to evaluate the performance of their workplace to drive better individual, team, and business outcomes. This provides an opportunity to reexamine how we measure workplace performance.

In this report, we propose a new precedent for measuring workplace performance. Workplace performance is no longer defined only by building efficiency or space effectiveness; it is also measured by the emotional response to space — the workplace experience. This study highlights the shift from real estate occupancy to people-centric performance to understand the impact of space on how employees work and feel in the workplace. In doing so, it unlocks the potential to design workplaces that can yield positive outcomes for individuals, teams, and organizations.

Our 2024 Global Workplace report reveals how and where employees work today. The study examines top performers at individual, team, and organizational levels, and highlights what comprises a high-performing workplace within and beyond the office — including findings at the building and neighborhood scales. By evaluating the workplace in its wider context, we identify where design can elevate a workplace from good to great to exceptional.

How and where employees work varies across country, industry, age, and role.

The percentage of time spent in each work mode in a typical workweek
The percentage of time spent working in each location during a typical workweek

We measure how people work across five work modes.

Gensler has continuously measured how people work for almost 20 years. We analyze how employees work across five work modes: working alone, working with others in-person, working with others virtually, learning and professional development, and socializing, connecting, and networking. Work modes adapt with global evolution in worker behavior and technological advancements such as virtual working. This foundational research provides new insights into the changing nature of work and employee expectations.

WORKING ALONE
WORKING ALONE
WORKING WITH OTHERS
IN-PERSON
WORKING WITH OTHERS VIRTUALLY
WORKING WITH OTHERS VIRTUALLY
LEARNING
SOCIALIZING