Imagine a scenario in which most employees of an organization have established a life around their current work location and either rely on being able to bike to work or walk to work from a GO Train stop. If a decision is made to relocate to an office building a mere kilometre away, do the employees then have to purchase a separate TTC pass to be able to get to work on time? Does the new building offer secure bike storage? Will this add considerably to their commute time, causing personal issues such as child-care scheduling problems?
Employee engagement is an important aspect of all real estate decisions, and it is arguably the single most important aspect of real estate decisions for non-profit entities. It is no secret that most employees of charities and other non-profit organizations don’t show up for work every day for a substantial pay cheque. Most deeply believe in the organization’s mission and many people obtain a tremendous amount of satisfaction from working as a team towards those objectives.
Like other types of organizations, when most non-profit entities start the process of considering whether to renew their office lease, relocate, or purchase a building, internal conversations often begin with talk of financial implications, market conditions, employee growth forecasts and expected lease prices.
While these are all important considerations, it is vital for today’s successful non-profits to build a proper foundation for a subsequent real estate decision by truly engaging their most important asset — the employees who help fulfill the non-profit’s mandate.
Gather as much data and employee feedback as possible at the outset of the process. The timing will vary according to the size of the organization; however, organizations should ideally begin the employee engagement process at least two years prior to lease expiry. An effective engagement process should cover desired office space features, varying workplace demographics, and location analysis.
Office space features
An anonymous, customized, online employee survey can help uncover common trends and themes within the workplace. Use clear messaging to ensure that employees recognize while all preferences cannot be accommodated, every effort will be made to listen to everyone’s thoughts and concerns. For example, tailored questions ask respondents to rank the importance of being within a few minutes’ walk of a subway station, on-site bike racks, natural lighting and sustainability elements within the building.
In the non-profit sector, surveys have shown that top employee desires in a building include access to natural light, quick and convenient access to public transportation, barrier-free accessibility, proximity to amenities, good air quality, ample common and meeting areas, security, sustainable building policies, nearby parking, and secure bicycle parking with showers.
Workplace demographics
Sometimes, employee engagement can be as simple as recognizing the generational differences within a workplace. How does office space affect baby boomers versus Gen X employees versus Gen Y employees? More employees are leaving the workforce than are entering it, and thus the percentage of Gen Y employees is rising substantially, but this isn’t uniform across all non-profits.
The Gen Y demographic has three key desires that should be acknowledged: Central location (i.e. the increasing prevalence of accessible, downtown office submarkets); independence and flexibility (the ability to work where and when they choose, both in and out of the office); and connectivity (a high value is placed on a workplace that enables and inspires open collaboration and social interaction).
Location analysis
The employee engagement process often includes an anonymous employee home-mapping analysis, which maps out home locations in relation to the organization’s current location, key transit routes and hubs, other notable stakeholder locations, key amenities, and other relevant mapping exercises such as transit, drive-time and walk-time analyses.
All this is not to say employee considerations should supersede budgetary concerns; however, employees are the foundation of any non-profit and should be recognized as such in the relocation decision process.
Occasionally, an executive director or the board of directors of a non-profit overlooks the impact of not truly engaging their full team in eliciting their feedback early. The implications of not doing so can be astounding and may have major negative repercussions. For example, is it possible that an ill-thought out relocation decision might lead a few valued employees to leave the organization, thereby putting a further strain on both the organization’s financial and human resources?
Employee engagement is extremely valuable for non-profit organizations, and in ways that reach beyond real estate decisions. Some of these broader benefits include a more engaged and productive team, lower turnover, improved team morale and individual importance, and the ability to attract top talent. Experience has proven that it is never too early in the lease or sales cycle to engage an organization’s team on a decision as critical as where everyone will collaborate to fulfill the organization’s mission.
Peter Davies and Matt Johnson are vice presidents and co-chairs of Colliers Not-for-Profit Advisory Group. They can be reached at Peter.Davies@colliers.com and Matthew.Johnson@colliers.com; Twitter: @ColliersNFP.
