About 81 per cent of office workers in Malaysia state that they prefer to return to the office, according to the latest survey published by Savills, as reported by BERNAMA. The survey titled “What Workers Want – Malaysia” found that although hybrid work models are seen as the main thrust in Malaysia in the future, more than 90 per cent of respondents believe that things like creativity and collaboration, achieving job targets and career growth, the best move is achieved in an office environment.
Savills Malaysia deputy managing director Nabeel Hussain said, with Malaysia finally opening after two years in the pandemic, the physical office remains important in the recovery of the business and ensuring it can return to normal quickly. He said,
“Finding that the hybrid work model is seen to remain here, the balance between business and economic needs as well as employee preferences is an ideal solution and that is what companies need to focus on during this reopening period. The physical office environment may need to be enhanced by other factors to make returning to the workplace in the current environment more attractive. The existence of robust hardware and software solutions is more important than ever and is a key factor in supporting the evolving work environment.”
Meanwhile, Savills Malaysia Research Associate Director Fong Kean Hwa said most employees wanted to return to the office as they believed going to the office would benefit their physical and mental health, thus supporting their professional and personal development.
The findings of the survey on key productivity parameters show that workers in Malaysia think their productivity is either working from home or in the office, compared to in EMEA when workers think they are more productive at home.
While productivity remained high, 30 per cent of respondents stated that mental and physical fatigue was due to the arrangement of working from home while more than a third stated they faced increased working hours due to ambiguity about work and home boundaries. Many Malaysians still see physical offices playing an important role, especially for professional growth and collaborative work.
Do you prefer working from home or at the office? Or would you be open to a more hybrid approach?
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