The majority of office employees (84 percent) believe good relationships with colleagues boost their quality of work, yet nearly three quarters (70 percent) admit to not knowing the people they work with very well, claims a new survey from Nespresso Professional. The study suggests that changing office environments and flexible working practices are not improving employees’ relationships with co-workers, or their creativity and output.

Many companies are using contemporary technologies, office layout and flexible working as tools for recruitment and retention, yet hot-desking, does not seem to be entirely effective, with two-thirds (63 percent) of those who do it saying they come in early to secure their favourite workspace.

“ Flexible working is increasingly commonplace, our findings indicate a tangible threat to both satisfaction and productivity levels.”

Despite more companies encouraging remote and other forms of flexible working, the majority (82 percent) of those surveyed agreed face-to-face interactions are critical to developing good working relationships. But almost half (47 percent) said employers did not encourage them to get to know their colleagues other than in the basic work sense. And 48 percent complained that new technology was getting in the way of getting to know their colleagues properly.

“At a time when technology is transforming the way we interact with our colleagues, and flexible working is increasingly commonplace, our findings indicate a tangible threat to both satisfaction and productivity levels. This puts the pressure on employers to create and promote opportunities for collaborative interactions in today’s less structured office environments,” said Francisco Nogueira Head of Out-of-Home at Nespresso.