Get Well Soon

Workplace wellness has quickly become a major factor in commercial real estate.

Wellness. It can be defined as “the state of being in good health, especially as an actively pursued goal.” But wellness as an object is also currently one of two things: a multi-billiondollar industry encompassing food, fashion and hospitality or a core concept to workplaces that can influence how easily a firm recruits talent and how well that talent functions.

30% of office occupiers were considering wellness programmes in the future, on top of the 30% that already did, said CBRE back in 2017, in its Wellness in the

Asia Pacific Workplace report, indicating workplace wellness was gaining traction in the Asia Pacific, partly to maximise efficiency. “While people have a longer life expectancy, [they] are generally less healthy with insufficient exercise and more obesity issues, which may affect staff performance and engagement at work,” said Ada Choi, CBRE Asia Pacific's director of research. “As a result, companies are taking into consideration wellness features in a property's design and performance in order to attract and retain the best talent, and create a more productive and engaged workforce.”

The Value of Wellness

So what is workplace wellness? According to the American Psychological Association, our workplaces should support a comfortable work-life balance, stimulate employee growth and development, and feature employee recognition and employee involvement. It should also involve adequate health and safety standards. At its most essential, workplace wellness (or corporate wellbeing) is simply the active promotion of policies designed to support healthy behaviour at work. Programmes can include everything from free blood pressure checks, to on-site gyms to healthy food options in office canteens, and they're also vital. CBRE stated Hongkongers put in the longest weekly working hours in the world in 2017 at 50.1 hours, and 64% of us get less than 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week.

Colliers International Hong Kong's 2018 occupier survey put the figure of employees in the region benefitting from wellness initiatives at just 5%, but noted the concept was on the rise. Nonetheless, in Hong Kong, 54% of offices had only “rudimentary” wellness offerings in place. “Hong Kong is increasingly impacted by a workplace wellness crisis with its long office hours and work-related health issues. With more employees becoming healthand wellness-conscious, employers are beginning to recognise the importance of workplace wellness as a strategic priority and owners and occupiers will have limited choice but to follow suit,” argued Colliers'

managing director Nigel Smith. It may require additional investment, but the payoff is worth it for a “more sustainable and costeffective workplace to a healthier, happier and more productive workforce.”

It's estimated that generally poor health and rising obesity cost the US and the UK 2% of their GDP annually through absenteeism. Not only will better wellness at work save employers money, the thinking goes that it will be critical in retaining millennial staff. “Many countries are suffering from an acute labour shortage,” said CBRE'S report. “A company's wellness provision will be critical in recruiting and retaining talent in the coming years.” Millennials will account for 75% of the globe's workforce by 2025 according to Colliers.

Building Better Buildings

Increased workplace wellness means our physical spaces are changing. In the way that sustainable development has LEED and (in Hong Kong) BEAM building standards to guide it, workplace wellness has a metric in the International WELL Building Institute's (IWBI) WELL Building Standard, launched in

Companies are taking into consideration wellness features in a property's design and performance in order to create a more productive and engaged workforce.

2014. Like LEED, the IWBI'S WELL standard was designed to rate the impact of a space on occupant health and wellbeing through water, air and light quality, general comfort and nourishment among others.

Better-performing, healthier offices are at the emerging stage of workplace wellness, and many developers and occupiers will be carefully considering how important workplace wellness is for them. Implementing measures

is fine, but they need to be maintained, often at great cost. “Companies in Asia Pacific are advised to carefully consider whether they would want to adopt basic short-term measures to improve workplace wellness or embrace a longer-term strategy,” said CBRE, noting expectations vary from location to location, and the optimal time to implement wellness initiatives is at the design stage.

It's no surprise the real estate sector is among the first industries to embrace workplace wellness. Swire Properties has been aggressive in the promotion of its HK$15 billion Taikoo Place redevelopment, which now features contemporary amenities such its H-kore gym, the Artistree art gallery, tenant engagement programme and people-first, literal green spaces at Taikoo Park, Taikoo Square and Taikoo Garden, landscaped by London architects Gustafson Porter. Notably, One Taikoo Place is 100% occupied. Developer Grosvenor Asia Pacific was awarded WELL certification for its office refurbishment in Hong Kong (and Shanghai), which created a productive and engaging working environment that was humancentric. The open plan office incorporates informal focus rooms, a well-being room for relaxation, bespoke lighting, attention to acoustics and a personal mindfulness programme.

Similarly, Colliers has re-outfitted its offices to new WELL standards the advisory also consulted on, which are now based on air, water, nourishment, light, movement, sound and community elements. The idea is to make a business case for wellness with landlords, office occupiers and employers. “By transforming its own office space, Colliers is hoping to make a clear business case for investment in wellness initiatives, encouraging clients such as occupiers and developers to put themselves at the forefront of this important trend,” said Colliers' head of wellness consulting, Asia Pacific, Victoria Gilbert. “By taking workplace wellness to the next level, they can attract higher calibre tenants and potentially lease more quickly and at higher rates.”