Organizational culture and the activity-based office

This study investigates the combined effect of the physical and behavioral work environment, organizational culture, personal characteristics and the needs of the employee on the satisfaction with the work environment in activity-based offices, see Figure 3. By means of a literature review, the workspaces, and personal characteristics and needs of employees are analyzed. To assess satisfaction with the work environment, the Person-Environment Fit model is used, in which satisfaction is linked to the needs of the employee. Finally, four organizational culture types are determined. Using bivariate analyses and a path analysis, the research model based on the literature review is tested. The results show both direct and indirect effects of workspace use, organizational culture, personal characteristics and employee needs on the overall satisfaction with the work environment. Practically, when implementing an activity-based office, the organizational culture should be assessed, the needs of employees should be taken into account, and the open workplaces should support privacy and comfort. This helps to ensure that the activity-based office contributes optimally to employees’ satisfaction with support of needs and the overall satisfaction with the work environment.