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DEGREE PROJECT REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT REAL ESTATE ECONOMICS MASTER OF SCIENCE, 30 CREDITS, SECOND LEVEL STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN 2021
Telework and Effects on Office Real Estate A study on telework, its future, and how telework can affect the market for
office space
Serhat Uzun
TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF REAL ESTATE AND MANAGEMENT
ROYAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
DEPARTMENT OF REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
Master of Science thesis
Title: Telework and its effect on office real estat e - A study on telework, its future, and how telework can affect the market for office space Author(s): Serhat Uzun Department: Real Estate and Construction Management Master Thesis number: TRITA-ABE-MBT-21434 Supervisor: Abukar Warsame Keywords: Telework, Teleworking, Telecommute, Telecommuting, Office Real Estate, Office Space Market
Abstract
The combination of growth in gross domestic product, population, and employment in an area
usually implies a growth in demand for workplace properties, somewhere employees can
carry out work. This, in combination with a deindustrialization process where more and more
people shift to jobs within the service sector has historically fuelled the demand for office
space in most across the western world, not least in Sweden. During the year of 2020, due to
the ongoing pandemic many employees have been forced or encouraged to work from home,
telework. With so many employees teleworking and many organisations reconsidering where
work should be carried out, the importance and future of offices is questioned.
The aim of this thesis was to obtain a deeper understanding of how increased telework will
affect the office space market. In doing so, four research questions were formulated assessing
the effect of telework on the office space market, the drivers and obstacles towards increased
telework, and finally the Corona pandemic effect on the future of telework. The approach of
finding evidence to answer research questions was interviewing real estate professionals,
employers and employees, conducting a survey, and performing an extensive literature review
on previous work surrounding the topic.
The result shows that telework will likely lead to decentralisation of offices, increased
demand for flexibility, changes in requested office design and eventually a somewhat
weakened demand for office space. Result further shows that the main drivers towards
increased telework were found to be the event of a crisis, improved results, development of
information and communication technology (ICT), and improved work-life balance. The main
obstacles were found to be social isolation, loss of organisational culture, and teamwork
suffering. Lastly, results show that the Corona pandemic has served as a catalyst for many to
realise the potential of telework while simultaneously helping many to realise the importance
of the office as a meeting place. In conclusion, the Corona pandemic has pushed the change
towards increased telework and possibly, we need to reconsider what is implied with work in
our society.
Acknowledgement
This thesis is the final moment of the five-year Degree Programme in Civil Engineering and
Urban Management at KTH Royal Institute of Technology. The degree project was written
the autumn of 2021 at the School of Architecture and Built Environment within the Master’s
Programme Real Estate and Construction Management.
Before anything else, I would like to thank my supervisor Abukar Warsame at KTH Royal
Institute of Technology for all the support, valuable input, and guidance during the work of
this thesis and throughout the whole process. I would also like to thank all respondents
participating in the thesis for their time and effort that resulted in valuable input and
knowledge that made this thesis possible.
Finally, I would like to thank all my beloved ones for constantly supporting me, not only
during the work of this thesis but also during all these years spent at KTH Royal Institute of
Technology. There are no words that can express my gratitude to all of you. Without you, I
would not be where I am today.
Serhat Uzun
10th of January, 2021
Stockholm, Sweden
Examensarbete
Titel: Distansarbete och dess effekt på kontorsfa stigheter - En studie om distansarbete, dess framtid, och hur distansarbete kan påverka marknaden för kontorsyta Författare: Serhat Uzun Institution: Fastigheter och Byggande TRITA: TRITA-ABE-MBT-21434Handledare: Abukar Warsame Nyckelord: Distansarbete, Arbete Hemifrån, Kontorsfastigheter, Kontorsmarknaden
Sammanfattning
Kombinationen av tillväxt i bruttonationalprodukt, befolkning och antal arbetare i ett område
medför vanligtvis en ökad efterfrågan på arbetsplatsfastigheter, någonstans arbetare kan
utföra sitt arbete. Detta, i kombination med en avindustrialiseringsprocess där fler och fler
människor jobbar inom tjänstesektorn har historiskt sett drivit på efterfrågan för kontor i de
flesta länder i västvärlden, inte minst i Sverige. Under året 2020 har den pågående pandemin
resulterat i att många arbetare tvingats eller uppmuntrats arbeta hemifrån, distansarbete. Med
så många som arbetar på distans och då många organisationer ser över var arbete helst ska
utföras, ifrågasätts betydelsen och framtiden av kontor.
Syftet med detta arbete var att få en djupare förståelse för hur ökat distansarbete kan komma
att påverka marknaden för kontorsyta. Därigenom formulerades fyra forskningsfrågor som
granskar effekten av distansarbete på kontorsmarknaden, drivkrafterna och hindren för ökat
distansarbete och slutligen Coronapandemins effekt på framtiden för distansarbete.
Tillvägagångssättet för att hitta bevis som kan svara på forskningsfrågor var att intervjua
yrkesverksamma inom fastighetsmarknaden, arbetsgivare, anställda, genomföra en
enkätundersökning samt utföra en omfattande litteraturgranskning av tidigare arbete kring
ämnet.
Resultatet visar att distansarbete sannolikt kommer att leda till decentralisering av kontor,
ökad efterfrågan på flexibilitet, förändringar i efterfrågad kontorsdesign och så småningom en
något försvagad efterfrågan på kontor. Resultatet visar även att de viktigaste drivkrafterna
mot ökat distansarbete är inträffandet av en kris, förbättrat resultat, utveckling av
informations- och kommunikationsteknik och förbättrad balans mellan arbete och privatliv.
De största hindren visade sig vara social isolering, försvagad organisationskultur och att
samarbete kan gå förlorad. Slutligen visar resultatet att Coronapandemin har fungerat som en
katalysator för många att inse potentialen med distansarbete samtidigt som många insett
betydelsen av kontoret som mötesplats. Sammanfattningsvis har Coronapandemin drivit på
förändringen mot ökat distansarbete och möjligtvis måste vi tänka om kring vad arbete
betyder i vårt samhälle.
Förord
Detta examensarbete är det sista momentet av det femåriga Civilingenjörsprogrammet
Samhällsbyggnad vid Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan. Examensarbetet skrevs hösten 2021 på
Skolan för Arkitektur och Samhällsbyggnad inom masterprogrammet Fastigheter och
Byggande.
Innan något annat vill jag tacka min handledare Abukar Warsame vid Kungliga Tekniska
Högskolan för allt stöd, värdefullt bidrag samt vägledning under arbetets gång såväl som
under hela denna process. Jag vill också tacka alla respondenter som deltagit i arbetet för
deras tid och ork som resulterat i värdefullt bidrag och kunskap som möjliggjort detta arbete.
Slutligen vill jag tacka alla mina nära och kära som alltid varit där som stöd för mig, inte bara
under arbetets gång utan även under alla dessa år som jag tillbringat på Kungliga Tekniska
Högskolan. Det finns inga ord som kan uttrycka min tacksamhet till er alla. Utan er skulle jag
inte varit där jag är idag.
Serhat Uzun
10 januari 2021
Stockholm, Sverige
Table of Contents 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Background ............................................................................................................ 1
1.2 Problem Description ............................................................................................... 4
1.3 Purpose and Aim of Study ....................................................................................... 5
1.4 Research Questions ................................................................................................ 5
1.5 Limitations .............................................................................................................. 5
1.6 Disposition .............................................................................................................. 6
2. Literature Review ............................................................................................................... 7
2.1 The Concept of Telework .............................................................................................. 7
2.2 History, Current State and Future of Telework .............................................................. 8
2.3 Drivers of Increased Telework ..................................................................................... 12
2.4 Advantages and Disadvantages of Telework ............................................................... 14
2.5 Telework and the Office Space Market ....................................................................... 18
3. Methodology.................................................................................................................... 20
3.1 Methodological Approach........................................................................................... 20
3.2 Systematic Literature Review ...................................................................................... 22
3.3 Survey - A Quantitative Method.................................................................................. 23
3.3.1 Descriptive Statistics ............................................................................................ 25
3.3.2 Mann-Whitney U-test........................................................................................... 26
3.3.3 Ordinal Logistic Regression - The Proportional Odds Model ................................. 27
3.4 Interviews - A Qualitative Method .............................................................................. 27
3.5 Reliability and Validity ................................................................................................ 28
3.6 Ethical Considerations ................................................................................................ 29
4. Results ............................................................................................................................. 31
4.1 Employees’ Views and Attitudes Towards Telework.................................................... 31
4.1.1 Information and Communication Technology ....................................................... 32
4.1.2 Isolation ............................................................................................................... 33
4.1.3 Work - Life Balance............................................................................................... 35
4.1.4 Productivity and Teamwork .................................................................................. 37
4.2 Employers’ Views and Attitudes Towards Telework .................................................... 37
4.2.1 Information and Communication Technology ....................................................... 38
4.2.2 Productivity .......................................................................................................... 38
4.2.3 Work - Life Balance............................................................................................... 39
4.2.4 Working Environment .......................................................................................... 39
4.2.5 Organisational Culture.......................................................................................... 39
4.2.6 Demand and Usage of Office Space ...................................................................... 40
4.3 Important Factors and Aspects Regarding Telework Viewed from Real Estate Professionals .................................................................................................................... 41
4.3.1 Information and Communication Technology ....................................................... 41
4.3.2 Flexibility and Usage of Office Space .................................................................... 42
4.3.3 Decentralisation of Offices ................................................................................... 43
4.3.4 Organisational Culture.......................................................................................... 43
4.3.5 Demand for Office Space ...................................................................................... 44
5. Discussion ........................................................................................................................ 46
5.1 Drivers Towards Increased Telework .......................................................................... 46
5.2 Obstacles Towards Increased Telework ...................................................................... 48
5.3 Telework and its Effect on the Office Space Market .................................................... 50
5.4 Coronavirus Pandemic Impact on the Future of Telework ........................................... 52
6. Conclusion........................................................................................................................ 54
6.2 Sources of Error .......................................................................................................... 56
6.3 Suggestions for Further Studies .................................................................................. 56
References ........................................................................................................................... 57
Appendices .......................................................................................................................... 64
Appendix I - Disclosure of Survey (Translated to English) .................................................. 64
Appendix II - Document Sent to Employees Before Interview (Translated to English) ....... 67
Appendix III - Document Sent to Employers Before Interview (Translated to English) ....... 68
Appendix IV - Document Sent to Real Estate Professionals Before Interview (Translated to English) ............................................................................................................................. 69
Appendix V – Mann-Whitney U-test Test Statistic............................................................. 70
1
1. Introduction
This chapter will provide the reader of a brief introduction in the subject, describe the
problem, explains why it is relevant and important to address. The chapter also includes the
purpose and aim of the study, research questions, limitations that have been made, and an
explanation of the thesis disposition.
1.1 Background
Sweden has mostly exhibited a growth in gross domestic product (GDP) since the financial
crisis 2008, up until the second quarter of 2020. Viewing back at the time before the financial
crisis of 2008, Sweden had shown a growth in GDP compared to the same quarter previous
year, every quarter since 1994 (Statistics Sweden, 2020b). Along with a growing economy,
the capital of Sweden, Stockholm and its surrounding areas that together form Stockholm
County has shown a rapid population growth. Stockholm County has exhibited a rapid and
steady population growth with a net positive population change every year in recent time. In
1970, Stockholm County had a population of almost 1.5 million and has since grown to
almost 2.4 million. Figure 1 shown below, shows the population increase in Stockholm
County during the period 1970-2020 (Statistics Sweden, 2020a, 2020c).
Figure 1: Stockholm County Population 1970-2020. Source: Statistics Sweden, 2020a, 2020c.
In urban economics, a city or an urban area might experience growth in two different ways.
One is economic growth and is simply an increase in income per capita within the city. The
other one is called employment growth, a type of growth that is supplied from the employers
2
of the city that ultimately result in an increase in population (O’Sullivan, 2012). As
Stockholm County has had a growing population, in accordance with the latter type of growth
mentioned by O’Sullivan (2012), it is expected that a growth in employment has occurred
similar to the growth observed in the population shown in Figure 1. As expected, during the
period 2005-2019 employed in Stockholm County increased from just over 970 000 to almost
1.3 million. This increase is reflected by the population increase during the same period
(Statistics Sweden, 2020d). Figure 2 below illustrates the simultaneous increase in population
and number of employed within the county.
Figure 2: Population and Employed in Stockholm County 2005-2019. Source: Statistics
Sweden, 2020a, 2020c, 2020d.
An increase in population and employed within a certain area, such as Stockholm County,
affects multiple submarkets within real estate. Therefore, such increases are often included in
market analysis assessing real estate across multiple submarkets (Fanning, 2014). For
instance, an increase in population leads to more people in need of housing, thus affecting the
housing market. An increase in employed citizens leads to more people in need of real estate
that provide a workplace, thus affecting the market for commercial real estate. Commercial
real estate can be divided into multiple submarkets such as industrial, hotel, retail, and office
properties. In real estate market analysis, analysing the market for office space is performed
conducting numerous steps such as productivity-, supply-, demand analysis, and delineation
of market. In the demand analysis, one of the steps is to determine and forecast the workforce.
3
The importance of processing the workforce is because the number of employed are the ones
that will make use of office properties, thus forming the demand for that market (Fanning,
2014). The increase in employed citizens within Stockholm County that is mentioned above
would then result in an increase in demand for workplaces. However, the question of what
type of workplace is needed comes to question. According to Fanning (2014), the historical
increase of service sector jobs has fuelled the demand for office space. This historical trend of
increased service sector growth is a phenomenon happening across the western world, not
least in Sweden (Oesch, 2006). As mentioned, the shift in employment structure towards an
increased service sector indeed fuels the demand for office space as mentioned by Fanning
(2014). However, this implies that employees make use of the office space as they make up
the fundamental demand for the space. However, if employees are provided with the
opportunity to work fully or partially from home, the question of how this may affect the
office space market arises. Working from home, also known as telework, is the idea of “work
to be done at a place and not a place where the worker has to go” (Tavares, 2017, p. 30).
Thus, telework diminishes the importance of the workplace and the office space as employees
work does not necessarily have to be carried out somewhere where the employees must go.
This year, 2020, one of the most read articles at Fastighetsnytt, the leading industry magazine
within the real estate industry in Sweden, was titled “Can offices become housing after
corona?”. In the article, Öholm and Björesson (2020) argues that Sweden needs to soften up
the regulatory framework so that real estate easily can be transformed from one use to
another, for example transforming offices to housing units. Öholm and Björesson (2020)
highlights the changing environment of the real estate market which lies within its nature. An
example of such is the year of 2020, a time where telework has become a part of our society
following the call from The Public Health Agency of Sweden (2020) that everyone who has
the ability to work from home should do so. Öholm and Björesson (2020) further argues that
working from home, telework, will probably continue after the ongoing pandemic, and that
the pandemic served as an experiment that has shown that telework works.
The article further highlights that multiple companies have already showed interest in
teleworking and spotlights the example of Facebook. Facebook expects that half of its 48 000
employees will work from home within five to ten years (Öholm & Björesson, 2020). Along
with the spread of the corona virus Covid-19, teleworking is introduced all around the world.
In Japan, a survey done by the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce and Industry has shown that
4
roughly 70 percent of the responders have introduced telework, with some big companies
expressing interest in continuing after the pandemic (Kyodo, 2020). In the US, the
Department of Defence has expressed that in the fight against the pandemic they have
enhanced the teleworking capability to keep operations on track. For instance, the army has
now around 800 000 telework-enabled employees, the navy has increased employees who
telework from 100 000 to 250 000 and plan on further improving the teleworking capability,
thereby increasing the number of employees working remotely. This new way of working is
something that the Department of Defence expects to outlive the ongoing pandemic (Todd
Lopez, 2020).
What makes this crisis different from previous crises is that it forces people to stay at home if
possible. For instance, the 2008 financial crisis was a crisis that took place as an effect of a
supply driven bubble due to failure in the new asset-backed securitisation structure (Coffee Jr,
2009). The 2008 financial crisis differ substantially from what we are facing today as it did
not imply that we no longer could go to work. The current crisis however forces us to do so
and the aftermath of these consequences are of interest as telework becomes a way of working
that may outlive the pandemic, especially as digital workplace improves.
1.2 Problem Description
Section 1.1 highlights an emerging new force that might change our view on work and our
daily lives in the future. Above mentioned are some examples of where telework is becoming
commonly occurring, a phenomenon emerging around the world. Along with telework
emerging, new challenges and opportunities emerge within the real estate sector and how we
choose to use our facilities in the most effective way possible. For instance, if a certain
employer chooses that half of its work can be done from home it would imply that the
company possibly could use a facility that is half of the size of the current one. This will
result in lower facility costs. How will such a change have effect on the real estate market
when the demand on facilities and the need to travel into the city centre where most
workplaces are located becomes lower. These are some of the questions that arise from the
phenomenon that is telework. Furthermore, understanding the drivers and obstacles towards
increased telework might help to gain a deeper understanding of it, its advantages and
disadvantages, history, current state, and the future of telework.
5
1.3 Purpose and Aim of Study
The purpose and aim of this thesis is to obtain a deeper understanding of the changing
environment that telework will contribute to the office space market. The aim of this thesis is
not merely the effect of the pandemic on the office space market but rather about the effect of
increased telework. The pandemic in this case rather serves as a catalyst for the shift towards
increased telework, something that possibly would happen even without the pandemic but at a
much slower rate. Hopefully, this thesis will help both tenants and property owners prepare
for a changing environment and use the current space on the market as effectively as possible.
1.4 Research Questions
The research question in this thesis will be named RQ1, RQ2, RQ3, and RQ4, and will be
referred to by these names in the proceeding of the thesis. The research questions in this thesis
are:
RQ1: How will increased telework affect the office space market?
RQ2: What are the main drivers towards increased telework from the perspective of
employer and employees?
RQ3: What are the main obstacles towards increased telework from the perspective of
employer and employees?
RQ4: How has the pandemic impacted the future of telework?
1.5 Limitations
During the work of this thesis, some limitations have been made. With the service sector
growing in most western countries fuelling the demand for office space, and due to the nature
of telework, the author of this thesis has centred the study towards focus on the office
submarket of real estate. Furthermore, a geographical limitation has been made mainly
focusing on Stockholm County to make sure that the manageability of the study is reasonable.
Although this geographical limitation, the study will to a lesser extent also explore telework
in other markets internationally. The term telework and its meaning in the scope of this thesis
is in detail described in Section 2.1. The thesis mainly focuses on telework as working from
6
home and only to a lesser extent to telework performed at alternative office spaces such as
Co-working spaces.
1.6 Disposition
This thesis is written in a total of six chapters. Chapter one, Introduction, provides the reader
with a brief introduction in the subject, describe the problem, explains why it is relevant and
important to address. Chapter two, Literature Review, provides the reader with a more
comprehensive understanding of telework through reviewing precious literature surrounding
the topic. The literature review carefully reviews multiple aspects regarding telework with
literature stemming from the visionaries who initiated the idea, to new studies that studies
telework during the ongoing pandemic. Chapter three, Methodology, presents all methods
used during the work of this thesis along with the methodological approach in choosing and
justifying choice of methods. Chapter four, Results, presents data obtained through
conducting the survey, interviews, and statistical tests. In chapter five, Discussion, research
questions are discussed using data and results collected through the literature review and
results chapters. In chapter six, conclusions are drawn to answer the research question based
on previous sections of the thesis. The chapter continues with acknowledgement of potential
sources of error. The thesis ends with suggestions for further studies.
7
2. Literature Review
This chapter will provide the reader with a more comprehensive understanding of telework
through reviewing precious literature surrounding the topic. The literature review carefully
reviews multiple aspects of telework. The chapter includes defining the concept of telework,
drivers, advantages/disadvantages, a timeline, and lastly its relation to the office space
market.
2.1 The Concept of Telework
There are numerous different definitions of telework and they all provide a similar idea of
what it is. The European Framework Agreement on Telework signed by European Trade
Union Confederation (ETUC), UNICE, UEAPME, and CEEP (2002) defines telework as the
following: “Telework is a form of organising and/or performing work, using information
technology, in the context of an employment contract/relationship, where work, could also be
performed at the employer’s premises, is carried out away from those premises on a regular
basis” (p. 2). As the European Framework Agreement on Telework intent to negotiate and
arrange a framework agreement on Telework, the agreement further regulates factors such as
employer-employee relation, and what rights and obligations they have to one another. As
telework covers a wide spectrum of circumstances and practices, the definition provided here
is to be considered a broad one that merely settles that work can be performed away from the
employer premises on a regular basis. Other definitions and explanations of telework may be
described in a slightly differ manner but the idea of them is all the same. The idea of telework
is that employees are able to partially or fully perform their work at distance, somewhere
other than the employer’s premises. This could for instance be working from home,
telecentres, or mobile work, and is enabled through use of information and communication
technology (Baruch, 2000; Huws, 1991). As one of the possibilities of performing telework is
working at so called telework centres, thus making it closely related to Co-working in that
case, a type of workplace trend that has become increasingly popular and discussed. In the
literature there are different types of Co-working spaces such as telecentres or teleworking
centres, serviced offices, and Co-working spaces whereas telecentres have the closest link to
telework. The idea of telecentres is simply that employees of some company uses these
centres to carry out their work instead of using the employer’s premises, as long as there are
enough computer and telecommunication systems in place that enables the employees’ work
(Kojo & Nenonen, 2017). However, this study is mainly focusing on telework from home,
and only to a lesser extent such Co-working spaces mentioned above.
8
Across the world the terms used for working from home or more precisely, away from the
office, differ to some extent. In the US, the term telecommuting is used while the term
telework has become the standard in Europe. There are also other terms that intend to express
the same phenomenon such as off-site work, remote work, and work-at-distance (Tavares,
2017). The first definitions set by Nilles (1975) uses the term telecommuting, as the result of
Nilles assessing an alternative to commuting to work. This as commuting had become an
increasingly complicated and expensive activity for employees in the study area of Southern
California. Although Nilles (1975) coined the term telecommuting as a result of largely
focusing on an alternative way of commuting to work, the result of the activity is the same as
intended with telework. Thus, telework and telecommuting are interchangeable terms, and
simply means to perform work outside of the office, often from the employee’s own home. In
the proceeding of this thesis, the terms telework and teleworking are used interchangeably.
2.2 History, Current State and Future of Telework
Working from home is far from foreign for us and not as new of a phenomenon as it might
seem according to Baruch (2000). Before the industrial revolution during the preindustrial
area, work often meant working either at home or close to home. These preindustrial forms of
working from home could for example mean to harvest privately owned land, mastering some
craftmanship at home or a near workshop. Along with the industrial revolution workplaces
became much more centralised and people started to gather at workplaces such as factories
and offices (Baruch, 2000; Toffler, 1981). First time telework was encountered in a modern
sense with homeworking enabled through use of communication and computer technology
was during the 1970s in the US. Nilles (1975) discussed the ability and availability to perform
work with the use technology, and its cost in relation to urban transportation system. Nilles
(1975) assessed an alternative to the increasingly complicated and expensive activity of
commuting to work, and envisioned a future that could successfully make use of telework.
Toffler (1981) coined the term “the electronic cottage”, referring to a connected home where
our homes becomes our primary place of work along with more and more employees working
with information rather than things. He further hypothesised that this will ultimately lead to
deurbanization and decentralisation of work, and that once again, work will return to the
homes as it were before the industrial revolution. In Europe however, the attitude towards
telework was less enthusiastic and looked upon with scepticism during the 1970s and 1980s.
Telework was often thought of as unskilled and low-paid office work where the idea of a
9
typical homeworker was a housewife that could take care of their children while
simultaneously working from home (Qvortrup, 2002).
Since the initial idea of modern telework, the use of telework has become more normalised
and popular. In early 1990s, telework became a part of policies within the European
community. Shortly after, telework reached the general population as infrastructure such as
satellites, wireless connection and fibre optics grew, thus enabling use of information and
communication technology (ICT) systems (Koutsonikos & Mitropoulos, 2007). In numerous
countries around the world an increase in teleworkers has been recorded. For instance,
Hotopp (2002) shows that in 2001 a total of 7.4 percent of the total workforce in UK either
fully or partially work from home, with the requirement that work is to be done at home at
least once a week. This was an increase from 1997 with 65-70 percent depending on the
different measurements that were used in the study. During the period 2005-2012 the
percentage of the workforce that considered their home as their primary place of work
increased with almost 80 percent in the US, to a total of 2.6 percent of the total workforce. In
Europe however, there is high dispersion in the number of teleworkers as countries in Europe
differ substantially (Tavares, 2017).
The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions
(Eurofound) publishes working condition surveys and reports with 4-6 years in between each
report. These reports assess the current condition of telework within the European labour
market. The problem with following the trends derived from the data in these reports is that
the classification of what is to be considered telework differs between the reports, and
countries considered in the reports differ. However, these reports may still be valuable in
understanding the increasing importance that telework is gaining across European labour
markets. The Third European Working Condition Survey from 2000 shows that 1 percent of
the workforce telework all the time while around 5 percent does it at least a quarter of the
time, see Figure 3 (Paoli & Merllié, 2001). The Forth European Working Condition Survey
from 2005 shows that less than 3 percent work from home all the time while as much as 20
percent does it at least a quarter of the time, a clear increase from previous survey (Parent-
Thirion, Fernández Macías, Hurley & Vermeylen, 2007). The following two surveys, fifth
and sixth, uses slightly different classification. Therefore, comparing them to the preceding
ones somewhat difficult. However, both shows that Sweden is amongst European countries
where telework is most common, with as much as 40 percent of workers working at least
10
somewhat outside of the employer’s premises. This shows a clear increase from the third
report where Figure 3 shows that Sweden were somewhere in the middle amongst European
countries in 2000 (Parent-Thirion et al., 2014; Parent-Thirion et al., 2016).
Figure 3: Percentage of teleworkers in European labour markets. Source: Paoli & Merllié,
2001.
With the evolvement of telework around the world and in Sweden, telework has gained an
increasingly larger share of the labour market in recent time. As mentioned in Section 1.1, the
event of the pandemic has caused governments and companies to act, encouraging people to
work from home and at least temporarily transforming our society to a teleworking one.
Across Europe, this recommendation has been a tool to protect citizens during the pandemic.
For instance, the Spanish Health Minister asked companies to promote telework for its
employees (Belzunegui-Eraso & Erro-Garcés, 2020). Not least in Sweden has The Public
Health Agency of Sweden (2020) stated that people who are able to work from home should
do so. In Belzunegui-Eraso and Erro-Garcés (2020) study on telework during the pandemic,
their results show that major companies across multiple sectors have implemented telework,
companies such as Twitter, Ernst & Young, Ericsson, Google, LG Electronics, and AXA. To
illustrate the raising interest in telework as a result of the pandemic, Google Trends (2020)
11
provides data on what people had been searching for. Google Trends data shows a clear
increase in people searching for “working from home” over the past year, see Figure 4.
Figure 4: Searches for “working from home” on Google during the period 2019-10-13 to
2020-10-10. Source: Google Trends, 2020.
With the pandemic resulting in an increase in telework and interest in teleworking, at least
temporarily, it seems as telework has gained ground. As discussed earlier in Section 1.1,
telework is a phenomenon that may outlive the crisis as companies and organisations like
Facebook, large Japanese companies, and the US Department of Defence see a future where
much more of the work is performed at home (Öholm & Björesson, 2020; Kyodo, 2020; Todd
Lopez, 2020). According to Lister (2020), the president of Global Workplace Analytics an
organisation that promotes teleworking strategies, their estimates is that 25-30 percent of the
workforce will telework multiple days a week as early as the end of 2021. Important however,
is to consider the clear bias that Global Workplace Analytics has in the question as it is an
organisation that promotes telework. Nevertheless, Global Workplace Analytics, Facebook,
and other large organisations see a future of telework that align well with what was
envisioned by Nilles (1975) and Toffler (1981) back in the 1970s and 1980s.
12
2.3 Drivers of Increased Telework
Derived from the earliest definitions of modern telework in 1970s and 1980s by Nilles (1975)
and Toffler (1981), a key factor in enabling telework has been having information and
communication technology (ICT) tools that are enough to enable such work. The evolvement
of ICT has driven the transition towards increased telework with it. Messenger and Gschwind
(2016) developed a new conceptual framework, the so-called Three Generations of Telework
through making a distinction depending on how far the development of ICT-tools had
reached. Home Office was the first one where computers and fixed telephones were available
at home, thereby enabling telework. Mobile Office was the second one where telework was
made even more available with the use of laptops and mobile phones. Lastly, the Virtual
Office is the third generation of telework where smartphones and tablets makes it possible to
be connected and telework at basically anytime and anywhere. Figure 5 shown below is a
graphical illustration of their conceptual framework.
Figure 5: Illustration of Me Messenger and Gschwind Conceptual Framework of the
Evolution of Telework. Source: Messenger & Gschwind, 2016.
13
Similarly, Vescoukis, Stratigea and Giaoutzi (2012) highlights the link between the
evolvement of ICT and telework. This is done through separating three generations of
telework that are slightly different from the ones proposed by Messenger and Gschwind
(2016) but implies the same arguments. What these distinctions of telework generations does,
is that it helps us understand the clear impact the evolvement of ICT has on telework.
During the time of the ongoing pandemic in 2020, the crisis at least temporarily has acted as a
driver towards increased telework. However, the questions that is of interest is whether this
change is solely temporary or if some of it may outlive the crisis. If we are set to believe
multiple major organization, we can draw the conclusion that this change towards increased
telework is more that temporary (Öholm & Björesson, 2020; Kyodo, 2020; Todd Lopez,
2020). The fact that telework is a tool in crisis management is something that is well
documented in the literature (Pearce II, 2009; Reynolds & Quinn, 2008). Sato and Spinks
(2002) studied telework during the event of earthquakes. They found that during the Great
Hanshin Earthquake in Japan the importance of use of ICT-tools increased but found no
evidence suggesting that telework was used either before or after the earthquake. However, in
comparing to the Northridge Earthquake in Greater Los Angeles, they found that the
earthquake contributed to decentralisation of office space, however not in the form of
telework at home but rather telework at so-called telecentres, discussed in Section 2.1. Thus,
in deciding if a crisis may act as driver towards increased telework the evidence seem to be
somewhat conflicting. These events such as a pandemic or an earthquake provides examples
of when workers are not able or advised not to go to work. The event of an economic crisis is
much different in that it does not prevent anyone to go to work. However, telework may also
serve as a tool to battle such crises. Raiborn and Butler (2009) argues that in the event of an
economic crisis such as the great financial crisis 2008, companies can avoid losing employees
that are key to their business and organisational memory through the implementation of
telework. Telework will result in substantial cost savings, and enable companies to retain
important employees that further avoids future training costs when the economy rebounds and
companies need to re-employ.
14
2.4 Advantages and Disadvantages of Telework
In understanding the managerial decision to implement fully or partially telework for a certain
organisation, it is important that one first makes sure that the work performed is possible from
distance. This is done through making sure that the level of ICT-tools and supporting
infrastructure is enough to enable such work. Other than making sure that telework is
possible, one has to weight advantages and disadvantages in relation to one another to help
deciding. The main advantages and disadvantages have been reviewed and cited in the
literature are summarized in tables below, with at least two different sources cited for each
advantage or disadvantage. For simplifying the understanding, the author has categorized
these in national (N), organisational (O), and individual (I) categories, depending on what
level that is largely impacted by the advantage or disadvantage.
Table 1: Advantages of telework.
Advantage N O I Description Source Decreasing operational costs ✓
As the organisation no longer needs as much office space, this leads to lower operational costs.
(Baruch, 2000), (Pearce II, 2009)
Work-life balance ✓
Reduction in commuting time and increased autonomy enables teleworker to organise after their individual needs and preferences.
(Messenger, 2017), (Tavares, 2017)
Less commuting
✓ ✓
Saves time for individuals, and at a national level helps against pollution and traffic congestion.
(Koutsonikos & Mitropoulos, 2007), (Baruch, 2000)
Increased crisis operationality ✓ ✓ ✓
As a crisis may force workers to stay at home, telework helps across all levels as it enables people to continue working.
(Pearce II, 2009), (Reynolds & Quinn, 2008)
Recruitment benefits
✓ ✓ ✓
As work is not based on location recruitment area becomes larger, thus helping organisations recruit, individuals finding work, and deal with employment on a national level.
(Mahler, 2012), (Vescoukis, Stratigea & Giaoutzi, 2012)
Improved productivity ✓ ✓ Telework has been shown to
increase productivity. (Pearce II, 2009), (Messenger, 2017)
15
Table 2: Disadvantages of telework.
Disadvantage N O I Description Source Social isolation
✓ ✓ ✓
As day-to-day encounters with colleagues and clients becomes fewer the risk of social isolation becomes larger.
(Even, 2020), (Tremblay & Thomsin, 2012)
Professional and organisational isolation ✓ ✓
Teleworkers becomes more detached prom the organisation and their own career development.
(De Vries, Tummers & Bekkers, 2019), (Tavares, 2017)
Teamwork may suffer ✓ ✓
As direct contact becomes less prevalent, good teamwork becomes harder to maintain.
(Brumma, 2016), (Baruch, 2000)
Work overload, stress & exhaustion ✓
Feeling rushed or pressured when working from home.
(Tremblay & Thomsin, 2012), (Weinert, Maier, Laumer, & Weitzel, 2014)
Loss of control ✓
For managers it is an increasingly difficult task to control their employees when teleworking.
(Raiborn & Butler, 2009), (Baruch, 2000)
The advantage of decreased operational costs found in the literature is central to the research
question RQ1 of this thesis. Pearce II (2009) highlights a couple of examples where this
benefit has been obtained by organisations. For instance, the companies AT&T and Cisco
reduced the required office space with 20-30 percent, IBM cut down 40-60 percent of real
estate costs, and Northern Telecom reduced annual operating cost per employee with $2,000
through implementation of telework. This advantage may seem clear and easily
understandable but when considering the nature of telework in general, these cost saving may
become harder to obtain. Huws (1991) discusses the implementation of telework, and
guidelines that may help navigate. In reviewing agreements across different countries Huws
(1991) establish that telework is and should be of voluntary character. Employees should thus
be able to choose to whether they want to telework and how much they would like to do so.
Examples of such agreements are IBM telework agreement in Germany, British Telecom
(BT) in Great Britain, The Dutch Ministry of Traffic and Transport, and The Swedish
Federation for Professional Employees (TCO), all stating that telework is voluntary (Huws,
1991). This implies that if all employees at a certain organisation choose to work at the office
on Mondays and telework on Fridays, the organisation would not be able to cut down the
amount of space needed for its operations. In doing so the managers would need to make
decisions that may jeopardise the voluntary nature of telework, and schedule or demand
employees to telework at chosen days.
16
Regarding the advantage of less commuting time, this was indeed the initial intent of telework
when introduced by Nilles (1975). The importance of timesaving in terms of commuting time
seems to be a motivating factor in the decision to telework. Hjorthol (2006) shows that in the
three most populated Norwegian cities, telework is more frequently exercised when a worker
works in the city and live in another municipality, or lives in the city and works in another
municipality. Hjorthol (2006) concluded that distance to work indeed is a motivating factor in
the decision in choosing to telework. In the case of Sweden, Vilhelmson and Thulin (2016)
argues that large urban areas strengthen the tendency of telework taking place and shows
telework is by far the most common in Stockholm, followed by Malmo and Gothenburg.
Although research shows that the potential and benefits of telework is strengthened in urban
areas, it is also beneficial in the case of communities that are more rural. In a case study of
multiple different teleworkers in the Australian outback, Simpson, Daws, Pini and Wood
(2003) shows the possibility of gaining recruitment benefits, see Table 1, as teleworkers in the
study lived and teleworked as far as 1000 kilometres from the main office in Brisbane.
Simpson et al. (2003) found some issues with this type of telework, namely technology-
related difficulties and lack of sufficient infrastructure supporting this type of work.
Somewhat surprisingly, Simpson et al. (2003) concluded that rural teleworker is not affected
by isolation to the same extent as their urban counterparts, possibly because of rural
inhabitants already being isolated to begin with. Another study by Alizadeh (2012) studies
three communities, one in Australia and two in the US that are away from urban areas where
telework has been made possible. These studies suggest that the potential of telework
stretches beyond urban areas, help achieve recruitment benefits for employees and employers,
while at the same time contributing to less traffic congestion and pollution on a national level.
One of the main concerns with implementing telework in a workplace is the risk of isolation,
both social isolation, and professional or organisational isolation. Professional or
organisational isolation can briefly be summarised as the risk of employees losing the sense
of commitment to their organisation, worsen networking possibilities, and less day-to-day
contact with and within the organisation. Something that ultimately may lead to decreased
potential of career progression (De Vries et al., 2019; Tavares, 2017). In line with this, a
recent web-survey conducted during the ongoing pandemic resulted in some respondents
fearing that telework would negatively impact their promotion opportunities, and their ties to
17
colleagues and employer (Baert, Lippens, Moens, Weytjens & Sterkens, 2020). To combat
isolation, research suggests multiple actions to take place. De Vries et al. (2019) suggest that
traditional hierarchical leadership might be harder to engage in because the lack of face-to-
face contact and geographical dispersion. Instead, leaders or managers should have a
relationship-oriented leadership using a more supportive approach towards the employees and
building mutual respect and trust, possibly using ICT-tools such as Skype meetings.
Similarly, Even (2020) recommends the use of ICT-tools to build stronger relations and trust
within the organisation, and to achieve this, train and educate managers.
The fear of losing control is another concern that arise from telework. When employees and
managers no longer encounter each other as frequently as before and do not stay in the office,
the visual control that would normally take place is no longer possible. Here Raiborn and
Butler (2009) suggest usage of ICT-tools in form of workflow management systems and
monitoring software that makes it possible to track computer use among employees.
Similarly, in the case of worsen or hindered teamwork, Lilian (2014) argues that managers of
virtual teams needs to choose the right ICT application for the right task in enabling
teamwork in a virtual setting. Lilian (2014) argues that managers can address challenges that
comes with working in virtual teams through adopting new leadership skills and the ability to
choose the right ICT-tool for the right task.
While some sources (Messenger, 2017; Tavares, 2017) argues for improved work-life balance
through telework, the research regarding this effect of telework is somewhat conflicting. A
survey study conducted by Tremblay and Thomsin (2012) with over 800 respondents found
that professional and family-life confusion were one of the key aspects leading to
dissatisfaction among teleworkers, thus implying a divide within research. Weinert et al.
(2014) found similar results in telework causing work-home conflicts. This divide in
advantages and disadvantages stretches beyond this aspect. For instance, improved
productivity is listed as an advantage of telework in multiple sources (Tavares, 2017; Pearce
II, 2009; Messenger, 2017; Hotopp, 2002). An example of improved productivity is the major
“working from home” experiment at CTrip, a NASDAQ-listed Chinese travel agency with
16 000 employees. The experiment showed a 13 percent performance increase due to fewer
breaks, fewer sick-days, and a quieter working environment. The experiment involved
randomly selected call-centre employees that for nine months worked from home (Bloom,
Liang, Roberts & Ying, 2015). On the contrary, Golden, Veiga and Dino (2008) found
18
telework negatively impacting job performance. Golden et al. (2008) however highlights the
importance of using ICT-tools to reduce the negative impact on performance when
teleworking.
The question of stress among teleworkers compared to office-based workers also differ to
some degree in the literature. In a study evaluating data collected from 57 IT professionals,
Weinert et al. (2014) found that telework induced stress and causing exhaustion. In another
study, Mann and Holdsworth (2003) interviewed six teleworkers and six office-based workers
along with conducting a survey with 30 teleworkers and 32 office-based workers. The
interview and survey found conflicting results as the interviews showed that teleworkers were
experiencing less stress while the survey showed teleworkers had more symptoms relating to
stress. Mann and Holdsworth (2003) concluded that although the perception of stress may be
lower amongst teleworkers, the actual levels of stress is higher.
When reviewing the literature on advantages and disadvantages some concluding patterns can
be drawn. Some advantages such as decreased operational costs and increased crisis
operationality are clearer while others such as improved work-life balance and productivity
are more divided within the literature. Lastly, the use of ICT and the managers role seems
fundamental in combating disadvantages and enabling advantages of telework.
2.5 Telework and the Office Space Market
To understand what affect telework might have on the office space market, one must first
understand the office space market and the demand for such space. Ultimately, it is the users
of office space who form the demand for such properties (Fanning, 2014). The users and thus
also the consumers that form the demand for office space are the organisations that occupies
it. Telework in that case either fully or partially eliminates the consumption of office space
and thereby lowering the demand. In other terms, a hypothetical world where everyone is
teleworking would imply a total of absence of demand for office space. This would mean that
office vacancies would increase to 100 percent and offices would be useless, an extreme case
scenario. When discussing advantages and disadvantages of telework, there are numerous of
examples where decreased operational costs and decreased demand for office space is
illuminated, see Section 2.4.
19
Telework along with other business reorganizational strategies and work practises are a form
of downsizing office space. Downsizing is when a company or organisation decreases the
amount of space needed per employee, where the most extreme case of downsizing is fully
teleworking employees as this eliminates the need for office space completely (Miller, 2013).
Another example of downsizing is the use of open space in an office environment. For
instance the U.S. General Services Administration Public Building Service (2012) illustrates
how the number of employees using a given office can be increased from 79 to 221, an
increase of almost 280 percent. Furthermore, according to Miller (2013) a typical company in
the U.S. has half of its space empty at any given time. This illustrates the potential
inefficiency of current office space use and may provide evidence for those who question the
impact that downsizing has on the demand for office space. In other terms, why would
downsizing result in a decrease in demand for office space if the offices are already half
empty. Accordingly, Miller (2013) suggests that the impact of downsizing measures on the
office space market surely is exaggerated. In the same way, Virginia and Colin (2001) found
that in the United Kingdom, the impacts of such new working practices on corporate real
estate portfolio is exaggerated, partly because of inflexible market structures. Although the
impact on the demand for office space may be exaggerated, there are evidence that suggests
that it should not be disregarded. Dixon, Marston, Thompson and Elder (2003) suggests that
changes in office densities in London due to telework and other new workplace practises are
important factors to consider in future office space projections. Similarly, Bello and Ashaolu
(2010) found that a growing number of teleworkers in the future is expected to result in a
decline in demand for office space in Lagos Island, Nigeria. Another important factor to
consider is the fact that telework is practiced to a relatively small extent in comparison to its
potential, see Section 2.2. Consequently, the relevance of questioning what impact a further
increase in telework has on the office space market arises.
20
3. Methodology
This chapter presents all methods used during the work of this thesis along with the
methodological approach in choosing and justifying choice of methods. Research questions
are assessed individually in the processes of choosing research design and appropriate
methods. Furthermore, reliability, validity, and ethical considerations are discussed relating
to the work.
3.1 Methodological Approach
When choosing what methodological approach that is appropriate and justifiable for the
research problem, one must evaluate the methods chosen in relation to the context and
intention of the research. The type of research design that is chosen is dependent on the nature
and aim of the research problem. There exist multiple different research designs, these can be
categorised in categories such as historical-, descriptive-, correlation-, comparative-,
experimental-, simulation-, evaluation-, and action design. Each research design has in turn a
set of methods that is commonly used to retrieve data from, where one method can be
appropriate in multiple designs. It is possible to combine multiple types of research designs
when assessing a research problem. The approach of combining multiple research designs is
especially beneficial when studying human behaviour in conjunction with, for instance,
technology, organisations, and economy (Walliman, 2018).
For the research problems and the corresponding research questions in this thesis, each one
provides different characteristics and should therefore be assessed individually so the right
design for the right problem can be chosen. As the research problems are ones that studies
human behaviour in conjunction with technology and economics, multiple research designs
are beneficial, thus justifying the decision to choose multiple research designs. For RQ1, a
combination of historical-, and descriptive design is used. As a historical design can look at
past similar events, this approach can provide answers through studying and drawing
conclusions from past crises and events. The method in applying this design will be to
perform a literature review. Since RQ1 is both descriptive nature (in what way telework
affects the real estate market), and predictive nature (what effects a future increase will have),
a descriptive design is appropriate as it can be used to measure these aspects. Methods used
for this design will be conducting interviews and review literature (Walliman, 2018).
21
Research questions RQ2 and RQ3 are similar and solely differ in that one attempts to assess
drivers towards increased telework whereas the other attempts to assess the opposite,
obstacles. Because of this, the same research design is chosen. A historical-, and descriptive
design is chosen for these research questions. A historical design aligns with the research
questions in that it establishes facts and develop a deeper understanding of the topic. This is
done through reviewing literature. A descriptive design can through collection of data form a
norm of how something is, therefore, it can help measure the objectives of RQ2 and RQ3
within the limitations of the thesis. Data collection methods used in this design will be
conducting a survey along with interviews (Walliman, 2018).
RQ4 is of descriptive nature in raising the question of how the ongoing pandemic has
impacted the future of telework. Interviews and survey will be the methods of answering this
question, along with reviewing literature on previous crises and telework.
For the research in this thesis, the methodological choice of using mixed methods has been
made. Mixed methods approach is the use of multiple methods, using both quantitative and
qualitative methods to research one phenomenon. The use of a mixed methods approach
allows the results generated from different methods to be interpreted jointly and yield a more
comprehensive picture of the research problem in comparison to a single-method approach
(Saunders, Lewis & Thornhill, 2015). Mixed methods approach is also known as
methodologic triangulation (Thurmond, 2001). According to Walliman (2018) there are many
reasons to choose mixed methods research, including to explore a phenomenon, address a
question at different levels, explain and interpret a situation. For the aim of this thesis, these
mentioned reasons to conduct a mixed method research is applicable as this thesis aim to
explore the phenomenon of telework, address the question across multiple levels, explain and
interpret the effects of the ongoing pandemic on the future telework. The use of mixed
methods research may benefit the thesis as different methods complement each other with
their strengths, can decrease, overcome or counterbalance the weaknesses of each individual
method (Walliman, 2018; Thurmond, 2001). Furthermore, McKim (2017) found that graduate
students viewed mixed methods as more valuable than the use of qualitative or quantitative
methods individually. However, it is also important to acknowledge potential weaknesses of
using a mixed methods approach. Terrell (2012) suggests that weaknesses of mixed methods
are that it may be time consuming, hard to compare two types of data, and that if differences
in results occur, it might be hard to resolve these differences without a lot of expertise.
22
Table 3 shown below is a summary of methods used to assess each research question. For
RQ2 and RQ3, these questions have each been divided into two questions for the purpose of
more precisely representing how data has been collected. More detailed explanation of each
method is described in the proceeding sections of the thesis.
Table 3: Summary of methods.
Research Question Methods
RQ1 How will increased telework affect the office space market?
Literature review & interviews.
RQ2a What are the main drivers towards increased telework from the perspective of employer?
Literature review & interviews.
RQ2b What are the main drivers towards increased telework from the perspective of employees?
Literature review, interviews & survey.
RQ3a What are the main obstacles towards increased telework from the perspective of employer?
Literature review & interviews.
RQ3b What are the main obstacles towards increased telework from the perspective of employees?
Literature review, interviews & survey.
RQ4 How has the pandemic impacted the future of telework? Literature review & interviews.
In this thesis primary data was collected through interviews and a survey. Secondary data was
collected through literature review on previous literature within the subject of telework.
Secondary data was also collected through data sources such as Sweden Statistics and Google
Trends. A combination of using both primary and secondary data may help triangulate the
findings along with making use of extensive secondary data that would not be possible to
collect as primary data due to limitations in resources (Saunders et al., 2015).
3.2 Systematic Literature Review
The literature review is an essential part of any research project. The purpose of the literature
review is to gain a deeper understanding of the topic at hand, to show understanding of the
theories, concepts, ideas, issues and debates surrounding the topic. The literature review is a
starting point in a research project, yet literature is continuously reviewed throughout the
duration of work. The literature review is a continuous process of finding, reviewing, and
revising the parameters for further search to continue finding more relevant literature
(Saunders et al., 2015).
23
The structure and approach of the literature review in this thesis has been inspired by the
recommendation of Webster and Watson (2002). Webster and Watson (2002) recommend
that finding relevant literature should be done through first reviewing major contribution from
leading articles. Secondly, go backwards through reviewing cited articles in the articles first
found. Lastly, go forward through reviewing articles that cite the articles found thus far. The
literature review in this thesis has been performed in such fashion. First, literature have been
found through searching for journal articles on data bases and search tools such as Google
Scholar and Primo. Examples of search terms used are “telework”, “telecommute”, “telework
+ crisis”, “telework + advantages”, “telework + Sweden”, “telework + evolution”, and
“telework + drivers”. Once finding some initial relevant literature, the author applied going
backwards through reviewing cited articles within articles, and later also applied going
forward. Through doing this, the authors managed to find relevant literature ranging from the
first visionaries studying telework in the 1970s to recent studies studying telework in relation
to the ongoing pandemic in 2020. This approach made it possible to sort out the timeline and
evolution of telework to this date. As mentioned earlier, finding and reviewing relevant
literature is a continuous process throughout the work (Saunders et al., 2015). This principle
has been applied as literature have been continuously searched for and found along with
gaining a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of the topic.
When reviewing literature, it is important to evaluate the literature, especially when searching
for literature online. Factors such as the accuracy of the work, what authority that it is based
on, if it is bias, and if it is out of date are some concerns that needs to be addressed
(Walliman, 2018). To ensure quality of sources, most of the literature used have been
published journal articles found on search engines such as Google Scholar. Secondary data
sets used have been retrieved from Statistics Sweden when possible and available. Statistics
Sweden is a government agency responsible for official statistics in Sweden (Statistics
Sweden, 2020e).
3.3 Survey - A Quantitative Method
When using the quantitative method of conducting the survey, it is important to assess the
method in relation to the research question. A survey is most appropriate when the research
question is explanatory or descriptive (Saunders et al., 2015). In this thesis, the research
questions RQ2b and RQ3b are descriptive and therefore the approach of conducting a survey
has been chosen. Saunders et al. (2015) argues that a survey that measures attitudes and
24
opinions are appropriate in descriptive research, and that this approach will further make it
possible to identify and describe the variability among the respondents.
The construction and implementation of the survey have been made using Gideon (2012)
handbook on survey methodology for social sciences. In academic research, a sample that is
selected at random is preferable when trying to generalise over the whole population. This
type of sampling method is also called a probability method and may be derived from a
population register or census records (Gideon, 2012; Walliman, 2018). In this thesis however,
a non-probability sample has been used due to limitations in resources. A non-probability
sample is a sample that is not chosen randomly, therefore it is important to acknowledge that
the sample may be subject to bias. The non-probability sampling method that has been used is
called snowball sampling where initial respondents further helps generate additional
respondents (Gideon, 2012). Although the survey is based on a non-probability sample, the
survey was constructed in such fashion that it starts with three control questions (CQ1-CQ3)
that serve as a tool to make sure that the respondents are in the right target group. If the
respondents answer in such way that they are not within the target group, the survey closes.
The three properties that these questions control for are, whether the respondents have work
as their main occupation, work within Stockholm, and work at an office. The total number of
respondents that answered the survey were 409 of whom 143 were within the target group.
The survey continues with a set of three background questions (BQ1-BQ3) followed by ten
statements (S1-S10) where the respondents answer through a Likert scale answer sheet. A
Likert scale answer sheet is a structure with answer options on a agree-disagree scale. A
Likert scale is according to Gideon (2012) appropriate when measuring attitudes amongst the
respondents. The attitudes that the survey intends to measure are based on the literature
review.
Whenever conducting a survey, it is important to account for the possible errors that may
come with the results. In this case, as a non-probability sampling method used it is possible
that so-called sampling errors may arise. However, according to Gideon (2012) a sampling
error typically consists of five percent of the total survey error and can easily be resolved by
increasing the sample size. Therefore, the more important part of the total survey error is the
non-sampling error, typically accounting for the remaining 95 percent. Examples of such non-
sampling errors might be that respondents do not understand the questions, questions might
be bias or even something as simple as the order questions are asked (Gideon, 2012). Because
25
of the magnitude of these errors, it is important to assess and acknowledge them, along with
trying to minimise them as much as possible. Disclosure of survey is found in the appendices
at the bottom of the thesis, see Appendices.
3.3.1 Descriptive Statistics
As previously mentioned, for the data collection in the survey a Likert scale answer sheet was
used. There are numerous versions of Likert scales, and the one used in the survey is a five-
point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree, see Table 4. The decision
to use a five-point Likert scale was taken because it is easy to understand with easy answer
options. According to Jacoby and Matell (1971), validity and reliability is independent of the
number of scale points. However, Matell and Jacoby (1972) found some benefits of using a
scale of four points or more.
Table 4: Five-point Likert scale.
Five-point Likert Scale
Strongly
disagree Disagree
Nether agree
nor disagree Agree
Strongly
agree
1 2 3 4 5
Descriptive statistics is describing a data variable using its central tendency and dispersion. A
variables central tendency includes measures such as mean and median. A variables
dispersion is describing how data is dispersed around the central tendency, measures such as
variance, standard deviation, quartile, and data range are typical for measuring dispersion. For
variance and standard deviation, the data must be assumed to be normally distributed
(Saunders et al., 2015). However, for the data obtained, normal distribution was not assumed
as all variables exhibited either negative or positive skewness. Range and quartile measures
can be used whenever working with non-normally distributed data, such measures can be
presented as box plots (Saunders et al., 2015). However, for the data obtained, as the median
and 1st or 3rd quartile were often represented by the same number the author chose to not
describe the dispersion of data in such fashion. For the same reason, median was not used in
describing central tendency of data. Describing survey data was mainly described through
explanatory diagrams, and to some extent the mean.
26
3.3.2 Mann-Whitney U-test
For testing if differences in attitudes between groups are statistically significant, Mann-
Whitney U-test is a way of doing so (Mann & Whitney, 1947). The sample were divided into
different groups depending on what they answered in the background questions. The divide
based on background question one (BQ1) was those who teleworked almost all the time or all
the time, 4-5 days a week, in one group while the remaining sample constituted the other
group. The divide based on background question two (BQ2) was those who have been
employed by their current employee 0-5 years in one group while the remaining sample
constituted the other group. The divide based on background question three (BQ3) was those
who lived 0-10 kilometres from work in one group while the remaining sample constituted
the other group.
Mann-Whitney U-test is appropriate when assessing independent samples expressed in
ordinal data, and groups are not necessarily the same sample size (Beatty, 2018). The decision
to conduct Mann-Whitney U-test was taken because it aligns well with the data obtained
through the survey. The procedure of the test is calculating U-values for each group, 𝑈" and
𝑈# (Salkind, 2006):
𝑈$ = 𝑆$ −$($*")
# and 𝑈/ = 𝑆/ −/(/*")
#
where 𝑆$ and 𝑆/ is the sum of ranks for group n and m respectively, n is the sample size of
group n and m is the sample size of group m. 𝑆$ and 𝑆/ is calculated through combining the
two groups, rank each data score 𝑖, and appoint each score with a rank 𝑅2 (Salkind, 2006):
𝑆$ = 3𝑅2$
24"
𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑆/ = 3𝑅2/
24"
.
When the sample is large as in this thesis, critical value 𝑈9:2;2<=> is obtained through normal
approximation as following (Salkind, 2006):
𝑈<:2;2<=> = 𝑈 +12 −
𝑚𝑛2
C𝑚𝑛(𝑚 + 𝑛 + 1)12
.
27
The smallest of the obtained U-values is then compared with the critical value 𝑈9:2;2<=> in
order to accept or reject the null hypothesis 𝐻E, that is, that there is no statistically significant
difference between the groups (Salkind, 2006). The Mann-Whitney U-test was performed
using statistical software SPSS. A significance level of 𝛼 = 0.05 was used.
3.3.3 Ordinal Logistic Regression - The Proportional Odds Model
Connected to Mann-Whitney U-test is the proportional odds model. Proportional odds model
is the most common ordinal logistic model that makes use of ordinal data (Harrell, 2015). For
responses 1, 2, 3,..., 𝑘 the model is (Harrell, 2015):
Pr[𝑌 ≥ 𝑗|𝑋] = 1
1 + exp[𝛼X + 𝑋𝛽]
where 𝑗 = 1, 2, 3, . . . , 𝑘, 𝑌 is the response variable or dependent and 𝑋 is the predictor variable
or independent variable. The interesting part of performing this analysis is the 𝛽-estimate.
The model further assumes linearity and additivity. If these are met the 𝑋 + 1 ∶ 𝑋 odds ratio
for 𝑌 ≥ 𝑗 is exp(𝛽) (Harrell, 2015). In other words a decrease from 𝑋 = 1 to 𝑋 = 0 would
yield an odds ratio of exp(𝛽). Thus, it yields exp(𝛽)-times higher odds that the response 𝑌 is
higher when 𝑋 = 0 rather than 𝑋 = 1. If exp(𝛽) < 1 this would imply that the odds are in
fact lower when 𝑋 = 0 rather than 𝑋 = 1. The proportional odds model was performed using
statistical software SPSS. A significance level of 𝛼 = 0.05 was used. The same divisions as
the ones used performing Mann-Whitney U-test was used, see Section 3.3.2.
3.4 Interviews - A Qualitative Method
Interviews is an establish research method that is the conversation between researcher and
study subjects. Interviews provide a deeper understanding of the topics and research
questions. When interviewing, it is important that the interviewer create a sense of trust, a
relaxing and enjoyable environment (Lochrie, Curran & O’Gorman, 2015).
The interviews conducted in this interview were semi-structured interviews. Semi-structured
interviews are interviews that have predetermined topics and key questions, however with
room for follow-up questions and discussions depending on the flow of the conversation. This
helps explore and develop a deeper understanding of the topic in comparison to more
structured interviews. The order of questions asked, and covered topics may differ depending
28
on how the conversation evolves (Saunders et al., 2015). The interviews conducted in this
thesis were conducted in such fashion that key topics and questions were sent to the
respondents in advance before the interview. According to Lochrie et al. (2015), semi-
structured interviews are applicable in conjunction with other methods, when the researcher is
planning to conduct multiple interviews, and when the researcher has knowledge in the topic.
Although semi-structured interviews may be appropriate for the research problem it is
important to consider what potential weaknesses the method has. Example of such
weaknesses are that it might be hard to stick to the topic during the interview, and that
questions might be subject to researcher bias. Therefore, it is important that the researcher
manages to keep the interview on topic, and that the researchers evaluates the questions to
avoid researcher bias (Lochrie et al., 2015). Table 5 below shows list of respondents for all
interviews conducted. Disclosure of interview questions the documents that were sent to
respondents in advance are found in the appendices at the bottom of the thesis, see
Appendices.
Table 5: List of respondents.
Respondent The interview was conducted via
Employee 1 Phone
Employee 2 Phone
Employee 3 Skype
Employer 1 Phone
Employer 2 Phone
Property Manager 1 Phone
Property Manager 2 Phone
Head of Property Management Phone
3.5 Reliability and Validity
Reliability and validity are two concepts that constitute foundational pillars of research and
science. These concepts should be assessed in every research paper. According to Wagemaker
(2020), reliability can be defined as “the degree to which a measurement or calculation can be
considered accurate” while validity “provides the reassurance that the assessment measures
what it purports to measure”. In other terms, an instrument is reliable if it yields the same
results repeatedly under the same circumstances and is valid if it does measure what it
29
purports itself to measure. To assess the reliability and validity of the methods and
measurements used in this thesis, the following steps have been taken:
• The interview and survey questions were expressed in a simple language to minimise
the result of error due to misunderstanding. According to Drost (2011) writing items
clearly and easily understood can improve reliability.
• Adding multiple items to measure the same phenomenon. Drost (2011) suggest that
reliability is increased by adding more items thus making them longer. This has been
applied to some extent, for example in the survey conducted. However, when applying
this approach, one must consider the length of which a study subject needs to engage
in the study as long engagement time might yield errors due to boredom and fatigue
(Drost, 2011).
• Survey and interviews were conducted anonymously to minimise the result of error
due to social pressure. This results in respondents expressing themselves freely
without fearing any backlash or having to align with social norms.
• All interviews were recorded and transcribed to avoid the risk of losing valuable data,
thus increasing the reliability.
• The use of mixed method approach as this assesses construct validity by examining
the convergent validity. Convergent validity is the use of different measurement to
measure the same phenomenon. If two different measures yield the same result when
studying the same phenomenon, it strengthens the validity of the study (Drost, 2011).
In this thesis this is enabled through studying differences and similarities in results
retrieved from the literature review, survey, and interviews conducted.
• Content validity has been assessed through the procedure of conducting an extensive
literature review with high-quality sources such as published journal articles. Content
validity is a type of validity that clarifies the domain of the phenomenon, and that the
measurement used fully represents the domain of the phenomenon (Drost, 2011).
3.6 Ethical Considerations
In research, it is crucial and highly important to consider the ethical norms that research have
been conducted upon. The importance of ethical norms in research is not to be minimised. It
helps defining the aim of research, build trust, creates mutual respect among involved parties,
and entail that researchers are accountable to the public for their own research. Thus,
researchers can be questioned by the public. This aspect of accountability and transparency
can also help build up trust in the research and create public support. Ethical considerations
30
include multiple aspects and characteristics. Characteristics that a good researcher should
have is honesty, frankness, integrity, carefulness, confidentiality, responsibility, and subject
protection (Chandra & Hareendran, 2018). During the work of this thesis, the research has
been conducted in a way that ethical norms have been considered throughout the work.
Examples of such considerations are the following:
• Researcher has throughout the work strived to avoid bias when designing the research.
• Researcher presents methods, data, and results as honestly as possible throughout the
work.
• Researcher has to the best of his ability avoided to neglect important information.
• Researcher has avoided to with intent misinterpret or fabricate data.
• Researcher has critically examined his own work continuously to avoid carelessness.
31
4. Results
This chapter presents data obtained through conducting the survey, interviews, and statistical
tests. The chapter structure is divided depending on respondent group, and what aspect of
telework it regards. Respondents are divided into three groups, employees, employers, and
real estate professionals. All results and data not mentioned or showed in this chapter are
found in the appendices at the bottom of the thesis, see Appendices.
4.1 Employees’ Views and Attitudes Towards Telework
To gain an understanding of employees’ views and attitudes towards telework, interviews and
a survey was conducted. Interview respondents were employees that have been teleworking to
a high degree during the pandemic, and are referred to as Employee 1, 2, and 3. Furthermore,
interview respondents are all employed within Stockholm County and are therefore within the
study area. Survey respondents were likewise individuals working within Stockholm County.
This, along with the other requirements on respondents were fulfilled through the survey
structure, see Section 3.3. The reason to why employees’ input is important is because they,
together with employers, are the consumers of office space and thereby forms the demand for
such space. All survey respondents, exempt six percent, said that they teleworked at least
once a week, and 69 percent teleworked four or five times a week. Furthermore, 73 percent of
the respondents had either been employed by their current employee either 0-2 years or 2-5
years. Only 10 percent of the respondents had been employed by their current employee for
over ten years. Lastly, almost half of the respondents had more than ten kilometres to work
while just over a quarter had either 0-5 or 5-10 kilometres to work.
Data obtained from the survey was analysed using two different but related methods, Mann-
Whitney U-test and an ordinal logistic regression, the proportional odds model. Both methods
served as means to determine how distance to work, employment time, and days teleworking
impacts respondents’ views and attitudes regarding telework. For more detailed description of
these methods see Section 3.3.2 and 3.3.3. Both methods yielded statistically significant
results, at a significance level of five percent, for the same variables. In total, only two out of
27 cases yielded significant results, see Table 6a and Appendices. Test and model results are
further mentioned and discussed in proceeding sections when appropriate.
32
Table 6a: Results for Mann-Whitney U-test with independent variable BQ1, “How many days
per week do you work from home?”.
𝜶 = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟓 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8 S9
U - Value 1785.5 2042 2060 1735.5 1942.5 2128 2012 1889 1771
Wilcoxon
W 2820.5 3077 3095 6568 6793.5 3163 6863 2924 2806.5
Z -1.892 -0.746 -0.689 -2.103 -1.179 -0.349 -0.873 -1.450 -1.999
Two-tailed
p-value 0.058 0.455 0.491 0.035 0.238 0.727 0.383 0.147 0.046
Regarding the employees’ experience and distance from workplace, Mann-Whitney U test
results indicate there is no difference between workers’ experience as well as how far they
commute in relation to teleworking (see Table 6b and 6c in Appendix V). In other words, we
could not reject the null hypothesis that there is no significant statistical difference between
groups based on work experience and commuting distance to their workplaces.
Overall, survey respondents felt that the Corona pandemic has had a positive impact on their
view on telework with 71 percent either agreeing or strongly agreeing with the statement
show in Figure 6. During the interviews, respondent confirmed this view to some degree as
Employee 1 and 3 expressed an overall more positive view of telework. On the other hand,
Employee 2 did indeed mention some positive realisations of the benefits of telework but
made it clear that she wishes to return to how it was before the pandemic.
Figure 6: Result of Statement 8 (S8).
4.1.1 Information and Communication Technology
The general perception amongst respondents was that information and communication (ICT)
tools indeed do enable work from home effectively. According to survey results, 75 percent
33
either agreed or strongly agreed that ICT-tools are good enough to enable telework without
any hindrance. On the other hand, 17 percent felt that ICT-tools was not good enough to do
so. Out of the ones who did not feel that ICT-tools are good enough, more than half felt that
they could imagine extending telework along with the development of ICT-tools. The results
from Mann-Whitney U-test showed that individuals who telework 4-5 days a week feel that
ICT-tools are good enough to enable telework to a significantly different degree in
comparison to individuals teleworking 0-3 days a week. The magnitude in difference between
the groups is found through the proportional odds model. The proportional odds ratio showed
that individuals who teleworked 4-5 days a week about twice as likely to have a more
satisfied view of ICT-tools ability in enabling telework compared to individuals who
teleworked 0-3 days a week, see Table 7.
Table 7: Results for Proportional Odds Model with dependent variable S9, “Technical and
digital tools, such as computer, smartphone, Skype, Microsoft Teams and various digital
platforms are good enough to enable me working from home without hindrance”.
How many days a week do
you work from home? 𝜷-estimate 𝐞𝐱𝐩(𝜷)
Standard
Error df p-value
0-3 -0.667 0.513 0.332 1 0.044
4-5 0 1 - 0 -
Interview respondents all expressed that many work-tasks could be performed with the use of
ICT-tools. Employee 1 did not mention any limitations of ICT-tools. Employee 2 and 3
expressed that some tasks suit the digital workspace while other tasks do not, therefore the
potential of telework is somewhat limited. Employee 2 and 3 further mentioned that the ICT-
tools that they use have had some limitations and technical problems. Employee 2 also
expressed that the risk of misunderstanding is much higher during digital meeting as informal
communication in form of body language and facial expression is lost.
4.1.2 Isolation
Regarding the organisational or professional isolation leading to negative effects on career
development, survey result showed that a fifth of the respondents feared this outcome.
Around half of the respondents did not fear negative impact on career development while
almost 30 percent had a neutral standpoint, see Figure 7. Like the majority of survey
34
respondents, interview respondents did not express anything that implied that telework might
result in worsen career opportunity due to organisational or professional isolation.
Figure 7: Results of Statement 5 (S5) and 6 (S6).
The statement regarding employee’s social isolation showed that most survey respondents
feel socially isolated. However, the share that did not feel social isolation also constituted a
fairly large group of 30 percent of respondents, see Figure 7. Therefore, even though the
majority of respondents do feel social isolation, results shows that there still is a substantial
share of respondents that do not. Thus, there is a divide regarding this issue. This divide was
also observed during interviews. Employee 1 did not express any feeling social isolation, and
felt that social interactions works just as fine digitally as it does face-to-face, sometimes even
better. Employee 2 and 3 did not share this view as both expressed that they miss the
spontaneous and informal social exchanges that takes place when working at the office.
Employee 2 said that she looks forward to when we are able to return back to how it was
before the pandemic, so she will be able to reach much more people than she is able to do
now. When asked about the future of telework, Employee 3 did bring up social interactions as
a reason to return to the office at least partially.
“Yes, I would like to work from home to some extent but not 100 percent, you miss the social
part with the colleagues. Also, it becomes increasingly difficult to network externally when
working at home.” - Employee 3
35
4.1.3 Work - Life Balance
In the survey there were two statements that intended to measure the improvement or
worsening in work-life balance, Statement 3 (S3) and 4 (S4). The first of these statements, “I
feel that I get more time for my private life when working from home”, an overwhelming
majority of respondents felt that they do get more time for their private life when teleworking
with almost half of the total respondents strongly agreeing with the statement. Only five
percent did disagree with the statement, see Figure 8. During the interviews, Employee 1 and
3 mentioned that telework has resulted in more time for their private life. Employee 2 did not
specifically mention this but did however mentioned that a total of two hours of travel time is
saved every day when teleworking. The reason mentioned for increased time for private life
was mainly time saved from travelling to and from work. Aside from travel time saved,
Employee 3 also brought up the ability to multitask when teleworking through doing some
chores at home while working at the same time.
The reduction in travel time seem to be an important factor in employees’ desire to telework.
When asked to rate Statement 2 (S2), “The reduction in travel time is important to me in the
desire to work from home”, 73 percent of respondents either agreed or strongly agreed with
the statement with a mean value of 3.92 on the Likert scale, see Table 4 for explanation. Both
Employee 1 and 3 expressed that this indeed was an important factor in the desire to telework,
with Employee 1 being of the opinion that the reduction in travel time is the biggest benefit of
telework. Employee 1 even said that she intended to seek a new job because of the travel time
but has since reconsidered as her employer will allow employees to work wherever it is
suitable, after the pandemic as well. On the other hand, Employee 2 did not feel that the
reduction in travel time is a factor that increases the desire to telework. She did however
acknowledge that she would save two hours a day and wished she lived closer to her
workplace.
“The biggest benefit is the reduction in travel time. The reduction in travel time means more
free time and more sleep.” - Employee 1
The second statement measuring work-life balance, “I feel that my private life and work end
up in conflict when working from home”, the majority of respondents did not agree with the
statement. Results showed that around a quarter of the respondents did in fact feel that their
private life and work end up in conflict when teleworking while 17 percent had a neutral
36
standpoint, see Figure 8. The results from Mann-Whitney U-test showed that individuals who
teleworked 0-3 days a week feel that telework results in work-life conflicts to a significantly
different degree than those who teleworked 4-5 days a week. The magnitude in difference
between the groups is found through the proportional odds model. The proportional odds ratio
showed that individuals who teleworked 0-3 days a week are about twice as likely to feel
more negatively about the effect of telework on work-life conflicts, compared to individuals
who teleworked 4-5 days a week, see Table 8.
Table 8: Results for Proportional Odds Model with dependent variable S4, “I feel that my
private life and work end up in conflict when working from home”.
How many days a week do
you work from home? 𝜷-estimate 𝐞𝐱𝐩(𝜷)
Standard
Error df p-value
0-3 0.691 1.996 0.325 1 0.033
4-5 0 1 - 0 -
According to Employee 1 and 3, they felt that their private life sometimes interferes with their
work. They further mentioned that it is important to draw line between work and private life
when teleworking, and that this has been a learning process since they started to telework.
Employee 1 also mentioned that it sometimes is problematic to use home as a primary
workplace as homes usually are not designed to function as an office. Thus, it results in
problems relating to ergonomics, health, equipment, and space. It was further mentioned that
employees and employer have been negotiating on some type of allowance for teleworkers as
employers save money when employees telework.
Figure 8: Results of Statement 3 (S3) and 4 (S4).
37
4.1.4 Productivity and Teamwork
Survey results shows that the largest group of 34 percent had a neutral standpoint on the
effect telework has on productivity. In comparing the number of respondents who felt an
increase versus a decrease in productivity, those felt an increase in productivity outnumbered
the opposite group with 2.7 times more respondents. Thus, respondents were more likely to
feel an increase in productivity rather than a decrease. These results were also reflected by the
interviews. Employee 1 felt that working at home increased productivity. Similarly,
Employee 2 felt that working at home is much more productive as work tends to become
more focused and less disruptive. Employee 3 felt that there is no difference in productivity.
Furthermore, both Employee 2 and 3 mentioned that they believe that some work-tasks are
more suitable and efficient when teleworking while others should be done at the office.
Employee 2 and 3 also expressed that less travelling during working hours has led to more
time set aside for work-tasks, thereby, increasing productivity.
“It has surely developed work from home. It has meant that we have been able to streamline
our internal meetings, but externally we need to return to physical meetings.” - Employee 2
Out of all statements included in the survey, Statement 7 (S7), regarding teamwork and
collaboration yielded a mean closest to the middle of the Likert scale. S7 resulted in a mean
value of 2.89, see Table 4 for explanation. Regarding teamwork and collaboration,
respondents had divided opinions. Here the share of respondents having a neutral standpoint
were 22 percent. Respondents that did not have a neutral standpoint constituted an equally
large share of 39 percent on each side of the spectrum.
4.2 Employers’ Views and Attitudes Towards Telework
To gain an understanding of employers’ views and attitudes towards telework, interviews
were conducted with two managers at two different organisations that during the pandemic
have implemented telework to a high degree. The respondents are referred to as Employer 1
and 2. The respondents are working in Stockholm County and are therefore within the study
area. The reason to why employers’ input is important is because they, together with
employees, are the consumers of office space and thus also forms the demand for such space.
38
4.2.1 Information and Communication Technology
The general view regarding the enablement of telework through the ICT was that it works
well, however with some limitations. Employer 1 shares some experiences where during
meetings the risk of misunderstanding and not getting the message out to employees is
present in a different way than during face-to-face meetings. The reason for this is because
during face-to-face meetings, one can read faces, hear hums and comments. Thus, the
informal communication is lost during digital meetings. Employer 2 however shares that
during their meetings it is a requirement to have the camera switched on and that it is partly to
be able to see the faces of employees. Employer 2 further mentions that the availability
amongst employees is much better when teleworking and that it is much easier to get a hold
of someone digitally in comparison to how it is at the office. This is because their digital
meeting software Skype makes it possible to see if someone is available, and all employees
are mostly available in front of their computers during working hours. On the other hand,
Employer 1 experiences that it is harder to call someone on the phone or set up a digital
meeting when comparing to just spontaneously exchanging ideas at the office. Employer 2
highlights that telework with the use of digital workspace might be easier for some and more
difficult for others. Therefore, it is important to consider that it might take some time for
some employees to get accustomed to this way of working. She also adds that they as an
organisation have experienced a steep learning curve, especially amongst their external
partners. Employer 2 also believes that more creative work-tasks are harder using digital
workspace, and that we need to learn how to promote more creative use of ICT-tools.
4.2.2 Productivity
Among the respondents, there were an overall perception of increased productivity amongst
the employees and within the organisations. Employer 1 mentions that despite the
circumstances on the market, their organisation has had an improvement in results. Employer
1 further mentions that working at home tend to be much more focused as there are less
disturbance and disruption. It was also mentioned that because employees no longer have the
same need to travel to meetings, there is more time set aside for work-tasks and follow-up
meetings, which also raises the productivity. Another factor that has contributed to more
productive work and improved results is the decrease in sickness rate during this period.
Telework has resulted in less people calling in sick or for instance staying at home when
caring of a sick child. Employer 2 shares this view as she mentions that presence amongst
employees has improved. Furthermore, Employer 2 brings up that meetings have become
39
more efficient and that it is much easier to call for meetings amongst employees. This is
because employees are sitting in front of their computers at home, and their availability is
visible through their used ICT-tool Skype. Employer 2 also adds that creative work-tasks are
less productive while other less creative work-tasks are more productive.
4.2.3 Work - Life Balance
One of the main benefits of telework that were mentioned by employers was the improvement
in work-life balance. This was mainly attributed to the need of commuting to and from work
disappearing. For instance, according to Employer 1, employees no longer need to worry
about leaving and picking up their children from preschool. Thus, lowering everyday stress.
Similarly, Employer 2 mention that employees feel that it is much easier to combat everyday
life when teleworking. This benefit of an improved balance between working life and private
life is one that was experienced by both employees and employers.
4.2.4 Working Environment
One of the main concerns that was brought up was the working environment. According to
respondents, securing a safe working environment and well-being of employees is more
difficult when teleworking. When meeting employees at the office it is easier to secure a safe
working environment and notice if someone is feeling bad. Some of the concerns that were
brought up were the risk of alcohol abuse, domestic violence, overall health and well-being.
As mentioned earlier, Employer 2 demands that everyone has their camera switched on
during digital meetings to pick up these types of issues as much as possible. Employer 2
further mentions that she as a manager is able to call for an employee to work at the office if
there are any concerns regarding the safety or well-being of any employee. Regarding
securing the working environment at employees’ homes, Employer 2 means that this
responsibility is challenging when teleworking but that their organisation does provide all
employees with basic working equipment. In addition, if an employee has a medically
documented need that goes beyond the basic equipment, they will also provide employees
with such. Such equipment that needs medical approval could for instance be a height-
adjustable desk.
4.2.5 Organisational Culture
Another concern that employers have when teleworking is related to organisational culture.
According to Employer 1, the pandemic and the forced telework sets requirements on both
40
employees and managers in maintaining unity within the organisation. He further expresses
that the unity and the brand of the organisation is highly linked to one another and that it is
difficult yet important to maintain a strong brand and unity that outlives the pandemic.
Employer 1 suggests that telework can become lonely at times, and that in some sense it is as
if every employee is running their own company.
“Now it is as if each person is running their own company” - Employer 1
Reasons highlighted to why the organisational culture is harder to maintain when teleworking
is because the daily informal communication and spontaneous exchanging of ideas are lost in
a teleworking context.
4.2.6 Demand and Usage of Office Space
During the interviews, the employers were asked how they view the future of their office
space demand, and if their usage of space will be affected. For the case of Employer 1, he did
mention that he would advocate for his employees to have the option to telework 1-2 days a
week if they would like to. However, he did not see their demand in office space changing
due to an increase in telework. This was motivated by the fact that their current rent was at
such a low level that this type of change is not necessary, thus accepting a low occupancy rate
at the office. Employee 1 did however mention that even though their organisations does not
need to decrease their office space, property owners should be worried about this. Employer 2
on the other hand believed that their organisation would indeed cut down on office space as
the demand for it decreases when telework increases. Furthermore, Employer 2 mentions that
the use of office space will probably change as well. Space where employees can actively
interact such as workshops, conference-, and project rooms will gain importance while more
traditional office desks will lose importance as a result of telework and improvement of
digital workspace. It was also expressed that this type of change is surely a process and may
take some time. When asked if she thinks that they will cut down on office space Employer 2
answered:
“I think that is something we will automatically do. . . . I think we will need the kind of space
useful when we want to meet in group, such as workshops and conference rooms. We need to
adapt the current space to suit a different need.” - Employer 2
41
During the interviews, there was a consensus that the future of work and how it is viewed as a
concept will most probably change. Employer 1 suggests that we may be facing a similar
transformation within the labour market similar to what we went through during the 1950s
when we switched from 6-day working week to a 5-day working week. Similarly, Employer 2
believes that we will never go back to how it was before, and that we need to challenge our
current view of work and what it means. Regarding organisational changes within their
organisation, she adds that there are currently no changes in guidelines or policies. However,
the organisation is currently analysing what changes might come and what needs the
organisation will have in the future.
4.3 Important Factors and Aspects Regarding Telework Viewed from Real Estate
Professionals
To gain understanding of what factors and aspects that are important according to real estate
professionals, the respondents were asked questions about telework in general, but also is
relation to the office space market. The respondents were namely Property Manager 1,
Property Manager 2, and Head of Property Management at two different real estate
companies operating in Stockholm County. The respondents all have contact with both office
tenants and other actors within the real estate market on a daily basis.
In general, there was a consensus that the situation at hand and telework will affect the future
of work, and that the change varies. This variability takes shape when comparing different
types of work, different companies, and also between individuals. Moreover, there were some
important factors and aspects regarding telework that were brought up by the respondents.
Besides their input as real estate professionals, the respondents also expressed their personal
experience as a teleworking employee.
4.3.1 Information and Communication Technology
According to the respondents, ICT is one of the most important factors relating to telework.
Head of Property Management mentions the use of ICT-tools and how it enables telework.
However, he also mentions the important limitations that ICT-based interaction have in
comparison to interacting physically at the office as we are used to. He further mentions that
his more restrictive view on telework has indeed changed. Property Manager 1 expresses that
enabling telework is highly dependent on the ICT-tools that are available but also the future
development of these tools. Property Manager 2 mentions that we have come to realise that
42
most of the work can be performed at home, where digital meetings and using phone works
well in most cases. This view, the realisation that most of the work can be performed from
home is one that is mutual among the respondents. When asked how the pandemic has
affected the view on telework among tenants, Property Manager 1 responded:
“It has of course affected it a lot. It is clear that new tools have been discovered. It has been
realized that Microsoft Teams meetings work very well, much can be done digitally. This is a
development that probably would have taken place anyway, but would had taken longer. Now
this development was accelerated as we were more or less forced to work from home.”
- Property Manager 1
4.3.2 Flexibility and Usage of Office Space
During the interviews two types of flexibility aspects were brought up by the respondents,
namely contractual and space flexibility. Property Manager 2 mentions that there is a built-in
slowness in leasing contracts as they typically have a contracted time of five years and a
minimum of three years. Due to this, she means that any type of change is partly limited due
to this. On the other hand, Property Manager 1 means that tenants will more and more
demand flexible contracts that will enable a more changeable environment.
Space flexibility and the usage of office space is an aspect where there is a clear consensus
that it is subject to change due to telework and the current situation. In addition to tenants
demanding more flexible contracts, Property Manager 1 also highlights the increasing
demand for more flexibility regarding the use of space. Smarter solutions such as the
possibility to share space, the ability to increase or decrease the amount of office space
temporarily depending on the space demands are mentioned. The concept of Co-working is
something that is believed to gain relevance because of this pandemic. Furthermore, a change
in the usage of space from a more traditional office space use to more collaborative spaces
might take place. Space such as workshops, conference-, and project rooms will gain
importance. Property Manager 2 align well with this as she also mentions that collaborative
space will gain importance. Although Head of Property Management also mentions this, he
means that this is something that has always been discussed within the industry and is thus
nothing new.
43
4.3.3 Decentralisation of Offices
One possible effect that was highlighted during the interviews was decentralisation of offices.
The decentralisation of offices is not merely the case of home offices but also local or satellite
offices outside of the city centre. Property Manager 1 mentions the possible outcome of more
companies choosing to have satellite offices outside of the city. This could for instance be one
office north and one south of the city, like small hubs. Similarly, Head of Property
Management mentions that suburban office properties could possibly get an upswing.
Reasons mentioned to why this approach might be beneficial are cheaper rents, closer to work
meaning less commuting time, different types of advantages gained from having a more
suburban connection, and being present in multiple locations simultaneously, although with
smaller premises.
“Suburban offices could get a boost instead when you want a crash site somewhere. There
are cheaper rents, closer to work as well as a new impact area. The advantage of being
present in the inner city is however that it has a completely different range of services”
- Head of Property Management
4.3.4 Organisational Culture
One factor that may constitute a problem for increased telework that were brought up was the
inability to create and maintain an organisational or corporate culture when working at home.
Property Manager 2 expressed that she believes meeting colleagues, managers, and learning
about the organisations values is highly important. Something that is highly dependent on
meeting one another at the office.
“I think a lot is built upon meeting for the corporate culture. I think it is very difficult to build
and develop a company if you never meet.” - Property Manager 2
Head of Property Management similarly expressed that the loss of organisational culture is an
obstacle for increasing telework, and that maintaining the organisational culture is a driving
force to meet. According to Head of Property Management and Property Manager 2,
maintaining organisational culture is somewhat attainable if employees are more experienced.
However, for someone who is young and newly employed, this is much harder as meeting in
person is crucial in understanding the organisational culture, getting a sense of belonging and
affiliation. Property Manager 2 further highlights that this might oppose a problem for
44
companies in succeeding to maintain its employees. The reason to why the organisational
culture is much harder to maintain through the usage of ICT-tools when working from home
is said to be because one easily withdraws oneself from calling or setting up a digital meeting
with colleague in comparison to just turning to the desk neighbour and ask something. It is
this daily and informal communication, collaboration, and exchange of experience, which is
important for the organisational culture.
4.3.5 Demand for Office Space
One of the main concerns with telework is how it can affect the office space market, more
precisely what impact it has for the demand for office space. According to the respondents,
there has not been any clear effect on the demand for office properties thus far. Property
Manager 1 mentions that their company has not experienced any change in demand since the
start of the pandemic and rather means that tenants miss going to the office, implying that
there will be a demand for office space after the pandemic as well. Head of Property
Management also expresses that the demand for office space will most probably not vanish
yet suggests that it is highly possible that it will somewhat weaken. This is because at least
some tenants will have a lower demand in office space, thereby affecting the demand across
the market. The suggestion that the demand for office space will somewhat weaken as a result
of increased telework is agreed upon among the other respondents. For instance, just before
the interview was conducted with Property Manager 2, she had just negotiated with a tenant
that brought up that they probably will not fully return to the office as before.
During the interviews, the respondents gladly commented on the fact that telework will most
probably impact the demand for office space but were somewhat hesitant on commentating
how substantial this change will be. Property Manager 2 argues that she has not seen anything
that points towards the office crash that she experienced the media were describing during the
spring of 2020. She rather believes that when we can go back, we will run to the offices. Head
of Property Management believe that the answer probably lies somewhere in between, that
the pandemic has helped us realise that we can gain benefits from telework, that we probably
can do so 1-2 days a week. He further shares that his employer has introduced a new policy
which allows employees to carry out work where it is best suited. He also points out that there
are currently no substantial vacancies in the office space market, and in case of a situation
with high vacancies, suggests that the market will adjust itself through conversion of use to
for example residential or school properties.
45
“The combination of working at home and in the office is perhaps the best. . . . To carry out
work where it is best suited is a very good and modern way of reasoning. If that push would
have come without the current situation, I am unsure of.” - Head of Property Management
46
5. Discussion
This chapter discusses research questions using data and results collected through the
literature review and results chapters. The chapter structure is divided depending on which
research question that is assessed in each section.
5.1 Drivers Towards Increased Telework
To present evidence and answer RQ2, the drivers towards increased telework are discussed.
The drivers towards increased telework should be seen from both the employees and the
employers, the consumers of office space. The importance of assessing telework is due to the
fact that employers are often the ones deciding whether telework should be implemented
within their organisation and to what extent. However, even if employees are encouraged by
their employers to telework, with the voluntary nature of telework highlighted by Huws
(1991), the employees are the ones deciding how much telework will increase. Therefore, any
decision to implement telework should be motivated by employers, as well as employees.
Most organisations are result driven. Therefore, any decision in implementing telework
should be motivated by results. Evidence obtained from interviews suggests that telework
indeed has resulted in increased productivity amongst employees. During the interviews, most
respondents expressed that they either felt as productive or more productive when
teleworking compared to working at the office. Survey results further confirmed this view as
a majority of 83 percent felt either as productive or more productive. These results are similar
to what has been found in previous literature (Pearce II, 2009; Messenger, 2007; Bloom et al.,
2015). It is however important to consider that the survey shows respondents’ own perception
of productivity and that this might differ from the actual productivity of employees. In
assessing results of an organisation, one has to consider more factors that only productivity of
employees. Although productivity surely has its effect on results, other factors such as sick-
leave days and changes in operational costs needs to be included as well. As expected,
employers express that sick-leave days are decreasing as an effect of telework. This is
something that increases the results. Interestingly, decreasing sick-leave, in combination with
an increasing social isolation, loneliness, and ergonomic issues seem somewhat conflicting. In
theory, telework is something that decreasing operational costs, having a positive side on
results as the cost-side of an organisations result is affected. Decreasing operational is an
advantage well documented in previous literature (Baruch, 2000; Pearce II, 2009). In line
with what is expressed by Employer 2 and Property Manager 1, organisations need to
47
evaluate the effect of introducing telework before making any decision on whether this way
of working should be implemented. Something that needs to be done by each organisation
individually.
In reviewing previous literature, it shows that that the development of internet and
communication technology (ICT) has been essential in enabling the development of telework,
see Section 2.3 for further discussion. Results obtained from survey and interviews shows that
the development of ICT-tools has reached such level that the majority can telework
unhindered with the use of ICT-tools. Furthermore, more than half of those who do not feel
that ICT-tools are developed enough could imagine teleworking more as ICT-tools develop.
This exemplifies how development of ICT and digital workspace could further drive the
change towards increased telework. In addition, interview respondents jointly expressed that
teleworking indeed has functioned as a realisation of ICT-tools capabilities as well as a
training period in making use of them. Results also shows that individuals who telework more
are twice as likely to be more satisfied with ICT-tools ability to enable telework. This could
be because those who telework more have learnt to make use of ICT-tools more effectively.
However, one cannot rule out the possibility that the reason to this might be that frequent
teleworkers are teleworking frequently due to the fact that their work is of such character
where telework is suitable. Whether it is viewed from the perspective of employers or
employees, ICT-tools and their development are essential for driving the change towards
increased telework.
The improvement in work-life balance seems to be an important factor for employees.
Improvement in work-life is mostly attributed to the time saved due to reducing travel time.
The reduction in travel time has been shown to be highly valuable in employees’ desire to
telework based on the results obtained from the survey. Important however is not to rule out
the possibility of work-life conflicts when teleworking. Result shows that frequent
teleworkers are half as likely to feel concern over work-life conflicts compared to those who
telework to a lower degree. This could be attributed to the fact that frequent teleworkers have
had more time to adjust to telework and learn the ability to draw a distinction between work
and private life resulting in less work-life conflicts. The possibility of teleworkers ability to
learn how to avoid work-life conflicts with time is something that was mentioned by both
Employee 1 and 3, which further strengthens the argument. Employee 1 and 3 mentioned that
during the time teleworking, they have had to learn how to avoid work-life conflicts through
48
drawing some kind of line between work and private life. From the perspective of employers,
improvement in work-life balance is an important factor for them as well. Aside from gaining
the benefits in terms of improved work-life balance themselves, employers are concerned and
responsible for their employees’ health and well-being. Therefore, an improved work-life
balance amongst employees is a driving force in employers’ decision to advocate or
implement telework at their workplace.
Results also suggests that a crisis such as the ongoing pandemic works as a driver towards
increased telework. This aspect of telework is discussed in detail in Section 5.4.
5.2 Obstacles Towards Increased Telework
To present evidence and answer RQ3, the factors that function as obstacles in implementing
more telework are discussed. Similar to what was mentioned in Section 5.1, obstacles need to
be assessed in the same manner as drivers. Therefore, obstacles need to be seen from the
employers’ perspective, as well as the employees.
As previously mentioned in Section 5.1, most organisations are driven by results. This means
that if the implementation of telework results in a worsening of result, organisations will most
probably not implement it. As with improvement in results and productivity, there is also
literature that has found the opposite, a negative impact on job performance (Golden et al.,
2008). Therefore, it is up to each employer and organisation to individually assess their own
operations and decide on what is most suitable and beneficial for them. It is important to
consider that while some organisations might function well with the use of telework, others
will not.
One of the main concerns that may serve as an obstacle in implementing telework is the risk
of isolation. In the question of social isolation, the majority indeed feel isolated from social
contexts when teleworking. Most interview respondents expressed missing social interaction
and a desire to return to the office. From an employer perspective, making sure that
employees do not suffer from loneliness is surely a concern. Surprisingly, employees mostly
did not fear negative impact on their career due to professional or organisational isolation.
Likewise, employers expressed that this should not be a concern for employees because they
mainly focus on seeing the results and that being away from the office therefore do not
change their assessment of employees. However, a concern that was brought up by both
49
employers and real estate professionals was that professional or organisational isolation
increase the risk of losing or weaken the organisational culture. Preserving and building
organisational culture was pointed out to be a very important task and is increasingly difficult
in a teleworking context. Furthermore, a weak organisational culture can also lead to the
deterioration of organisations, as employees are more likely to leave. Therefore, preserving
and building a strong organisational culture is one of the main obstacles and challenges with
increasing telework.
Briefly discussed, is the employers’ concern of the well-being and health of their employees.
Healthy and happy employees often mean better results, and a stronger organisation. While
telework might have some advantages in terms of the well-being of employees, it is important
to also consider the disadvantages. Telework implies that employers lose control of the
working environment of employees. This is surely a concern of employers as they have the
responsibility so secure a safe workplace. Employer 2 proposed the use of ICT-tools such as
having camera switched on during digital meetings to easier notice if something is not right
with employees. This shows how ICT-tools can be used to battle some disadvantages with
telework. However, it is still important to mention that securing a safe working environment
becomes an increasingly difficult task when teleworking and serves as a possible obstacle
towards increased telework.
From the perspective of employers, fear of losing control of employees is one of the concerns
found in the literature (Raiborn & Butler, 2009; Baruch, 2000). Surprisingly, this aspect of
telework was not mentioned at all by either the employers or the head of property
management who besides being a real estate professional also is an employer. Today, ICT-
tools makes it possible to see if someone is currently working and follow the performance of
employees, making it easier to ensure that control is not lost. This approach is similar to the
one proposed by Raiborn and Butler (2009) with the use of ICT-tools such as workflow
management systems and monitoring software.
Result shows that teamwork suffering as mentioned by Brumma (2016) and Baruch (2000) is
indeed something that a significant share of respondents had experienced. Therefore, it may
be so that worsen teamwork is a factor that might oppose an obstacle towards increased
telework. Possibly, Lilian (2014) suggestion on educating team-leaders and using the right
ICT-tool for the right task is a solution to this issue.
50
One obstacle that was mentioned by Property Manager 2 was the in-built slowness in leasing
contracts as they typically have a contracted time of five years and a minimum of three years.
Due to this, she suggests that any type of change is partly limited due to this. However,
according to Property Manager 1 this is not a major problem as tenants more and more
demand flexible contracts. Furthermore, the in-built slowness of three or most likely five
years contract time may indeed be an obstacle towards increased telework but mostly when
looked upon in short term. In a question of a major organisational change as implementing
telework is, the fact that it may take a couple of years to implement is probably not that
serious of an issue for most organisations.
5.3 Telework and its Effect on the Office Space Market
In answering RQ1, how increased telework affects the office space market, evidence obtained
are presented and discussed. Valuable information is received during from all respondents,
although especially real estate professionals who have daily contact with tenants and other
actors within the market and therefore an insight of the market.
During interviews, real estate professionals brought up the possibility of decentralisation of
offices. The type of decentralisation that was meant was not only teleworking at home, but
also decentralisation of offices from the city core. This type of decentralisation can take
different types of forms. One can be for organisations having small offices outside of the city
centre, while another one can be telecentres or Co-working spaces where different
organisations share premises, also outside of the city centre. This suggestion is similar to what
was found by Sato and Spinks (2002) where the Northridge Earthquake in Greater Los
Angeles led to decentralisation of office space. Important to mention however is that Head of
Property Management indeed suggested this outcome as a possibility but in no way ensured
that it is certain. The possibility of Co-working spaces getting an uplift in general was
proposed by respondents. Furthermore, a general view of higher flexibility was found among
respondents, where Co-working is one solution that provides it. Flexibility regarding both
space and contract seem to gain more importance.
One effect increased telework will have on the office space market is changes in what type of
space and office design that is requested. Real estate professionals all mentioned that space
51
such as such as workshops, conference- and project rooms will gain importance. Employer 2
also mentioned this as space where employees can actively interact such as workshops,
conference-, and project rooms will gain importance while more traditional office desks will
lose importance as a result of telework. Similarly, both Employee 2 and 3 mentioned that
some tasks could be performed by teleworking while external meeting and room for external
networking needs to be done physically. These types of activities are such that need space in
form of collaborative space rather than traditional office space. To summarise, there is
evidence that suggests that office design will change with space where people can interact as
an effect of telework.
As of today, there are no evidence suggesting that there has been any change in office
demand. Real estate professionals who were interviewed all express that there has not been
any significant change in vacancies or rents. According to them, their business have been
continuing as usual even though many of their tenants telework to a high degree.
Furthermore, as mentioned in Section 2.4, telework is most often voluntary which implies that
employees should be able to dictate when and how much they choose to telework. In order to
lower the office space demand for an organisation as a result telework, employers have to
dictate when different employees telework, schedule office working days at the office for
employees, and anticipate how many employees that are at the office at a given time. If
telework is completely voluntary, it is possible that it can result in all employees working at
the office at the same time, resulting in a shortage in office space. This could ultimately result
in an employer-employee conflict. However important to consider is that the occupancy rate
already is relatively low at times and fluctuates, something that was mentioned by both
respondents and previous literature (Miller, 2013). It would be naïve to assume that this
would not be the case when telework is implemented as well. Although there is no evidence
that suggests demand for office space is decreasing today, there exist evidence that suggests
the demand will eventually decrease as an effect of telework. According to Head of Property
Management, there is a high possibility that demand for office space will somewhat weaken.
Property Manager 2 mentioned that she had a tenant that expressed that they will not fully
return to the office. Furthermore, the overall attitude amongst employers and employees
towards increasing telework was positive. As employers and employees together form the
demand for office space, this implies that a decrease in demand for office space is highly
possible. Important however is to point out that a complete switch to telework was not in any
way supported by the results. In line with was mentioned by Miller (2013), Virginia and
52
Collin (2001), the effect of a measurement like telework can surely become exaggerated.
Structural changes like this one takes time, a process of each organisation deciding on what
approach that is best for them. The possible outcome of a sudden decrease of demand and
skyrocketing vacancies is not something to fear. According to Head of Property Management,
in case of high vacancies the market will adjust itself through conversion of use from office
space to for instance residential or school properties.
5.4 Coronavirus Pandemic Impact on the Future of Telework
In answering RQ4, how increased telework affects the office space market, evidence obtained
are presented and discussed. Valuable information is received during interviews with real
estate professionals who have daily contact with tenants and other actors within the market.
Furthermore, employees’ and employers’ input are important as they are the consumers of
office space. Additionally, employers are often decision makers and can therefore be
considered important in changing the future of telework.
Learning from previous crises as well as the ongoing pandemic, teleworking seems to be an
important tool in crisis management. This advantage is for instance mentioned by Pearce II
(2009), Reynolds and Quinn (2009). During the ongoing pandemic, Belzunegui-Eraso and
Erro-Garcés (2020) shows how multiple major companies have implemented telework during
crisis times. Additionally, Raiborn and Butler (2009) even argues that telework is a smart
strategy during economic crises when employees are not hindered to go to the office, as there
is during an earthquake or a pandemic. However, the question that remains unsure is whether
this change is temporary during the crisis or if some of it may outlive the crisis. Sato and
Spinks (2002) found opposing evidence in their study when comparing the outcome of two
different earthquakes, one in Japan and one in California. They found no difference in
telework caused by the Great Hanshin Earthquake in Japan but found that the Northridge
Earthquake in California contributed to decentralisation of offices through telework at
telecentres. The time of these earthquakes differ substantially with the situation that is today.
The development of ICT-tools and digital workplace is constantly moving forward and the
development of telework is heavily dependent on it. Messenger and Gschwind (2016)
illustrates through their concept of the Three Generations of Telework how the development
of ICT enables and drives the change towards increased telework. Just as it would be hard to
20 years ago imagine or anticipate where the development of ICT is today, it is hard to
imagine where the development of ICT will be 20 years from today.
53
When studying the evidence obtained through the conducted survey and interviews, it speaks
for the pandemic serving as a push towards increased telework. Amongst survey respondents,
seventy-one percent felt that their view of telework have become more positive due to the
pandemic. Employee 1 expressed that her employer will continue to allow employees to
telework after the pandemic as well, to carry out work wherever it is suitable. Similarly, Head
of Property Management mentions his employer has introduced a new policy which allows
employees to carry out work where it is best suited. Furthermore, Employer 1 mentioned that
he will advocate partially implementing telework going forward, and Employer 2 could also
see such outcome when the analysis of the teleworking year of 2020 shows that it can be
beneficial. Employee 1 and 3 further expressed a positive view on the possibility to telework
either fully or at least some of the time. However, it is also clear that almost all interview
respondents miss going to the office and therefore the evidence does not show that the
pandemic will result in full telework. The evidence rather shows that many have had the
realisation that telework works, gained knowledge its advantages, learnt how to enable
telework through the usage of ICT-tools. The evidence shows that it is highly likely that
telework will increase due to the pandemic but not in any way transform our society to a
teleworking society.
54
6. Conclusion
In this chapter, conclusions are drawn to answer the research question based on previous
sections of the thesis. Conclusions regarding each research question is assessed one by one.
The chapter ends with suggestions for further studies.
The aim of this thesis was to obtain a deeper understanding of how increased telework will
affect the office space market. In doing so, four research questions were formulated assessing
the impact of telework on the office space market, the drivers and obstacles towards increased
telework, and finally the Corona pandemic effect on the future of telework.
The main factors driving the change towards increased telework were found to be the event of
a crisis, improved results, development of information and communication technology (ICT),
and improved work-life balance. As organisation typically care about their resources and
strive for improved results, if implementing telework could result in saving recourses and
improving results it is highly likely that organisations will implement this way of working.
Historically, the development of ICT has been essential for the emergence and rise of
telework. Results shows that there is no reason to disbelieve that future development of ICT
will continue to drive the change towards increased telework. Results shows that frequent
teleworkers are twice as likely to feel more satisfies with ICT-tools which argues that
experience is valuable in making use of ICT-tools effectively. Another driving force towards
increased telework is the improvement work-life balance. The improvement of work-life
balance is a factor that can increases many employees’ desire to telework. This can drive
employers to implement telework to gain this benefit, for the sake themselves as well as their
employees. Result further shows that frequent teleworkers are half as likely to feel concern
over work-life conflicts which argues that experience is valuable in a teleworkers ability to
separate work from private life.
The main factors serving as obstacles towards increased telework were found to be social
isolation, loss of organisational culture, and teamwork suffering. The occurrence of social
isolation was found by amongst many respondents. The risk of social isolation is surely an
obstacle towards implementing telework and should be carefully considered. Another major
obstacle is the increasingly difficult task of maintaining and building a strong organisational
culture. Both of the mentioned factors should not only be considered on a short term, but also
what possible effects they might have on the long run. Finally, teamwork suffering is another
55
factor that decision-makers should have in mind when considering implementing telework.
Above mentioned drivers and obstacles are ones that were found reviewing and analysing
previous literature along with results obtained by conducting interviews and a survey. On an
individual level, these drivers and obstacles can differ from one organisation to another and
from one individual to another. For instance, telework might improve the result of one
organisation while it worsens the result of another. Similarly, telework might lead to
increased productivity for one individual and lead to the opposite for someone else.
Therefore, it is up to each organisation and individual to themselves assess advantages and
disadvantages with telework based on their unique conditions and situation. Moreover, it is
important that employers and employees jointly decide on the question of implementing
telework to reduce the risk of employer-employee conflicts as much as possible.
When performing statistical tests and models, a significance level of 5 percent, 𝛼 = 0.05, was
set and thereby yielded two out of 27 significant cases. However, if instead a significance
level of 10 percent was set, it would have yielded more significant cases across all
background questions (BQ1-BQ3), see Appendices.
Regarding what effects increased telework will yield on the office space market, it was found
that telework will likely lead to decentralisation of offices, increased demand for flexibility,
changes in requested office design, and eventually a somewhat weakened demand for office
space. The possibility of decentralisation of offices includes decentralisation in terms of home
offices, smaller offices, and Co-working spaces outside of the city centre. An increasing
demand on flexibility in terms of both contract and space flexibility was mentioned. As for
the demand for office space, there is currently nothing suggesting that demand has decreased.
However, it is highly likely that telework eventually will result in a somewhat weakened
demand for office space.
In comparison to previous crises, the ongoing pandemic differ in character by either the fact
that the development of ICT has come much further or that it unlike economic crises forces
people to telework. Given these differences and the results obtained in this thesis, the Corona
pandemic has served as a catalyst for many to realise the potential of telework and pushed the
change towards increased telework forward. The pandemic has forced many to telework and
in doing so, many have learnt how to telework efficiently with the use of ITC-tools and what
56
advantages it can bring. On the other hand, the Corona pandemic has also made many realise
the downsides of telework and the value of the office as a meeting place. Work is often
associated with some workplace worker needs to present. Possibly, we need to reconsider
what is implied with work in our society.
6.2 Sources of Error
During the work of this thesis, the intent was to conduct it as objectively as possible.
Nevertheless, the risk of bias in constructing and conducting the survey and interviews as a
possible source of error is acknowledged. In contrast to conducting interviews where
misunderstandings more easily can be cleared, doing so when conducting a survey is much
harder. Although survey questions were formulated as easy as possible, the risk of
misunderstanding as a possible source of error is acknowledged. Another possible source of
error is use of a non-probability sampling method instead of a preferable probability method,
discussed in more detail in Section 3.3. Furthermore, the possibility of obtaining a different
result if more respondents were included is acknowledged, regarding both interview and
survey respondents. In addition, considering a wider range of actors and including these as
respondents could also have resulted in a different result. Such inclusions could for example
be interviewing researchers within the topic of real estate or telework, interviewing a wider
range of real estate professionals such as property developers, investors, and appraisers, and
lastly separating different levels of managers as employers.
6.3 Suggestions for Further Studies
Due to the fact that the Corona pandemic has resulted in an extraordinary situation
worldwide, the time of when this thesis was conducted has indeed been special. Therefore, it
would be of interest to conduct a similar follow-up study in the future when the pandemic is
over.
Within the scope of telework, there are several studies that can be conducted. One such is
comparing organisations operating in different fields and asses the suitability of such
companies implementing telework. Another study might be to examine how telework affects
individual’s preference to live close to the city centre when the need of travelling there
decreases. Lastly, a suggestion for further study is to examine what managerial approach and
leadership style is best suited in a teleworking environment.
57
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Appendices
Appendix I - Disclosure of Survey (Translated to English)
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66
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Appendix II - Document Sent to Employees Before Interview (Translated to English)
During the interview, following statements will be discussed:
• I am more productive when I work from home.
• The reduction in travel time is important for me in the desire to work from home.
• I feel that I get more time for my private life when working from home.
• I feel that my private life and work end up in conflict when working from home.
• I am worried that the reduced contact with my workplace, managers and colleagues
will have a negative impact on my career.
• I feel isolated from social contexts when working from home.
• Collaboration with my colleagues becomes increasingly difficult when working from
home.
• The Corona pandemic has contributed to my view on working from home becoming
more positive.
• Technical and digital tools, such as computer, smartphone, Skype, Microsoft Teams
and various digital platforms, are good enough to enable me working from home
without hindrance.
In addition to these points, there will be room for follow-up questions related to working from
home/remotely.
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Appendix III - Document Sent to Employers Before Interview (Translated to English) During the interview, following questions will be discussed:
• What are the main advantages you as a manager experience with working from
home?
• What are the main concerns you as a manager experience that man hinder more
work from home?
• What is it like to lead employees from a distance compared to how it usually is?
• How has the Corona pandemic affected your view of work from home?
• Would you be for or against increasing the amount that employees are allowed to
work from home?
• Could you imagine a future where more people choose to work from home and the
premises you usually operate from become significantly as the demand for office
space is no longer as great?
In addition to these points, there will be room for follow-up questions related to working from
home/remotely.
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Appendix IV - Document Sent to Real Estate Professionals Before Interview (Translated to English)
Given that the Corona pandemic has led to many people now working from home, I am
conducting a study on how it may affect the market for office space. This is due to the fact
that many companies and organisations now see the opportunity to expand work from home
even after the pandemic. During the interview, following questions will discussed:
• How has the Corona pandemic affected the view on working from home?
• What possible effects can an increase in working from home affect the market for
office space?
• How likely is a future where more and more people choose to work from home and
the need for office space decreases?
• What factors can act as driving forces for such a change to take place?
• What factors may act as obstacles for to such a change to take place?
In addition to these points, there will be room for follow-up questions related to working from
home/remotely. Furthermore, a survey has also been conducted which results can possibly be
discussed if there is enough time left during the interview.
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Appendix V – Mann-Whitney U-test Test Statistic Table 6b: With independent variable BQ2, “How long have you been employed by your
current employer?
𝜶 = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟓 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8 S9
U - Value 1677.5 1774 2002 2013 1877 1855.5 1972 1897 2009.5
Wilcoxon
W 7137.5 2554 2782 7473 7337 7315.5 7435 2677 2789.5
Z -1.648 -1.213 -0.129 -0.070 -0.707 -0.816 -0.264 -0.627 -0.089
Two-tailed
p-value 0.099 0.225 0.897 0.944 0479 0.415 0.792 0.531 0.929
Table 6c: With independent variable BQ3, “How far is it from your home to your
workplace?”
𝜶 = 𝟎. 𝟎𝟓 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8 S9
U - Value 2345.5 2162 2247 2312.5 2149.5 2286.5 2504.5 2374.5 2441.5
Wilcoxon
W 5195.5 5012 5097 4658.5 4495.5 4632.5 5354.5 5224.5 5291.5
Z -0.858 -1.652 -1.340 -0.989 -1.673 -1.673 -0.191 -0.749 -0.465
Two-tailed
p-value 0.391 0.098 0.180 0.323 0.094 0.094 0.848 0.454 0.642
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