Sustainability Street: Wellness in the Evolving Workplace

Welcome back to Sustainability Street, our podcast on the intersection of commercial real estate and the world we live in. While the ideal balance between in office and at-home work is still a work in progress for many companies, one thing is clear: Workplace wellness is top of mind for employers even as, or more so, with the definition of the workplace expanding.My guest for this episode is Rachel Hodgdon, president & CEO of the International WELL Building Institute, which recently announced that adoption of the WELL building standard now exceeds 6 billion square feet.Hogdgon and I discuss how companies are navigating the ongoing debate about hybrid work and using IWBI's tools to decide what's best for their individual enterprises. Regardless of how many in-office days employers require, she said, employers—and building owners as a result—are learning quickly that they are now in competition with the home environment.  "If you don't earn the commute by creating a place that is more conducive to at least certain types of work, where employees feel more productive than they could at home, then you're gonna lose out in terms of recruitment and retention," she said.Listen to the episode to hear more insights from Hodgdon. Here’s a sample of the topics we discussed:Hogdon's personal journey (1:26)The 6 billion-square-foot milestone (3:38)Office culture vs. the desire for flexibility (5:57)Helping CEOs understand their employees (10:02)Optimizing the workplace for return to office (15:14)The ROI of wellness (23:30)Next frontier in wellness data (24:49)Food for thought on wellness (29:32)And follow, rate and review CPE’s podcasts on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube!