Disclaimer: Thoughts shared here are of my own opinion and from the whole of my WPS experience. Some of the anecdotes are taken from real scenarios, but no specific business entity is herein specified.
I have been in Workplace Services for 10 years and in management/leadership roles for 8. I’m really good at my job, but I’m also not ashamed to admit that I am not perfect. Perfection does not exist! Put up a red flag if someone says that perfection is their expectation.
Workplace Services is a broad umbrella to describe the people that make working in an office possible.
Your workplace services team is making sure:
• The office is safe and compliant with local health and safety laws
• You have access to the space that you are working in via a security system likely managed directly by Workplace Services
• HVAC is working properly
• Bathrooms and common areas are clean and stocked
• There is emergency evacuation information available and drills provided (If in NYC this is a compliance requirement from the FDNY)
• Coffee, drinks and snacks are ordered, received, and stocked
• Meals are planned and served
• Office supplies are ordered, received, and stocked
• Mail is tracked and delivered. Mail is labeled and sent out
• Office processes such as welcoming visitors and how to get service is well communicated and posted
• Happy Hours and other events are planned and executed
• All seating assignments and floor maps are kept updated and tracked
• Opex (operational expenses) and Capex (capital expenses) budgets are managed.
• Capital projects are planned and executed (this includes purchase and installation of new furniture, office renovations, and other major projects that add value to the space and can be depreciated over time)
I can go on, but you’ve probably lost interest.
The point here is that if you work in an office and you are not part of the Workplace Services team, you have only a partial understanding of the breadth and scope of what they manage. Usually these teams operate with less members than any other team in an organization.
In addition to the work they do, they also manage a lot of emotions.
Humans have emotional and physical needs. This is normal and good.
Your workplace services team is not trying to deny you your emotional or physical needs.
Your WPS team is negotiating with leadership on your behalf to ensure you have what you need to be productive and happy at work.
Modern day corporations expect too much of the humans that work for them.
There is no such thing as a 40 hour work week anymore, generally speaking.
Most offices allow badge access 24/7. They want you to come in when you’re off and work. That’s not conjecture. I’ve been in meetings where it was specifically stated that building maintenance could not be completed in high priority times because people were expected to come in on the weekend and work. This was not expressly communicated to the workers, it was an unwritten expectation with consequences if you didn’t “get it”.
So, in addition to negotiating with leadership teams to protect your free time and also succeed in maintaining the facility, we are also the people who receive most of the complaints.
As much as we like to cater to individual needs when we can, there’s a lot of times when the answer is no. It’s not that we don’t want to raise the temperature for you, but more that the person sitting next to you is hot while you are cold, and there’s not a cut and dried solution when changing the temperature means trying to coerce a 25 year old HVAC system to cooperate.
Should an office’s HVAC system be old enough to rent a car? No. Have we asked to replace it many times? Yes. Is the replacement disruptive to the business? Yes. Then the leadership team says no, and the cycle continues.
If you have been working from home and are asked to return to the office. Please do not complain to the Workplace Services Team. They have been in office 5 days a week throughout a global pandemic. They have been riding the subway double masked before the existence of a vaccine to ensure that the servers are on and the AC is cooling it. They are still processing the mail. They are still maintaining the facility, and they have been doing this the entire time that you’ve been working from home.
I do think you should complain about being forced back into the office 5 days a week! It’s ridiculous to ask you to commute everyday when the staff is now spread globally. You’re still sitting at a desk in back to back zoom calls, just not in your pjs. Use your voice where it counts!
I believe in a 3 day a week hybrid work model that allows some mandatory time in-office. Working from home 5 days a week is also not the best solution. You need to see your co-workers and be connected to your goals as they relate to the success of the entire business. This is the most reasonable model that I’ve experienced to justify expensive NYC rental space while also understanding that productivity increases when people have more autonomy over their time.
Now that you understand how we advocate for you, please do not terrorize the workplace team about the catered food.
We want to know about your allergies and where you keep your epi pen.
Do not tell us that you hate teriyaki, or you need only bagels for breakfast. Please fill out the feedback form with relevant information. We will change course if a majority of people feel the same way about a meal or a cuisine.
Do not circulate a petty petition about your breakfast options and submit it to HR, especially when you do not have a majority in agreement, and there are other respectful ways of providing feedback. We have hundreds people for whom to cater. Our goal is to please a majority, not to please each individual. Plus you do not want to be on the shit list of the workplace team. They are the only ones certified in CPR. 👀
(JK. We would still perform CPR if you needed it.)
In a stressful work environment, workers reach a breaking point. This too is normal and expected. Who do they call? Workplace Services. I have caught people while they’re fainting. I’ve taken folks to the hospital. I’ve talked people through their panic attacks. I’ve activated more icepacks and taken out more splinters than I can count. I’ve consoled people when they didn’t get that promotion. A lot of this support comes from digging deeper into a surface level office request. This is important work, and I love doing it. My team and I are here for you and I genuinely care about you even if you can be petty for no understandable reason.
The pressure gets to me too. So, please offer grace if you see me crying in the stockroom.
To sum it up. People are humans. They have physical and emotional needs. The workplace services team takes care of your physical needs in the office because it is our job. We take care of your emotional needs because we care about people, even though it’s not in the job description.
If you read this and you work in an office, consider writing a quick thank you to the Workplace Team. They do it all, and for little recognition.
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