Do your workspaces live up to the promise of your employer brand?

Companies are increasingly investing in their employer brand to attract and retain talent. But once an employee has been hired, how does that brand translate into their day-to-day experience?

Employer branding refers the promise and commitment a company wishes to convey as an employer: what it wants candidates and employees to associate with their work experience. It is shaped not only by communications and recruitment efforts, but also by what employees actually experience and what they say about it to others.

In other words, an employer brand is not limited to what a company says about itself. It is validated by the experience it creates.

The Workplace as an Expression of Employer Brand

The workplace is one of the settings where this promise can become a reality. Interior design influences how people meet, collaborate, focus, interact and work together on a daily basis.

An organization that values collaboration, for example, should provide spaces that facilitate interaction. A company focused on innovation may benefit from environments that encourage people to gather, exchange ideas and work in new ways. An organization that values flexibility and well-being should offer a variety of spaces and configurations adapted to different needs.

The challenge, therefore, is to create consistency between what the company promotes, how it wants employees to work, and the atmosphere that is actually experienced in the workplace.

Design and layout do more than just reflect a culture. They can also support behaviors and ways of working that help bring that culture to life.

Flexibility Is Not Enough

Flexibility has become an important part of the workplace experience, but offering different spaces or giving employees the freedom to choose where they work does not, on its own, guarantee a positive experience.

Recent data from Leesman (2024) helps put this reality into perspective:

• 52% of respondents believe that their work environment helps them maintain the energy level needed to do their jobs well.
• 73% believe their workplace environment supports the sharing of ideas and knowledge among colleagues.
• 84% believe the workplace should provide a positive employee experience and support talent attraction, retention and company culture.

These findings serve as a reminder that the work environment must address several aspects of the work experience: concentration, collaboration, movement, recovery, and well-being.

The challenge, therefore, is not simply to increase the number of options, but to create spaces that truly meet people’s needs and align with the organization’s ways of working.

Four Ways the Environment Can Support Engagement

1. Strengthen the Sense of Belonging : Creating welcoming shared spaces can encourage interactions and exchanges and also help foster a sense of belonging. The office isn’t just a place where people perform tasks, it can become a vehicle for culture and a tangible point of contact with the employer brand.

2. Facilitate Collaboration and Interaction : Spaces designed for different types of interactions can facilitate collaboration, spontaneous exchanges, the sharing of ideas, and teamwork. The goal is not just to provide more space, but to allow employees to choose an environment that suits the task at hand.

3. Promoting Comfort, Well-Being, and Accessibility : Comfort is achieved through ergonomic workstations, good air quality, access to natural light, and environments tailored to different tasks. Taking employees’ needs and realities into account helps create a more inclusive workplace that promotes well-being. An accessible design that makes it easier for everyone to move around, find their way, use spaces, and access services helps promote independence, dignity, and an equitable workplace experience.

4. Create Opportunities for Learning and Growth : Workspaces can also support employee development by facilitating training, mentoring, presentations, and knowledge sharing. In particular, versatile spaces help create opportunities for learning and collaboration that fit naturally into the daily routine.

Five Questions to Ask Before Rethinking Your Workplace

Before rethinking a workplace environment, it can be helpful to revisit the promise the organization genuinely wants to deliver.

1. Do our spaces foster the sense of belonging we want to create?

2. Do they allow employees to work in different ways, depending on their needs and tasks.

3. Is the environment aligned with our culture and the behaviours we want to encourage?

4. Have we sufficiently considered employees’ actual needs throughout the process?

5. Do our offices meet our current needs while also supporting the organization as it evolves?

When Workplace Design Meets Employer Brand: The Litostroj Hydro Case

After more than 70 years in the hydroelectric industry, Litostroj Hydro wanted to bring its head office closer to Montréal to support its growth and attract new talent.

But leaving Bromont also meant leaving behind an environment employees had grown attached to: nature, the mountains and a strong connection to the surrounding landscape.

The challenge was therefore to create a new environment that would support this transition while preserving some of the familiar elements employees valued.

How Can This Connection with Nature Be Recreated in a Different Way?

VAD’s approach began with Litostroj’s identity, translating some of its defining elements into the new environment.

Wood, shades of blue, organic shapes and references to water evoke the company’s industry, history and connection to nature.

References to hydroelectric power can be found down to the smallest details: light fixtures inspired by turbines and acoustic panels reminiscent of the movement of water extend the company’s identity into the workplace design. These elements help create an environment that feels true to Litostroj, without attempting to recreate its former workplace.

Teamwork and a sense of community are also important to Litostroj.

The workplace therefore needed to offer a variety of environments for working, connecting, focusing and gathering. Large open areas, small multipurpose meeting rooms and a flexible room that can open onto the cafeteria allow the space to adapt to the different needs of the teams.

The Workplace as an Extension of the Employer Brand

The workplace environment helps shape the employee experience and make a company’s culture tangible.

From Bromont to Brossard, Litostroj has changed its environment without losing its connection to what matters. Its relationship with nature, its history and its identity are expressed differently in the new space, while supporting new ways of working and collaborating.

Because an employer brand is not built through words alone. Because an employer brand isn’t built on words alone. It’s also experienced in the workplace through what it can foster and support on a daily basis.

Discover how thoughtful workplace design can support your culture, enhance the employee experience and adapt to the evolving needs of your organization.

Let’s talk about your workplace!