Nearly 3 in 5 large-scale organizations are prioritizing an increase in on-site employee presence, according to a new JLL report that could bode well for the beleaguered office sector.
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More employees back in the office is a top goal for corporate real estate leaders in 2025, according to JLL's global survey of 99 organizations representing more than 745M SF of CRE portfolios worldwide.
Portfolio optimization, portfolio cost reduction, space data accuracy improvement and improved reporting also ranked in the survey's top five. Cost-cutting was the top priority for office users last year.
“Workplaces are at a pivotal moment of transformation signaled by corporate real estate leaders changing their priorities,” Paul Morgan, chief operating officer of work dynamics at JLL, said in a statement. “Data has become the critical factor in enabling organizations to better understand how their spaces are being used so they can best leverage their real estate portfolios and navigate new work styles.”
Over the past year, 37% of organizations said they have increased attendance expectations, with the remainder maintaining previous levels. Slightly more companies now require a defined number of days in the office — 49% in 2025, up from 46% last year.
Organizations are also zeroing in on the utilization of space, according to the survey. About 89% of respondents ranked utilization rate, or the percent of time individual seats are occupied over a specific period such as workdays and shifts, as the most valuable metric for planning.
The percentage of organizations that track utilization data is up significantly since the pandemic, jumping from 62% in 2019 to 74% in 2025.
Just over half, 55%, of survey respondents have reduced their overall footprint over the past year, while 42% have enacted office attendance mandates. Thirty-eight percent have completed space design changes, 34% have implemented or improved workplace experience programs and 9% have offered incentives for office attendance.
“Among these, office attendance mandates are considered the most effective,” JLL said in the report. “[This suggests] more directive approaches can be impactful, though they must be balanced with employee preferences and expectations for flexibility.”
Major companies like Amazon and AT&T have announced return-to-office mandates over the past six months, along with scores of smaller players.
Late last week, Amazon asked several thousand employees to relocate to specific locations to be closer to their teams, in some cases asking staffers to move across the country to do so.
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