This study reports on a group of university employees, six months after their relocation from cell-offices into a combi-office. Data from interviews, observations and planning documentation was collected to gain an in-depth understanding of how employees use their office landscape and why. Activity theory was taken as framework for the analysis. The findings show that the new office landscape was perceived to be more flexible and capable of supporting employees' activities. The overall occupancy was low and backup spaces, such as quiet rooms, were barely used. Matches and mismatches between the employees, their activities and the office were identified that explain the occupancy rates and why spaces such as quiet rooms were unpopular spaces. This paper contributes with rich detail on the use of a flexible office landscape in a university context and shows the usefulness of activity theory in the study of employee-office interactions.

Purpose This paper aims to investigate employee well-being in relation to office landscapes in a post-relocation context. The aims are to identify spatial attributes of the office landscape that influence employee well-being and underlying contextual factors that explain employee well-being post-relocation. Design/methodology/approach A mixed-method approach was adopted. The data collection involved 16 semi-structured interviews with employees, an interview with the leading architect of the office renovation, study of a dossier on the renovation project and observations. Findings Most of the informants experienced the new office landscape positively despite few shortcomings. Spatial attributes were identified that influenced the informants’ well-being positively in terms of affects, satisfaction, social relations and environmental mastery. Conversely, negative influences on well-being were also reported regarding affects, satisfaction and environmental mastery. Conflicting views on some of the spatial attributes and contextual factors related to the planning process and the former office landscape were identified. Originality/value The value of this paper lies in investigating the office landscape at the spatial attributes level, despite office type, and their influence on hedonic and eudaimonic components of employee well-being. The research approach adopted proved its usefulness for in-depth studies of the interrelations between office landscapes and employee well-being.

Purpose Drawing on a user-centred design perspective, the purpose of this paper is to (i) provide an overview of three contextual user research methods, namely, spatial walkthroughs, experience curve mapping and card sorting, (ii) exemplify their applications in different case studies and (iii) compare the methods according to their contributions for the study of users’ workplace experiences. Previous workplace studies with qualitative approaches mainly rely on methods such as interviews and observations. Although these methods provide rich data, the understanding of office users, their use situations and finding more fitting workplace designs can benefit from deeper user experience insights. Design/methodology/approach Three methods and their variants were tested in studies of user experience in flexible offices: spatial walkthroughs, experience curve mapping and card sorting. The methods were tested during workshops and interviews in four case studies with a total of 114 participants. Findings Spatial walkthroughs were more immersive and provided the most insights on the actual context with respect to spatial design qualities, while experience curve mapping enabled understanding the temporal aspects of the user experience and card sorting enabled exploring user experiences with respect to predetermined spatial qualities and contextual aspects. Originality/value Spatial walkthroughs, experience curve mapping and card sorting methods have not previously been applied in workplace studies. They facilitate dialogue, participation and user involvement and provide insights for making evidence-based recommendations for designing or redesigning office environments that fit users’ needs and preferences.

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