Xymax Real Estate Institute

RESEARCH REPORT

Metropolitan Areas
Autumn 2020

OfficeDemandSurveyChanges in work styles and workplaces caused by the COVID-19 pandemic

December 2, 2020

In the past several years, companies have been promoting work style reforms aimed at acquiring personnel
and improving productivity, with more companies aiming to shift from the conventional, inflexible work style toone that is not constrained by place or time. Amid these developments, the global outbreak of the novel
coronavirus (COVID-19) in early 2020 has forced many companies to review the work styles of their employees
and prompted active discussions concerning the workplace.
Since Autumn 2016, Xymax Real Estate Institute (hereinafter, “Xymax REI”) has conducted questionnaire
surveys on companies’ use of offices and work styles on a semi-annual basis to continuously analyze theirrelationship between office demand. This report covers the results of the 9th survey and forecasts the future of
the workplace market, which is at a turning point.

Summary of Survey Results
1.

(1 tsubo=approx. 3.3 sqm)

Change in Office Demand (October 2019–September 2020) (Pages 3–10)
21.6% of the companies saw an increase in the number of users* of their office over the past
year and 5.2% expanded their office space, both the smallest percentage since the start of thesurvey. 15.1% saw an increase in rent per tsubo (including CAM charges), indicating a pause in
the rising trend that has lasted for the past four years. [Figures 1, 2, 5]*In this report, the users are the employees who are eligible to use the office though may not be using it every day.



As the reason for downsizing the office, 40.5% of the companies replied, “Less space will be needed
due to telework,” representing a significant increase from the Spring 2020 survey (12.5%).

The most popular percentage for the average percentage of employees currently coming to theoffice to work and the percentage of employees working in the office after the end of the pandemic
was “100% (work in the office entirely).” However, 73.8% of the companies intend to have a certain
number of their employees continue teleworking after the end of the pandemic.

The most popular percentage of desks to users of the office was “More than 100%” (58.6%). However,“Less than 100%” increased from the last two surveys.



30.3% of the companies felt their current office was “very small” or “somewhat small.”

As for business sentiment, “Bad” and “Somewhat bad” totaled 50.1%, significantly outweighing thesum of “Good” and “Somewhat good,” indicating a business sentiment DI of -33.2.

2.

Current Status and evaluation of the Workplace (Pages 11–19)
89.5% of the respondent companies were implementing some kind of measures to enable
their employees to telework, such as investing in ICT and providing a place or program for
telework. The percentage has been rising each year. [Figure 14]85.5% of the companies invested in ICT to support telework and 54.7% provided a place/program
for telework. The top reply for the telework place/program provided by companies was “Work-fromhome program” (51.2%), a significant rise in percentage compared to the Autumn 2019 survey.



The top work style measures implemented were related to telework, such as “Developing/using
systems that enable telework” (57.1%) and “Paperless” (43.9%).

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

As for whether companies thought they offered their workers a safe and secure office environment,
59.9% replied “Very much” or “Somewhat,” while 20.2% replied “Not at all” or “Not that much.”Regarding whether companies thought their productivity will improve with telework, 31.9% replied“Very much” or “Somewhat.” This percentage was larger at companies that provided a place orprogram for telework, and among them, larger at companies that provided a satellite office thanthose that only provided a work-from-home program.



The top issues and challenges in workplace operation were telework-related, such as “Employee
management is difficult in telework (work, attendance, evaluation, etc.)” (38.2%), which ranked top.

3.

Outlook of the Workplace after the End of the COVID-19 Pandemic (Pages 20–28)
As for the outlook of the workplace after the end of the pandemic, 40.2% of the companies
replied that they will use both the main office and telework. [Figure 27]

The top work style measures companies were interested in for after the end of the pandemic were
those based on telework, such as “Introduce attendance/work management tools” (30.2%) and“Switch to evaluation system based on telework (e.g., merit/job-based employment)” (27.0%).

The top value or role companies required in both their main office and satellite offices was “Greater
work efficiency.” This was followed by “More active internal communication” and “Enhancing
employee motivation” for the main office and “Shortening commute/travel time” and “Flexible
workplaces and work hours” for satellite offices.



As for the interest in using the five major types of satellite offices, 40–50% of the companies replied“Want to use” or “Want to use somewhat” for all types. Interest was especially high in “Close to home:
Concentrated solo-work type” (54.7%) and “Efficient travel: City-center touch-down type” (52.1%).

Related surveys:
・Autumn 2016 (1st survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey 2016 – Demand Trends, released on January 12, 2017https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/release/170112.html
・Autumn 2016 (1st survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey 2016 – New Ways of Working and Office, released on January 30, 2017https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/release/170130.html
・Spring 2017 (2nd survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey 2017 – Demand Trends, released on August 2, 2017https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/release/170802_2.html
・Autumn 2017 (3rd survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2017, released on December 7, 2017https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/release/171207.html
・Spring 2018 (4th survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Spring 2018, released on July 3, 2018https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/release/180703.html
・Autumn 2018 (5th survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2018, released on December 18, 2018https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/release/181218.html
・Spring 2019 (6th survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Spring 2019, released on June 26, 2019https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/images/pdf/20190626.pdf
・Autumn 2019 (7th survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2019, released on November 27, 2019https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/images/pdf/20191127.pdf
・TOPIC REPORT Companies’ Work Styles and the Workplace under the Corona Crisis, released on July 15, 2020
https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/images/pdf/20200715.pdf
・Spring 2020 (8th survey) Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Spring 2020 (Carried Out in June), released on July 29, 2020
https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/images/pdf/20200729.pdf
・Greater Tokyo Company Survey on Work Styles and the Workplace, released on September 18, 2020
https://www.xymax.co.jp/english/research/images/pdf/20200918.pdf

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

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1. Change in Office Demand (October 2019–September 2020)
1-1. Number of users, size, and rent

21.6% of the companies saw an increase in the number of users of their office, the smallest
percentage since the start of the survey.



5.2% of the companies expended their office size, while 4.7% downsized. As the reason fordownsizing the office, 40.5% of the companies replied, “Less space will be needed due to telework,”
representing a significant increase from the Spring 2020 survey (12.5%).



15.1% of the companies saw an increase in rent per tsubo (including CAM charges), which
outweighed companies that saw a drop (1.4%) but indicated a pause in the rising trend that haslasted for the past four years.

“100%” was the most popular percentage for both the current average percentage of employees
coming to the office to work and the percentage of employees working in the office after the endof the pandemic. However, 73.8% of the companies intend to have a certain number of theiremployees continue teleworking after the end of the pandemic.

Although the largest percentage (58.6%) of companies provided “more than 100%” of desks to theusers of their office, the percentage of companies providing “less than 100%” increased from thelast two surveys.

The changes in the number of users of the office, office size and rent per tsubo (including CAM charges; thesame applies hereinafter) over the past year (October 2019–September 2020) were as shown in Figures 1 and2. The results of all items indicate a change of tide in office demand, which had been robust since the start ofthe survey, compared to the last eight surveys (from Autumn 2016 to Spring 2020).
A record low 21.6% of the companies replied that they saw an increase in the number of users of their office(Figure 1 (bottom bar)). Meanwhile, 19.7% saw a decrease. However, this may include companies where thenumber of users has not actually decreased, since not a few respondents commented as the reason for thedecrease that some employees were not coming to the office due to telework.
Figure 1: Change in Number of Users of the Office

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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As for the office size, 5.2% of the companies replied that they expanded their office size, while 4.7% repliedthat they downsized (Figure 2 (bottom bar)).
Figure 2: Change in Office Size

The most popular reason for office expansion was, “Office space became too small due to an increase inpersonnel (Increase in personnel)” (73.4%) (Figure 3). The most popular reason for downsizing was, “To reduce
office costs (Cost reduction)” (59.5%), as in previous years. “Less space will be needed due to telework” was
40.5%, a significant increase from Spring 2020 (12.5%) (Figure 4).
Figure 3: Reason for Expansion

Figure 4: Reason for Downsizing

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

15.1% of the companies replied that rent per tsubo increased, which outweighed companies that saw a drop
(1.4%) but indicated a pause in the rising trend that has lasted for the past four years (Figure 5 (bottom bar)).
Figure 5: Change in Rent per Tsubo

We then asked the companies their “Current average percentage of employees coming to the office to work
(Actual)” and the “Percentage of employees working in the office after the end of the pandemic (Intension),”with 100% being all employees working the office. The most popular percentage was “100% (Work in office
entirely)” for both Actual and Intension (Figure 6). On the other hand, we found that the remaining 73.8% of
the companies intend to have a certain number of their employees continue teleworking after the end of thepandemic and that quite a few companies want the percentage to be “50%–59%” (14.1%), the second mostpopular percentage after “100%.”
Figure 6: Percentage of Employees Working in the Office (Actual and Intension)

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

Different characteristics can be seen between different company attributes. In terms of the location of theoffice, companies with offices in the Tokyo 23 Wards showed a greater tendency toward telework, with “100%”(Actual) remaining at 14.4% and 17.4% of the companies intending to bring the percentage to “50%–59%” after
the end of the pandemic (Figure 7). In terms of the number of employees, “30%–39%” was the most popular
percentage of employees currently working in the office among large companies with 1,000 employees or more
(15.3%), outweighing “100%” (11.1%), while “0% (Telework entirely)” accounted for 2.1% among companies withless than 100 employees, which is more than double the percentage of other groups of companies (Figure 8).
Figure 7: Percentage of Employees Working in the Office (Actual and Intension)– By Office Location

Figure 8: Percentage of Employees Working in the Office (Actual and Intension)– By Number of Employees

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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By sector, “100% (Work in office entirely)” was the most popular among the construction and wholesale &retail sectors both in Actual and Intension. In the telecommunications sector, “10%–19%” was the top percentageof the current percentage of employees working in the office (12.4%), with “100%” remaining at 9.6%, indicatingthat telework has especially proliferated in this sector (Figure 9).
Figure 9: Percentage of Employees Working in the Office (Actual and Intension)– By Sector

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate InstituteWe then asked the companies their number of users and number of desks in their office to calculate thepercentage of desks provided for the users, and grouped the results into “Less than 100%,” “100%” and “Morethan 100%.” We found that companies that provided desks for “more than 100%” of their users accounted forthe largest percentage (Figure 10 (bottom bar)).
Compared to the results of the last two surveys, however, the percentage of “Less than 100%” companies has
increased, which suggests that more companies may be reducing their number of desks as less employees cometo the office due to the spread of telework.
Figure 10: Percentage of Desks to Office Users

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute1-2. Impression of office size, business sentiment

30.3% of the companies felt that their current office was “very small” or “somewhat small.”

In terms of business sentiment, the sum of “Good” and “Somewhat good” was 16.9%, while that of“Bad” and “Somewhat bad” was significantly larger at 50.1%, indicating a business sentiment DI of-33.2.

When we asked how the companies felt about their current office size, 30.3% replied that they felt their office
was “very small” or “somewhat small,” outweighing the percentage of companies that felt their office was “verylarge” or “somewhat large” (23.9%) (Figure 11).
Figure 11: Impression of Office Size

Figure 12 indicates the “Business Sentiment DI,” which is the sum of the percentage of “Good” and “Somewhat
good” minus that of “Bad” and “Somewhat Bad,” to see the difference in the percentage of companies that felt
business was “good” or “somewhat good” and that of companies that felt business was “bad” or “somewhatbad.”
In this survey, the sum of “Good” and “Somewhat good” was 16.9%, while that of “Bad” and “Somewhat bad”
was significantly higher at 50.1%, indicating a business sentiment DI of -33.2. The business sentiment DI thatturned substantially negative in the Spring 2020 survey, which was conducted immediately after the outbreakof COVID-19, has recovered somewhat but remains negative, indicating that more companies have a negative
business sentiment than a positive sentiment.

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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Figure 12: Business Sentiment DI

A comparison of business sentiment by sector shows different results between sectors, such as a larger
percentage of “Bad” and “Somewhat bad” among the manufacturing and wholesale & retail sectors than othersectors, and “Good,” “Somewhat good” and “Unchanged” accounting for more than 50% in thetelecommunications and finance & insurance sectors (Figure 13).
Figure 13: Business Sentiment – By Sector

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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2. Current Status and evaluation of the Workplace2-1. Promotion of telework

89.5% of the respondent companies were implementing some kind of measures to enable theiremployees to telework, such as investing in ICT and providing a place or program for telework. The
percentage has been rising each year.



85.5% of the companies invested in ICT to support telework and 54.7% provided a place/program
for telework. The top reply for the telework place/program provided by companies was “Work-fromhome program” (51.2%), a significant rise in percentage compared to the Autumn 2019 survey.



In terms of the availability of a place or program for telework by sector, the availability of the workfrom-home program was especially large in the telecommunications sector (66.8%), a 25.4
percentage point difference from the construction sector, which had the lowest availability at 41.4%.
However, the availability of the program was significantly greater than in Autumn 2019 in all sectors.
This indicates that telework has spread due to the pandemic regardless of sector.



The top work style measures implemented were related to telework, such as “Developing/using
systems that enable telework” (57.1%) and “Paperless” (43.9%).

89.5% of the respondent companies implement some kind of measures to enable their employees to telework,
such as investing in ICT and providing a place or program for telework. The percentage is rising compared to
the results of the past three years (Figure 14).
Figure 14: Implementation of Measures for Telework

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate InstituteIn the following pages, we will examine the details of companies’ telework initiatives in terms of (1) ICT
investment, (2) providing a place or program, and (3) initiatives on work styles.
First of all, as for ICT investment, 85.5% of the respondent companies replied that they had introduced at least
one of the following: “System enabling workers to check emails and schedules anywhere,” “System enabling
workers to work outside the office in same network environment as the office,” and “Providing employees withIT device such as smartphone, mobile PC and tablet to enable work” (Figure 15). The percentage was 9.1
percentage points more than in Autumn 2019.
Figure 15: Implementation of ICT Investment to Support Telework

The implementation rates of all types of investment have also increased from the surveys of the last three
years (Figure 16).
Figure 16: Breakdown of ICT Investment to Support Telework*1 Smartphones have been added to the definition of IT device since the Spring 2019 survey.

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate InstituteWith regard to providing a place or program for employees to telework, 54.7% of the respondent companies
replied that they had provided at least one of the following three: “Work-from-home program,” “Satellite office(*2), etc. provided by a specialized operator, etc.” and “Satellite office, etc. owned or rented by own company”(Figure 17).
*2 Satellite office: A collective term for workplaces established for telework, apart from the main office or the home.
There are those that are provided by specialized service operators and those that are provided by the company.

Figure 17: Availability of Place or Program for Telework

The program or place that was introduced the most was “Work-from-home program” (51.2%), which increased
rapidly compared to Autumn 2019. Meanwhile, “Satellite office, etc. provided by a specialized operator, etc.” and“Satellite office, etc. owned or rented by own company,” which had grown each year, dropped slightly from theprevious survey, most likely as a temporary effect of the COVID-19 pandemic (Figure 18).
Figure 18: Breakdown of Available Place/Program for Telework

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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Differences can be seen in the availability of a place or program for telework between different sectors (Figure19). For example, the availability of the work-from-home program was especially large in thetelecommunications sector (66.8%), a 25.4 percentage point difference from the construction sector, which had
the lowest availability at 41.4%. However, the availability of the program was significantly greater than in Autumn
2019 in all sectors. This indicates that telework has spread rapidly due to the pandemic regardless of sector.
Figure 19: Breakdown of Available Place/Program for Telework – By Sector*2 Satellite office: A collective term for workplaces established for telework, apart from the main office or the home.
There are those that are provided by specialized service operators and those that are provided by the company.

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

Finally, the top initiatives on work styles included “Developing/using systems that enable telework” (57.1%)
and “Paperless” (43.9%), indicating that many companies were engaged in measures related to telework (Figure
20).
Figure 20: Initiatives on Work Styles*3 Flexible office layout: Hot-desking, group-based hot-desking, open meeting space, space for refreshing, ABW,
canteen & café space, etc.
*4 Workation: A portmanteau of working vacation, meaning to work from a travel destination, etc.

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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PICK UP
Initiatives on Work Styles by Percentage of Desks to Users of the Office
We found that companies providing desks for “less than 100%” of the users of their office had agreater implementation rate in all work style initiatives than those providing desks for “more than 100%”of their office users (Figure 21). This suggests that companies that have increased the efficiency of officespace are also more aggressive in introducing flexible work styles such as telework. If flexible and diverse
work styles continue to spread, it may have an impact on how companies use their fixed office space,such as the head office, and on office demand.
Figure 21: Initiatives on Work Styles – By Percentage of Desks to Office Users

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute2-2. Evaluation of the workplaceAs for whether companies thought they offered their workers a safe and secure office environment,
59.9% replied “Very much” or “Somewhat,” while 20.2% replied “Not at all” or “Not that much.”Regarding whether companies thought their productivity will improve with telework, 31.9% replied“Very much” or “Somewhat.” This percentage was larger at companies that provided a place orprogram for telework, and among them, larger at companies that provided a satellite office thanthose that only provided a work-from-home program.



The top issues and challenges in workplace operation were telework-related, such as “Employee
management is difficult in telework (work, attendance, evaluation, etc.)” (38.2%), which ranked top.

As for whether companies thought their current office offered their workers a safe and secure officeenvironment, 59.9% replied “Very much” or “Somewhat,” while 20.2% replied “Not at all” or “Not that much” and19.9% answered “Don’t know” (Figure 22). Companies’ and individuals’ requirements in offices may have risen
due to a rise in their concept of hygiene and awareness toward safety and security following the corona
pandemic.
Figure 22: Evaluation of Safety and Security of Office Environment

Regarding whether companies thought their productivity will improve with telework, 31.9% replied “Verymuch” or “Somewhat,” while 45.8% answered “Not at all” or “Not that much” and not a few 22.2% replied “Don’tknow” (Figure 23).
Figure 23: Evaluation of Productivity of Telework

When we asked the respondents to write down the reason for their evaluation of the productivity of telework,
a popular reason for thinking productivity will improve with telework (“Very much” and “Somewhat” replies) wasthat their experience of telework enabled them to feel the positive effect of a reduction in travel time and ofbeing able to choose where to work depending on the work content. On the other hand, a popular reason forthinking productivity will not improve (“Not at all” or “Not that much” replies) was their lack of the impression

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institutethat work can actually be done by telework due to their lack of or temporary experience of telework. The
following are some of the comments.
Reasons for thinking productivity will improve (Excerpt)
・ The time and labor that had been spent on commuting and traveling can be spent on other work.
・ Employees can concentrate on their work since no one contacts them for an urgent request, they
don’t have to respond to visitors and don’t have to move to a meeting room.
・ The ability to respond online has enabled employees to save time spent on commuting or
traveling to visit a customer. It has also enabled them to hold business meetings and negotiations
without being concerned about the weather, etc.
・ Sales activities can be carried out according to clients’ schedules since employees don’t have tocome to the office.
・ Some people might be freed of a kind of awkward pressure when they are at home and find it
easier to switch between concentrating and relaxing.
・ I feel that the reduction in commuting time and an increase in time for private life have given
employees more leeway in their daily life and work, resulting in greater motivation toward work.
・ By incorporating telework as a work style option and allowing employees to choose between
coming to the office and teleworking according to their work, they are responding by carryingout intensive work at home and collaboration work at the office.
Reasons for not thinking productivity will improve (Excerpt)
・ Although we tried out teleworking for a while, we faced challenges in the lack of communicationand difficulty in fostering a culture of telework.
・ We have not introduced any scheme that would enable productivity improvement with telework.
・ Telework will not work for us since our work mainly involves answering questions using printed
matter and we need to ask how people around us have answered.
・ Work efficiency will drop significantly since we cannot access the internal server from the outside.
・ I think employees’ perspectives will narrow.
・ We will not be able to get anything done without meeting people and seeing the work site.
There was also a difference in the evaluation of productivity by the availability of the different places fortelework. Companies providing a satellite office provided by a specialized operator or a satellite office ownedor rented by own company (regardless of whether they enabled work-from-home) had a higher evaluation of
the productivity of telework than those that only provided work-from-home as a place for telework (Figure 24).
This also suggests that the effects and benefits of telework can be felt more by actually experiencing it.
Figure 24: Evaluation of Productivity – By Availability of Type of Place for Telework

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

As for issues and challenges in workplace operation, the top replies were telework-related, such as “Employee
management is difficult in telework (work, attendance, evaluation, etc.)” (38.2%), which ranked top (Figure 25).
Figure 25: Issues and Challenges in Workplace Operation

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

3. Outlook of the Workplace after the End of the COVID-19
Pandemic
3-1. Outlook of workplace strategies

The top work style measures companies were interested in for after the end of the pandemic were
those based on telework, such as “Introduce attendance/work management tools” (30.2%) and“Switch to evaluation system based on telework (e.g., merit/job-based employment)” (27.0%).

The outlook of the workplace after the end of the pandemic that was the closest to the thoughtsof the largest percentage of respondent companies was “Use both the main office and telework”(40.2%).

In terms of the outlook of the workplace after the end of the pandemic by office location, companies
with offices in Tokyo 23 Wards showed a greater tendency toward a distributed work style thanthose with offices in regional cities, such as “Promote working from home or in satellite offices andreduce number of employees coming to the office” and “Increase telework and downsize the office.”
By number of employees, large companies with 1,000 employees or more showed a greater
response rate in many options than other sizes of companies, suggesting they had already begun
considering their workplace strategies for after the end of the pandemic.

The top work style measures companies were interested in for after the end of the pandemic were those basedon telework, such as “Introduce attendance/work management tools” (30.2%) and “Switch to evaluation system
based on telework (e.g., merit/job-based employment)” (27.0%) (Figure 26). In addition, we found that somecompanies, albeit a small percentage, were considering reducing the number of business trips and job transfers
without family accompaniment to below pre-pandemic levels. On the other hand, companies that replied “Nonein particular” also accounted for nearly 30%.
Figure 26: Work Style Measures Interested in

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

The outlook of the workplace after the end of the pandemic that was the closest to the thoughts of the largest
percentage of respondent companies was “Use both the main office and telework” (40.2%) (Figure 27).
Figure 27: Outlook of the Workplace after the End of the Pandemic

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

When we look at these results by office location, companies with offices in Tokyo 23 Wards showed a greater
tendency toward a distributed work style than those with offices in regional cities, such as “Promote working
from home or in satellite offices and reduce number of employees coming to the office” and “Increase teleworkand downsize the office” (Figure 28).
Figure 28: Outlook of the Workplace after the End of the Pandemic – By Office Location

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate InstituteBy number of employees, large companies with 1,000 employees or more showed a greater percentage ofchoosing the options than other sizes of companies, suggesting they had already begun considering theirworkplace strategies for after the end of the pandemic (Figure 29). On the other hand, smaller companies
showed a larger percentage of “Return to previous state after the pandemic and do not change much.”
Figure 29: Outlook of the Workplace after the End of the Pandemic – By Number of Employees

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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23

RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute3-2. Roles of a satellite office required by companies


The top value or role companies required in both their main office and satellite offices was “Greater
work efficiency.” This was followed by “More active internal communication” and “Enhancing
employee motivation” for the main office and “Shortening commute/travel time” and “Flexible
workplaces and work hours” for satellite offices.



As for companies’ interest in using the five major types of satellite offices, 40–50% of the companies
replied “Want to use (somewhat)” for all types. Interest was especially high in “Close to home:
Concentrated solo-work type” (54.7%) and “Efficient travel: City-center touch-down type” (52.1%).

The spread of telework has prompted the use of not only conventional offices for congregating but also
satellite offices, which are places for employees to telework, and has resulted in a greater variety of workplaces.
Figure 30 is the result of the values or roles that companies require in the main office and satellite offices.
The top reply for both offices was “Greater work efficiency,” which was followed by “More active internal
communication” and “Enhancing employee motivation” for the main office and “Shortening commute/traveltime” and “Flexible workplaces and work hours” for satellite offices, revealing a difference in the roles requiredin the two types of offices.
Figure 30: Values and Roles Required in the Main Office (Left) and Satellite Offices (Right)

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

When we look at this result by availability of place or program for telework (Figure 17), companies that hadprovided a place for telework required “More active internal communication” the most in their main office(Figure31). As for satellite offices, there was a large difference between companies that had provided a place
for telework and those that had not in options such as “Shortening commute/travel time,” Flexible workplaces
and work hours,” “Facilitating employees' concentration,” and “Improving employees' work-life balance,” whichindicate a difference in their positioning of the workplace (Figure 32).
Figure 31: Values and Roles Required in the Main Office – By Availability of Place/Program for Telework

Figure 32: Values and Roles Required in Satellite Offices – By Availability of Place/Program for Telework

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
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reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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25

RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate InstituteThe spread of telework has resulted in a greater significance of satellite offices as a workplace option otherthan the home. As a wider variety of satellite offices become available with the rising momentum of the market,
which satellite office do companies’ office managers want their employees to use?
We asked their interest in each of the following five major types of satellite offices for after the end of thepandemic.

1．Close to home: Concentrated solo-work type It is within walking/biking distance from home, which
reduces commute time.
 There is a private room for one person that is suitablefor intensive work and where phone calls and online
meetings are also possible.
 There are multifunctional copiers and lounge space, etc.,
enabling users to engage in a full day of work.
There are features that support a better balance withprivate life, such as nursery services and being locatedwithin buildings where shopping can be done such as
shopping malls.

2．Efficient travel: City-center touch-down type
 Multiple offices are provided in major city-center officeareas.
 They are used mainly by sales representatives who drop in
between client visits or on days when they go directly totheir clients and return home directly, enabling a
reduction of travel time.
 Users can choose whichever location of office that suits
them on that day and drop in even for a short time.
 There are private rooms and booths suitable forindividual work, as well as soundproof booths for phone
calls and online meetings.

3．Any duration at any location: Project base type
 There are exclusive sections, which are suitable for systemdevelopment or fixed-term projects.
 It can be located where it is convenient for the project,such as where it is easy for project members to commuteto or near the client.
 There are private rooms or meeting space suitable forworking or holding meetings with multiple persons.

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

26

RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute It is easy to work with people not only within thecompany but also from outside the company.

4．Encounters and stimulation: City-centercollaboration type It is located in areas with brand value or character,mainly in city centers (e.g., IT companies in Shibuya,financial companies in Marunouchi) It is shared by people from various industries andprofessions, offering opportunities for collaboration or
innovation.
 It features open spaces with attention to comfort anddesign.
 It also offers plenty of intangible services, such as foodand drink, events, and community-building opportunities.

5．Workation in countryside and multiple-location
residency type
 Located in the lush countryside, it enables work-lifebalance.
 You can work close to home, as it enables you to work forcompanies in urban centers while living in the countrysideeither temporarily or for the long-term.
 It can be shared by multiple companies, which offers
opportunities for cross-industry exchanges andexchanges with the local community.
We asked companies to rate their interest in using each of the five types on a five-point scale. In all types,
40–50% of the companies replied that they “want to use” or “want to use somewhat” (Figure 33).
Interest was the highest in “Close to home: Concentrated solo-work type” (54.7%), which indicates companies’
awareness toward their employees’ work-life balance and childcare support. A majority (52.1%) of the companies
replied that they wanted to use the “City-center touch-down type,” which will lead to greater travel efficiency of
employees who spend a lot of time outside the office, such as sales representatives.

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

Figure 33: Interest in the Five Types of Satellite Offices

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

4. Summary
In this survey, which is the second in the series carried out after the global outbreak of COVID-19, we identified
a clear change of tide in office demand. The percentage of companies that saw an increase in the number ofusers of the office and of those that expanded their office size over the past year were both the smallest since
the start of the survey in 2016. The rising trend of rent per tsubo, which had continued for the past four years,
has also paused, showing signs of flattening or declining.
This survey also displayed a distinct characteristic in the increase in the availability of the work-from-homeprogram and weakness in business sentiment DI, suggesting that the full-scale impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on corporate management has begun to manifest itself. For example, the percentage of companies
that cited “Less space will be needed due to telework” as the reason for downsizing their office in the past year
surged from 12.5% in Spring 2020 to 40.5% this time, indicating the possibility that the spread of telework mightlead to a reduction in the size of conventional offices where employees congregate.
At the same time, we found that companies require different values and roles in satellite offices and their main
office and that a majority of the companies want to use a satellite office that was close to employees’ homes
after the pandemic has abated, confirming signs of workplace diversification and dispersion. Depending on
situations going forward, companies’ awareness toward cost reduction may rise due to a downturn in theeconomy caused by the pandemic and accelerate the downsizing of companies’ main offices in city centers infavor of telework.
However, the current state we are in is an emergency situation, and our new daily habit of placing top priority
on preventing infection will not last forever. In the long term, companies’ top priorities are continuity andsecuring profits, and we might experience a swing back in work styles when we overcome this longstanding
threat of infection. For example, the value of people congregating might be rediscovered, encouraging
companies to require their employees to come to the office physically. In such cases, offices will probably not
be used in exactly the same way as before the pandemic, but new values will likely be established for offices
where employees congregate, promoting the evolution of the workplace and work styles.
The workplace affects the mind of the people who work there, defines their work styles, and influences theirperformance as a result. It is a managerial issue that deserves more focus in corporate activity. By having
experienced the COVID-19 crisis, we also expect many companies to begin redefining the roles of the office andtackling issues such as optimizing the balance between the main office and telework. We intend to continue ourresearch from the perspective of company demand and provide information on how the conventional officemarket will be affected by these developments.

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

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RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate Institute

Survey Overview
Survey period

October 2020

Targetrespondents

Emails were sent and questionnaire forms distributed to 42,775 companies in total that include:
・Companies that are tenants of office buildings managed by the Xymax Group・Companies subscribing to ZXY, a satellite office service for corporations
・Client companies of XYMAX INFONISTA Corporation

Number ofvalid answers

1,798 companies; response rate: 4.2%

Geographicalcoverage

Nationwide (Tokyo, Osaka, Aichi, Fukuoka, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba Prefectures and others)
Current office・ Contract type, office type, location, office area under lease contract, rent per tsubo (incl. CAM
charges), number of users of the office*, percentage of employees coming to the office to work
(current, intention), impression of office size, number of desks*In this report, the users are the employees who are eligible to use the office though may not be using it
every day.

About the company
・ Business sentiment・ Themes focusing on

Topicscovered in thesurveyChange in office demand (October 2019–September 2020)
・ Change in the number of users of the office・ Change in office size
・ Change in rent per tsubo
Current workplace environment
・ Implementation of telework initiatives
・ Implementation of initiatives on work styles
・ Evaluation
・ Problems and issues in workplace operation
Intentions for after the COVID-19 pandemic
・ Work style measures interested in・ Values and roles required in the main office and satellite office・ Interest in five satellite office types
Company attributes
・ Sector, location of head office, number of employees, average age of employees

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
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30

RESEARCH REPORT｜Xymax Real Estate InstituteAttributes of Respondent Companies

Sector%n%nAgriculture & forestry

0.2%

3

Head office

62.8%

1,130

Mining & quarrying of stone and gravel

0.1%

2

Branch office

24.6%

443

Construction

6.2%

111

Sales office

9.1%

163

Manufacturing

17.6%

316

Sub-office

1.2%

21

Electricity, gas, heat, water supply

0.6%

10

Call center

0.5%

9

Telecommunications

15.9%

286

Computer room

0.2%

4

Type ofofficeTransportation & postal service

2.1%

38

Other

1.6%

28

Wholesale & retail

14.0%

251

Tokyo 23 Wards

60.0%

1,079

Finance & insurance

3.3%

59

11.8%

212

Real estate & lease of goods

5.1%

91

5.7%

103

Academic research, professional/technical service

6.7%

Accommodation & restaurants

0.4%

8

Daily life services & entertainment

0.9%

16

Education & learning support

1.3%

23 office under 30–49 tsubo

Medical & welfare

1.7%

30

Multi-service business

1.1%

19 contract (1 100–199 tsubo

Service (those not classified as other sectors)

19.9%

Civil service (excl. those classified as other sectors)

Unclassifiable

Osaka city
Location of
Nagoya city
office120
Fukuoka city

5.1%

92

Other

17.4%

312

Less than 30 tsubo

16.2%

292

15.1%

271

17.1%

307

16.7%

300

21.5%

386

0.3%

358 tsubo=3.3 200 tsubo or moresqm)
No answer
6

13.5%

242

2.8%

51

20–29

2.7%

48

Less than 100

47.7%

35.9%

646

Number of 100–999
employees 1,000 or more

34.4%

857 Average 30–39
619 age of 40–49

52.3%

940

318 employee 50–59s4
60 or above

7.7%

138

1.2%

21

No answer

0.3%

5

Unknown

17.7%
0.2%

Size oflease

50–99 tsubo

The percentage mix in the charts contained in this report are rounded to the first decimal place and therefore may not add up
to 100%.

For further inquiries please contact:
Xymax Real Estate Institutehttps://soken.xymax.co.jp

E-MAIL: info-rei@xymax.co.jp

Metropolitan Areas Office Demand Survey Autumn 2020
The contents of this report are as of the time of writing. Xymax Real Estate Institute does not guarantee their accuracy or completeness. This report may not be
reproduced, cited, transmitted, distributed, or reprinted without prior permission of Xymax Real Estate Institute.
Copyright © 2021 Xymax Real Estate Institute Corporation. All rights reserved.

31