Artificial intelligence is transforming how people work, but it is not yet pointing towards mass redundancies. JLL’s Future of Work Survey 2026 suggests that businesses are instead preparing for workforce growth, redesigned roles and a new generation of workplaces.
From Job Cuts to Job Redesign
According to JLL’s Future of Work Survey 2026, 63% of organisations in EMEA expect headcount to increase over the next three to five years, while 62% anticipate AI-driven redesign of employee roles. Some 57% also foresee a greater role for full-time employment.
For facility and workplace managers, the message is significant: AI is changing what happens inside the office rather than making the workplace obsolete.
As routine activities become increasingly automated, offices are likely to accommodate more collaboration, learning, decision-making and complex problem-solving. The workplace brief is therefore shifting away from rows of desks towards a more varied mix of focus areas, meeting spaces and environments designed for teamwork.
Productivity Shapes Workplace Design
Technology is only part of the productivity equation. According to the survey, 46% of respondents identify collaboration tools as important, while 45% point to reliable technology infrastructure.
The physical quality of the workplace matters just as much. Focus areas and noise-reduction solutions are highlighted by 48% of respondents, while office location and accessibility, as well as adaptable individual workspaces, are each cited by 46%.
Wellbeing is also moving further up the FM agenda. Biophilic design is considered important for productivity by 62% of respondents, with 50% highlighting wellbeing amenities and 49% on-site medical support.
These findings were also reported by Polish facility management publication Obiekty, which highlighted the changing role of offices and growing demand for workplaces designed around productivity, employee experience and organisational resilience.
Making the Commute Worthwhile
Hybrid working is not disappearing, but expectations of the office are changing. Only 22% of EMEA organisations currently require employees to attend five days a week. The average requirement stands at 3.5 days, compared with 3.8 days in both APAC (Asia-Pacific) and NORAM (North America).
Instead, employers are increasingly interested in creating workplaces that justify the journey, with 27% identifying “commute-worthy workplaces” as a priority.
For FM teams, this puts the employee experience firmly in focus. People need a compelling reason to come into the office — and its quality, functionality, comfort and accessibility are increasingly part of that equation.
Transformation Meets the Cost Challenge
The ambition to transform workplaces must, however, contend with growing operating costs. Although 62% of organisations prioritise long-term real estate transformation over short-term cost management, 48% identify rising energy and utility bills as a major pressure. Operating and common-area maintenance costs concern 38%, while 37% point to inflation. A further 29% highlight increasing labour and facility management costs.
The challenge for FM and corporate real estate teams is therefore to deliver smarter, more flexible and technology-enabled workplaces while keeping the business case for transformation financially viable.
Ultimately, JLL’s research presents AI less as the end of the office than as a catalyst for its reinvention. As technology takes on more routine activities, the value of the physical workplace may increasingly depend on how effectively it supports the human capabilities that remain difficult to automate — from collaboration and learning to creativity and complex decision-making.
About the Research
JLL’s Future of Work Survey 2026 draws on the views of more than 2,200 C-suite executives and corporate real estate leaders across 21 countries and 15 industries. Conducted between January and April 2026, the research examines how organisations are responding to AI transformation, productivity pressures, risk and changing real estate strategies.
The sample covers organisations of different sizes: 50% of respondents represent businesses with fewer than 5,000 employees globally, 27% represent organisations with between 5,000 and 9,999 employees, and 23% work for organisations employing more than 10,000 people. The breadth of the research provides a useful indication of how workplace priorities are evolving as businesses balance AI adoption, employee experience and real estate costs.