COVID 19 has been an unprecedented major disrupter to organisations and individuals globally.
It has since caused a major and drastic shift in ideology, leaving property owners to justify decisions on retaining and maintaining physical office space.
It’s not without its merits. Without this pandemic, many would have assumed that physical office space is definitely and always required for continuity of business. But how much has a pandemic changed this perception.
With increasing vaccination rates , many governments and company managements have been persuading their staff to return to offices. Below are the few scenarios that are playing out currently
- Returning to work – Companies have mandated most if not all their staff will return to office by a certain date. Majority of such businesses have claimed that remote working has posed a serious challenge to their business operations, such as communications and also creating negative impact on employee mental health, well being and productivity.
With new social distancing measures, the old office premises may not be an ideal fit , some will have to lease more space. Some will have to redesign and renovate their premises to fit in their staff and new workplace amenities.
Some key points :
1. Do you require all staff to come back all 5 and 6 full days a week?
2. How are you going to manage the meeting rooms and other in person interaction facilities safely?
3. Do you have in place a safe working environment playbook.
2. Remote first policy – Many companies are already working remotely pre- pandemic. So COVID 19 has no material impact or changes on the way how one works in a Remote first policy. Not only it is flexible and it’s also the most cost effective. But a few points to take note of.
- Are your team using the right kind of tools and software to keep your operations running smoothly ?
2. What systems do you have in place to track and optimise productivity and maintain team morale ?
3. Hybrid working – This means working a few days in office and from home and to some, practically Working From Anywhere. Working from anywhere has boosted the popularity of working near home as not everyone is able to work from home due to distractions and not being conducive enough, especially when conducting online meetings and video conferencing. For workers who are in sales and on site project management roles, having the ability to work near home, satellite office locations, client offices and project sites , is a clear booster in terms of convenience and time savings. He or she is able to complete a transaction or task easier and faster than before in a traditional office setting or even a work from home environment, by eliminating the need and time for commute.
A few key points here.
- Do you have a system that can easily monitor and manage your staff across the country or region if you have a regionally or globally distributed workforce?
2. Do you have in place a network of professionally managed workplaces that your employees can have access to while working on the go ?
3. Do you still adopt a traditional HQ office setting or a Hybrid – Hub and Spoke model with a few satellite offices network designed with the locations and functions of your employees in mind ?
The above may seem complex, but apparently it is gaining the biggest traction among all of the above work models. Most employees desire a Work from Anywhere policy and enjoys freedom of work while balancing the needs of their families at the same time. Many workers also feel that their morale is kept high and mental health in great shape as they also enjoy the chance of face to face collaboration among their co-workers and clients once a while rather than being placed on a complete remote basis where no personal interaction is involved.
Rather than being kept confused or do not know how to embark on your next workplace strategy, talk to us today and let us craft out a customised model for your organisation.