Is Hybrid working the future of office work?
As we begin to see life settling into a new normal it appears as if there will be no return to how work life was for many in the office sector. The pandemic may be seen as responsible for having accelerated many changes but in reality we were in fact heading towards a new style of working before its arrival. Many companies realised it was not necessary for people to commute to a specific place just to work in front of a computer screen.
Hybrid working, that is where employees spend part of their time working in an office and part of their time working elsewhere, currently appears to be the favoured work model for the future.
Why is this choice seen as the way forward? Because it turns out that this style of working has many benefits for both the employer and employee.
Having to work from home forced many companies to embrace technology that allowed for better spread out collaborative work including video conferencing and messaging tools. This is technology that has been beneficial for communication with customers too. NovaLoca embraced video conference technology which has proven very popular with our clients who are spread out across the whole of the UK.
Allowing for a better work–life balance, providing more time for family and a saving on commuting costs are some of the advantages for employees. And in return employers could see higher levels of motivation, less absences and higher staff retention.
What do businesses need to consider to set up for this way of working?
It is important to work out what type of work is best done in the office and what can be done remotely. The office is best suited to collaborative work. Teams can get together for brainstorming, review sessions and training. It becomes the social centre of the company. Remote working is great for independent work that requires focus and concentration. For me, working at home has opened up the exciting ability to work with audio in my content creation projects.
Of course remote working is not suitable for everyone so having a designated space for private work or video calls is something employers may now need to consider. It does not have to be a large space. It can even be created by partitions. Just as long as it allows for fewer distractions.
If your company decides it doesn’t need as much space as it used to have it may be worth setting up a desk booking system so space doesn’t go to waste when someone is not there. This may also help with shorter term Covid considerations when there is not room for all employees to be in together.
In fact the office is probably going to need to feel like it offers perks to encourage staff to be there. Younger workers are already used to working on laptops and tablets on the go so they will be looking for reasons to be in an office. There is also the possibility of workers choosing a workspace such as a co-working space, or a satellite office closer to home.
There’s a lot to consider, with no one size fits all solution, but allowing employees to feel satisfied and trusted can only be good for business.
Search NovaLoca for our wide range of office space available throughout the UK.
