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Someday, after the threat of COVID-19 has subsided, many of us will return to an office. But it has not yet been determined how many employees will return, where, and what type of space. The future is difficult to predict, especially during a pandemic. But it is clear that it will be marked by the beginning of permanent changes in the way we work.
In May 2020, Xerox conducted its Future of Work survey, in which it spoke with 600 IT leaders in five countries (US, Canada, UK, Germany, and France) who come from a variety of industries. The survey yielded some unexpected ideas about how we might get the job done in the years to come. This is what we can expect.
OFFICES CAN MOVE BEYOND A MEETING.
What we expect from an office, its management, and our colleagues will be dramatically different when we return. We will obviously see temporary sanitation stations and checkpoints, but our workplace culture will change as well: smaller meetings. What is that cliche that usually seems true? This meeting could have been an email. Perhaps an emphasis on fewer meetings for safety. It could lead to more focus and engagement as employees will be able to focus on their actual jobs rather than rushing from meeting to meeting. By keeping sessions smaller, whether in the office or remotely. We will probably eliminate our calendars and eliminate unnecessary meetings that have been “just because.” Most likely,
WE WILL NEED NEW SOURCES OF INSPIRATION.
COMPANIES CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE INSPIRATION OF SPACES DRIVEN BY THE PERSONALITY OF THEIR EMPLOYEES.
Whether or not we meet in person, we will still need to brainstorm ideas for the projects. When we work from home, our ideas do not come from the bustle of the office, but from things (and loved ones) around us. Shelves full of our favorite readings. Memories of trips abroad family members and pets. Companies can be inspired by spaces driven by the personality of their employees and offer socially distanced group activities, both inside and outside working hours. It’s an opportunity for people to see the spaces of their co-workers and exchange creative vibes. The key to this: make them optional,
WE WILL NEED MORE ROBUST AND FLEXIBLE TECHNICAL CONFIGURATIONS.
Think of all the technology we rely on during work-at-home times: video conferencing software that allows us to call entire teams and departments. Technical support for the countless devices employees can have at home. Cloud-based collaborative software that helps teams share sensitive data, plus analytics to optimize the latest priorities. According to the Xerox study, 40% of IT leaders surveyed said they are increasing technology budgets for hybrid or remote work. As employees increasingly struggle to find work-life balance, creating longer work hours due to clumsy IT glitches is not ideal,
WE STILL ENCOURAGE CONNECTION IN PERSON.
Despite the closures, the pandemic does not mark the office’s death sentence. According to the Xerox survey, 95 percent of respondents believe that face-to-face communication (not just screen-to-screen) is vital to work life. In the future, most teams can look forward to a hybrid of remote work and office. Before the pandemic, many major companies offered setups like this as a perk, but now it seems more of a necessity. That means companies should invest in things like manager training, teaching employees how to lead remote teams so everyone is heard and engaged, whether it’s from the office or calling from their couch.
WE NEED TO MAKE LONG-TERM PLANS AND LET THE TEAMS LEAD YOU.
When employees were asked to stay home, many companies and their IT teams were surprised. Among the leaders of smaller brands, many did not have the resources to react, and some of the biggest challenges were the lack of IT support and cloud-based services for employees who were suddenly working remotely. (85 percent of those surveyed even said they missed the convenience of their office printers.) To better prepare, offices will need longer-term contingency plans, plus a renewed appreciation for IT – the department that makes everything work over the Internet.
ACCORDING TO THE XEROX FUTURE OF WORK SURVEY, 58 PERCENT OF GLOBAL BUSINESSES HAVE TO CHANGE THEIR WORK POLICIES FROM HOME OVER THE NEXT YEAR.
THERE IS MORE CONFIDENCE IN REMOTE WORK
In the past, many large companies were hesitant to work remotely. The most reluctant offices were likely to be larger, more traditional companies rather than start-ups. For years, traditional companies have needed to accelerate the pace of change to remain competitive in the face of these smaller and more flexible newcomers, and in a way, the pandemic has forced them. The last seven months have shown that meetings can happen remotely, creativity lives on, and employees can remain “professional” when left to their own devices. (Translation: we are not a country full of workers who are sitting at home and watching television all day). According to the Xerox Future of Work survey, 58% of global companies intend to change their work-from-home policies in the next year. Major changes in attitude in the coming months? That is the biggest challenge.
Given the dizzying changes we have seen in recent months, perhaps the most surprising conclusion to this pandemic has been its speed, which revolutionized our world in less than a year. When the pandemic gained traction in the US in March 2020, roughly three-quarters of the leaders of the companies surveyed said they were technically unprepared for remote work. But a virus does not wait for corporations.
One thing is clear: there has already been a revolution at work. Companies that can provide their employees with more security, flexibility, and connectivity will be the ones to get ahead.