Bringing Lessons From Remote Work Back To The Office
Over the past two years, the working world has transformed. Out of necessity, we went from spending 40 hours at an office to 100% of our time at home. And in that time, we learned a lot about how beneficial alternative working arrangements can be.
During the past few months, many organizations have started transitioning back to a physical workplace. But not everyone is eager to return.
Each method—working from home and working from an office—has its benefits. As more workplaces go back to the office, how can we use what we’ve learned from working remotely to create a more productive, efficient, and balanced office?
Let’s take something positive out of our experience with remote work. In today’s blog, we’re going to take a look at how remote working can change workplaces for the better:
What We Learned Working From Home
To say that businesses have faced new challenges since COVID-19 would be a massive understatement. But it isn’t all doom and gloom. Remote workers have learned a lot over the pandemic, including:
Fewer Meetings, More Direct Communication
Remember when you attended weekly in-person meetings? Depending on your position, you might have even had daily meetings. Hours of your workweek were set aside to discuss all matters of business. As important as meetings can be, they also tend to use up a lot of your time.
Digital tools have innovated the way we communicate. Using apps like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Docs, we’ve learned how to collaborate digitally. The meetings we do have are shorter, encouraging us to use our time more efficiently.
But aside from meetings, you often had informal conversations with small groups of employees throughout your workday. With instant messaging tools, employees can create group chats to share these same casual interactions.
Time Management
Before it was possible to work remotely, employees left behind their household chores and other responsibilities whenever they went to work. But when “home” and “work” became one, it became difficult to balance the two. While workers tried to complete their usual tasks, they also had to juggle laundry, child care, and dishes.
As such, employees had to learn new ways to work on their productivity. The Pomodoro Technique has skyrocketed in popularity. If you aren’t familiar, it’s a technique that involves working for 25 minutes, then taking a 5-minute break. Each interval is measured with a timer. After 4 of these “pomodoros”, you take a longer break (15-30 minutes).
Techniques like these help us focus when we’re surrounded by distractions (like children, barking dogs, and household chores).
Being Open About Mental Health
Many workers feel pressure to always be at their “best” when they’re at the office. Pre-pandemic, we might have felt uncomfortable to admit when we weren’t feeling 100%. But after going through the pandemic, more organizations are encouraging conversations about mental health. Our unanimous struggle has fostered a stronger sense of empathy in the workspace.
When you see your coworkers in an office each day, it’s easier to check in on them. It’s not so easy to know how your remote workers are doing. By openly talking about mental health, we can encourage people to feel comfortable admitting when they’re going through a tough time.
Adapting the Traditional Office
Change can be scary. When a business has operated one way for dozens of years, changing the order of things can cause uncertainty, stress, and anxiety. But as industries change, we need to adapt—otherwise, we’ll fall behind.
Now that we’re returning to the workplace, how can we incorporate what we’ve learned to improve offices? Here’s how organizations like yours can benefit from these experiences:
Efficient Project & Time Management
Why hold a meeting when you can accomplish the same goal with an email? The digital tools we’ve mastered over the pandemic are here to stay. Instead of gathering in groups for long-winded meetings, we’re communicating faster and more efficiently over Slack and Zoom.
Accessible Information, Anywhere
Remember when you had to go to work to access your files? Now that the business world has moved online, organizations are taking advantage of cloud storage. No matter where you are, all the information you need is right at your fingertips.
If an employee needs to work from home due to an illness, family event, or other unexpected issues, they can do so with ease. They won’t have to worry about how they’ll work when they’re away from the office—it’s a skill we’ve all honed over the past few years.
Independence
Your boss might have feared that if they couldn’t see any employees, they might not be getting any work done. Employees have proven time and time again that they don’t need to be in an office to be productive. It’s creating a greater sense of trust and understanding in the workplace, as workers experience more independence than ever before.
Remote Work Transitions to Hybrid Work
The transition to an in-person office can be rocky. Employees need time to adjust as the workplace changes all over again. Have you considered a hybrid work model?
With this approach, employees can choose which days they stay at home, and which ones they go into the office. A recent survey of over 10,000 employees found that 68% of people prefer a hybrid work arrangement. As a result, most companies are allowing employees to choose their working arrangement in some capacity.
A New Work Space
With fewer employees in the office than ever before, the cost of renting a large building might become an unnecessary expense. How can organizations provide space for those who need it, but save on the cost of renting a big office?
Here enters the coworking space. With monthly leases, desks that you can rent as needed, and printing services, you can customize your arrangement to suit your team.
Interested in a Coworking Space?
If you’re looking to rent office space in Toronto, we can help! At Workplace One, we help businesses like yours identify creative solutions for a flexible workplace. Want to learn more about how a coworking space can benefit your business? Contact us today!