Pwc’s new Belfast office has space for 3,000 staff and offers nail bar and yoga
THE new offices of one of Belfast’s biggest employers will offer staff a nail bar, GP services and yoga classes, its boss has said.
Kevin Macallister, NI regional market leader for accountancy and consulting firm PWC, said it hoped to move some of its 2,300 staff to the new £70m Merchant Square building in the summer.
He said PWC had not wavered in its plan to move, first announced in 2018 — despite the adoption of working from home as a result of the pandemic.
There is space for 3,000 people in the nine-storey block, developed by Oakland Holdings.
Mr Macallister told Business Telegraph: “Undoubtedly the world of working and how we deliver professional services will change, but it’s not either/or, office or homeworking. We’ll be into a much more blended, flexible working regime.” But he said an office is needed for an organisation of its kind. “What we do is collaborative, you need an office, a facility and a focal point to come together.”
He said the practice has consulted with staff on what they’d like in the office. “We’ve been developing it quite closely with our people, and quite a significant part of the floor space will be a wellbeing area.
“We’ll be providing things like onside healthcare with GP services, yoga classes, nail bars — anything that has a wellbeing angle to it.”
Mr Macallister stopped short of saying that attendance in the office would be compulsory, adding that the firm wanted to move on from a culture of presenteeism. “Never say never, that someone working for PWC won’t be able to work full-time on a remote basis.”
He added: “We’re trying to bridge the gap between home and office and sort of blur the lines a little bit, so you make an office an extension of home.
“It’s about creating an environment that people want to come to as opposed to an office people have to show up to.
“It’s an end to this idea of presenteeism and instead have a very flexible environment for people to move in and out of.”
Mr Macallister said he also believed large employers had a responsibility to support other businesses like hospitality and retail by returning to their city centre offices where possible.