THE FUTURE OF THE OFFICE

No more open-plan working

Originally designed to encourage collaboration and reduce the hierarchical nature of individual offices, open-plan has also been thought to encourage the spread of germs. One study, published in the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health in 2011, suggests that an open-plan layout led to a 62 per cent increase in sick leave among employees. At present, if a company wants to reopen and abide by current Government guidelines, hot-desking is not advised, and Plexiglas screens and ‘sneeze guards’ between desks, along with hand sanitisers, are recommended. UK company Panelscreens saw orders increase by 390 per cent in May, compared to the previous month.

You might be replaced by your very own avatar

Remote working has thrown up all kinds of challenges, one being missing real-life communication. Tech companies are working hard to combat this. Facebook has blogged about creating ‘infinite workspaces with configurable virtual screens’ where colleagues can collaborate in virtual meeting rooms. It’s also working on hyper-realistic Codec Avatars that digitally represent you and your workmates, helping to boost nuanced communication between individuals and ‘reshaping how work gets done’.

You’ll rent your office by the hour

A Pricewaterhousecoopers survey, published in May 2020, found that a quarter of CFOS were considering cutting back on real estate. But as much as we would love to skip those all-too-frequent meetings, some faceto-face interactions are crucial for networking and confidence-building, so rented hubs, pay-by-the-hour conference rooms and flexible rental leases could be a solution in future. And although shared-office company Wework and its kind have suffered during the pandemic, hit by falling demand from tenants, some experts believe this could turn around in the future.

The standard 9-5 hours may become defunct

Another route back to office life could be the introduction of staggered hours or shifts, helping to reduce the numbers of employees commuting at peak times and being in the same space at any one time. Teams might even be asked to work alternate days, switch between the day and night shift, and stagger breaks. In South Korea, Credit Suisse preemptively split its employees into two groups back in February. On top of this, improved facilities, like more bike racks to encourage alternative forms of transport to and from work, as well as more entry points into the office will also be needed.