“I’m at the Office” Has Covid 19 changed business and the work place?

When reading via the broadsheets, social media platforms, national and local news stations there seems to be array of comments in relation to people wanting to question about their return to work after furlough. From the No1 question, that of safety, through to some employers wanting to reduce costs, caused by this awful pandemic that has hit businesses.

Wessex Distribution Limited feel that people are what make a business successful and their engagement with the customer. The largest constraint however for business is the cost of people, especially in this current environment.

Are we moving into a working place that is restrictive? or more engaged? without a sense of reality and being more virtual?

We feel that many organisations are now holding their key strategic HR decisions due to these conundrums and a plethora of unanswered questions caused by varying statements, not just political but also financial.

Sales teams for example that are at the coal face for all businesses will be a prime source of reduction but Why?  Car, Salary, Expenses, or something else? Interim workers maybe the answer, these people will the feature from now or until businesses see where the economy will level. This protects business and the customer with their demand plans.

We see the office environment changing from more people working from home or remotely. Recently, in our courier business, we have seen a 240% increase in IT equipment being delivered to homeworkers and added with extra Wi-Fi capacity from their contracted provider.

What happens to the office space? The loss of rental income to landlords which are mainly pension, insurance funds or building consortiums at cooperate or SME business levels.

From a personal perspective working from home has never been an issue as this what I have always done. You must be disciplined and focussed to make this work and advise people around you as such. The general feeling on assumption office space is to be retained. That central offices will relocate elsewhere due to costs, especially in major conurbations such as London.

Perception for companies and their customers will have to change with the mobile remote worker being part of the future and not just because of COVID 19. This has been slowly changing since 2008, the current pandemic will expedite the thought process.

Having spoken with many clients and contacts more than 200, over 75% feel “a change of location to smaller premises” would help reduce cost. The Introduction of remote working, as this is now becoming the next revolution to hit the UK teamed with the reinvention of hot desking with possible meeting points for a team, when safe to do so, is a marked change in the general face of business, and in some aspects it could be for the better. Whilst some organisations may have already adopted this style of working pre-Covid, the next 6 months will be a fast-paced reactive response that could very well see a business’s blueprint re-defined. 

WDL have a strong successful team that can support your business needs be it interim or long-term contract capacity. The experience we have allows us to create maximum impact in minimum time whilst creating a live map of your business post Covid but working with you to drive it forward in the new environment.

Andy Logan MIOM CMILT