In an attempt to understand how the working world will be post Covid-19, Adeptis put out a poll on Linkedin to question the future of office space vs working from home and their preferences moving forward.
In first place we had a 50/50 split between office and working from home. The pro's and con's employees and employers have faced during lockdown have proven that neither one is perfect. The juggling of family life and work can be difficult and the lack of social interaction with colleagues breeds an unhealthy balance for company culture, but on the other hand working from home means no long commute, office distractions or unnecessary expenses. 36% of people want balance. The balance of social interaction with colleagues without having to fight for space on the tube five days a week. Employers should look at the ways in which they can offer their employees this balance with pre arranged structures to keep a productive and engaging workforce.
In second place was the flexibility to work from home when it suited the employee. As a business, Adeptis offered this pre Covid and giving consultants this flexibility created an open and productive structure. It's a model some businesses have been tampering with over the past few years and going forward a larger number of organisations may have to look at this and understand the value in flexibility.
In third place, with 29% of votes, was 100% work from home. Most of us has adopted this way of working over the past couple of months and it's no secret that it has its ups and downs and it has taken 100% trust and agility from all sides to make this happen.
In last place with 2% of votes was 100% office based work. We asked this question to a number of people pre-Covid and since has had a huge decline in people opting for this method of work. Pre-Covid, 36% of people were happy working in an office whereas now only 2% of people want to. Whether this is due to anxiety of being in such a close environment after a long time socially distancing, or for the many benefits that working from home brings, this shift in votes could be the key indicator to how the working world will change post Covid.
As a company, Adeptis have fully adapted from being in an office five days a week to working from home full time in a fully operational capacity, so we have decided to make the switch to a 50/50 split at the point in which social distancing rules are relaxed. Although we have been able to service our candidates and clients to our full potential whilst working at home, and our consultants have seen the benefits of less distractions, less commute time and in turn less stress, we are all missing the social element of an office space which is why we feel it is important to occupy an office for two days a week.
Not only are we changing the way in which we operate as a business, it seems that way for multiple business leaders around the world. Employers and employees are realising what is important, and for most working five days a week in an office isn't.
The way we work is obviously changing and the social distancing rules have had an immediate effect on this, but the question still lies around whether this will impact us for years to come, and become the new generation of work, or will it eventually slip back into a traditional office structure.