No one can predict the future. But we can prepare for it, in business at least; – and one way of doing this is by diversification. Spreading financial risk across a range of assets is a sound strategy because, as the saying goes, it’s about not putting all your eggs in one basket. So, if you’re looking to future-proof your assets, where should investments be made?
One sector worth thinking about is flexible workspaces. With the rise of the work-from-home due to the pandemic, the emergence of hybrid workers and also the mushrooming of the gig economy, companies are now less keen to invest in real estate that locks them into a lengthy leases and fixed contracts.
It’s no surprise that many companies are planning to adopt a hybrid approach with regards to where their employees will work from in 2021. The hybrid ‘hub-and-spoke’ model of working is emerging as the preferred way for many businesses, with a significant uptake during the pandemic. This is one of the reasons why multi-national enterprises like Standard Chartered and NTT have partnered with IWG to avail its workplaces to their employees, globally, offering them workspace flexibility.
The operating model for flexible workspaces is proven, demonstrably successful in the pre-pandemic world as it provides client-friendly lease contract and scope for companies to scale up and simultaneously cut costs. According to an EY report, companies can save as much as $11,000 per employee practicing hybrid model of working. The opportunities for growth are significant in not only major markets across the country such as Delhi-NCR and Mumbai but equally robust in secondary and tertiary markets like say, Chandigarh and Kochi as well.
Let us examine 5 reasons that make flexible workspaces a post-pandemic hit with businesses
Diversity and inclusion
The pandemic has been bad for swathes of the world’s workforce, but disproportionately so for working women. According to the Center of American Progress, working women contribute nearly $7.6trn to the annual GDP – a figure highlighting how women dropping out of workforce affects all. The good news is that organisations are not blind to the exodus of women from the workforce, with many already wondering what they can do to support their female employees in the months and years ahead. And offering flexibility is emerging as a key tool. Companies that offer access to flexspace closer to home give working women the best of both worlds: the option of working near home but with all the benefits of a structured office environment, such as meeting spaces, a place to focus and networking opportunities.
Safer work environments
For many office workers, pre-pandemic ‘workplace safety’ was mainly focused on correctly positioning your computer monitor or safely carrying a cup of tea. Today, employers need to have robust policies and procedures in place to keep employees safe, following social distanced seating, extensive cleaning procedures, temperature checks, health surveys and updated sick time policies. During the pandemic, employees expected companies to keep their facilities clean, communicate regularly about office reopening status, and maintain safe working conditions – and in 2021 this is unlikely to change.
The need for additional cybersecurity
With a large percentage of the workforce now accessing IT systems from home or outside the office in 2021, there will be an even greater need to mitigate cyber risks. Ransomware attacks on companies pose a significant threat, while cyber thieves will continue to exploit weaknesses to steal customer and other data. These threats will require companies to invest greater time and resources in cybersecurity and create solutions that work across different working environments. Today flexible workspaces conform to the stringest IT requirements to ensure that their clients can offer a dispersed workforce best-in-class and 24X7 secure solutions.
No rigid lease contracts
Long term, expensive and rigid contract clauses are headaches for small and medium scale ventures while signing leases. Key players in the flexible workspace industry are now providing tailor-made contracts customised to suit their clients’ needs. This helps enterprises focus on scaling up operations and mobilising their workforce without having to worry about how to scale-up or scale-down their real-estate holdings.
An increased focus on employee wellbeing
In 2021, many organisations will be thinking about ways to approach workplace wellbeing – from offering tools and services, to encouraging ‘job crafting’ – giving individuals the autonomy to make meaningful decisions about what and how they contribute to the organisation. Since the onset of the pandemic, mental health of those employees has deteriorated who have been working remotely with no distinction between working and non-working hours, and consequently suffering from extreme stress levels.
There is evidence to suggest that more dispersed and flexible working could help with the latter. In addition to amended hours, a change of environment – allowing employees to work away from the office – could also help. Research has shown that remote working can benefit mental health, improving not only employee wellbeing but also job satisfaction. Working from home, or from shared office space or from co-working spaces, can reduce burnout, stress and psychological distress.