Trust, flexibility and technology: The keys to creating a more mature workplace

Abstract

Priorities and behaviours in the workplace have been transformed by the COVID-19 pandemic — and business leaders are having to steer their employees through the new world of hybrid working without a roadmap. It is too soon for best practice to be established, and each organisation must discover its own way to succeed. Following the dramatic move to home working forced by the crisis, however, old assumptions and habits have been cast aside. Companies have learned to trust their staff to work hard while out of sight — and employees have enjoyed the responsibility. Bosses are being urged to manage with more empathy, designing work around employee-driven flexibility and better collaboration. So as the workplace continues to adjust, how do workplace leaders continue to respond advantageously to the changed demands of their staff and the evolved requirements of their organisations? Hybrid working, combining remote and in-office activities, can bring benefits in terms of staff well-being, talent retention and — as lockdown working proved — productivity. It also offers potential for reductions in corporate real estate costs and for the more effective utilisation of valuable space. This paper outlines why trust, flexibility and technology are the keys to creating a more mature and democratised workplace, and how business leaders can design their space for a more profitable and productive future.