COVID-19: is there a place for office working in your property strategy?

For many the physical office will now seem like a memory after months of virtual meetings from home.

RICS professionals across the world will be rethinking their organisation’s use of physical space. In the short-term this will be around adapting office space to adhere to social distancing measures and increasing hygiene precautions to keep employees safe. But as businesses look towards their longer-term strategy, in our digitally enabled world, to what extent is a physical office still needed?

Here are areas to consider as you plan your organisations future property strategy:

Is the traditional office dead?

Let’s be honest, COVID-19 hasn’t completely defeated the need for office space – a totally remote workforce wouldn’t fit the needs of all employees or all organisations.

What the health crisis has done is challenge the importance placed on office space and the assumption that it is the key component to guaranteeing productivity.

RICS recently worked with Leesman to find out what employees thought about their workplace. Early indications suggest nearly 80% believe being at home has helped them work productively, while around 63% thought their regular workplace enabled productivity.

A key aspect to successfully reviewing your property strategy will focus on diversifying your approach to office working, rather than simply eliminating it.

Research from estate agents Savills tells us that 89% of people still feel the office plays a vital role in business performance but that its design and use need to change to fit our times.

In Canada, real estate firm Colliers International published new data suggesting office space would likely contract by 8.5% over the next four years, with a third of respondents saying there would be no change to their office requirements – hardly a permanent shift towards complete remote working.

And survey results from management advisors Boston Consulting Group in Australia reveal a growing generational gap – with younger employees most excited by office working. 66% of 18 to 30-year olds felt ‘enthusiastic’ about returning to their office, when compared to 47% of 51 to 60-year olds. Whilst they are seen as digital-natives, many younger professionals seemingly prefer the traditional office environment when compared to interacting with colleagues virtually.

In the longer term the new post COVID-19 office will need to be a collaborative hub, connecting employees and clients across digital and physical space, facilitating a better organisational culture and inspiring innovative ways of working.