The back-to-the office challenge: how it affects the long-term use of office space

As business leaders cautiously open their doors after lockdown, trying to adapt to the new reality, it becomes clear that business spaces that offer security, adaptability, and value are highly desirable in these uncertain times. Banning work in the centralized office is not just a precautionary measure – the office has always been and still is a hotbed for the spread of viruses and bacteria. Researchers have shown that flu, bacilli, viruses, and bacteria spread easily in the office space among staff.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy suffered a great punch. One employee will come to the office – sneezing, coughing, and transmit whatever virus he has to his colleagues. People spend a large part of their daily lives doomed to an office where common space and high interaction with common surfaces increase the number of microbes on surfaces and in the air. This can harm the health of employee and also endanger the performance of work. Companies must have reacted fast if they wanted to save their business.

Traditional use of office space is under scrutiny

When it comes to healthcare traditional use of office space has proven to be less suitable than remote work. Traditional offices restrict companies and prevent them from growing. The biggest problems of a traditional office are that company will be tied up to one place and people will just waste more time and money while coming to work.

Although the debate about the advantages and disadvantages of work-from-home continues and a new study is published every day that confirms or denies the efficiency of office work, let us remind you that some of today’s most successful, creative and innovative companies, Apple and Google, have never supported working outside the office.

No matter how fast our internet is and how many applications for organization and communication we use, the least chances of mistakes and misinterpretation occur only when we talk live. Home working can’t replace office work, that’s why during the post-pandemic period people must be ready to go back in their previous workplace – office.

Hybrid model – A new normal

The future of office work has recently become a controversial topic. During the pandemic period, it’s hard to keep working in the office, but there’s a business that can’t be done as a home working one. The problem is solved by combining these two working styles and making the hybrid model. Organizations are now in a gap, many who wanted their workers to return to office but were unable to do so safely have begun to apply a single hybrid model and use co-working spaces.

Co-working spaces with their concept fill the golden mean between these two aforementioned extremes and are perfect for this model. By renting a place for yourself or your team in co-working, you maintain the discipline of going to the office, but not to the extent that it threatens your freedom. Depending on the nature of your job, you can choose whenever you prefer to work and come to office in certain days.

The best and fastest way to organize your employee is via hot-desk and time attendance application. For example, stayhome.ai offers you a mobile app that will help you in making the perfect workplace schedule for remote working employees and also for the other employees that will work in coworking office. This is an easy and collaborative method that will help you in handling business better.

Flexible workspace: The pros and cons

The future of the office is flexible. When the open office trend soared in the last decade, companies around the world were tearing down the barriers between workers and opting for wide, open spaces where workers would have the option of choosing a place to work. The intention was to encourage cooperation and creativity. The result of this? Mixed opinions. Some like the possibility of spontaneous chatting and choosing a place to work, but others want a higher degree of privacy and space for concentration. It’s true that an open office was not created for all types of business. The workplace requires a combination of design and a wide choice of spaces to serve the needs of the employee.

Of course, the main advantage is flexibility. The flexible office layout is ideal for companies with a large number of departments and different work styles. We can look at both advantages and disadvantages from several angles, and it all comes down to your needs, the needs of the job position, and the needs of the company in which you work.

If we talk about financial view, then paying enough to rent space for each employee to have their own furnished and equipped department or office is a huge expense, especially for start-up companies. Shared workspaces generally include utilities in the lease, and workers are given the opportunity to network while employers enjoy flexible lease terms, which is an advantage of flex-office. As many flexible workspaces are serviced, you don’t have to worry about organizing your internet connection, electricity, hiring cleaners, or even receptionists. In case you do your business in a workplace designed to increase productivity, even if you are surrounded by similar companies and teams that are there to “do the job”, your employee will be more productive and focused on business tasks.

Although this way of working seems very tempting, for certain business strategy and profiles it can be completely counterproductive. Jobs related to sales, telephony, or constant contact with clients, cannot be trusted to bring results because the question is when and when they will find them. You can’t “ban” someone in the office when you feel like it, nor can you call someone at midnight because it suits you. On the other hand, clients who rely on you will not be able to find you and therefore the results will be weaker.

What is the short-stay office

This type of office is a good option when it comes to hybrid business. Since the office is used only when necessary during the covid-era, it makes no sense to rent a full-time office if you don’t need it that much. That’s why a short-stay office is an ideal solution to this problem.

You can rent a short-term office for a short time – as long as you need to do office work. This way you will save money because you won’t have to pay for space that you don’t even need and occupy it for others who may need it.

No matter how fast our internet is and how many applications for organization and communication we use, the least chances of mistakes and misinterpretation occur only when we talk live. Home working can’t replace office work, that’s why during the post-pandemic period people must be ready to go back in their previous workplace – office. Using the office more bit by bit will be more efficient in reorganizing the remote workforce.