What occupiers want from offices has undergone a drastic change post the pandemic. The very purpose and need of office spaces has had to be redefined after a long period of working from home. As the Colliers Awfi C-suite Survey reveals, organisations that were used to working in a centralised fashion, out of enormous and sprawling office spaces, are now becoming more people-centric and less location-centric.
Yes, distributed or blended workspaces are now becoming popular, which will allow employees to work from different locations, in close proximity to their homes.
A significant 74 per cent of occupiers actually prefer to implement a distributed workspace. About 53 per cent occupiers are keen to follow a mix of work-from-home and work-from-office.
About 16 per cent are comfortable with a distributed work model with a base office and a satellite office. Only about seven per cent wish for a complete work-from-home model, while 24 per cent are desirous of working completely / 100 per from the base location.
Organisations that embrace the distributed workplace model, may have a blend of flex spaces and a traditional office in the same city. They may even maintain multiple offices in the same city like in a ‘hub and spoke’ model, or they may have a combination of flex space and traditional offices in various tier 1 and tier 2 cities. The distributed workspace can take on various forms.
The Report reveals that the future workplace will not merely be a space for work, but will be able to promote efficiency along with the well-being of the employees even while preserving and maintaining the culture of the organisation.
While the purpose of office spaces will be different for different employers and employees, occupiers of office spaces will arrive at what suits them best through trial and error.
As per the CXOs who participated in the Survey, most occupiers will opt for buildings and spaces that comply with Environment Social and Governance (ESG), so that employee productivity improves.
Benefits of distributed workspaces
The preference for distributed workspaces is also because of the varied benefits.
Saves time: Employees will not have to spend hours travelling to and from centralised offices.
Improves productivity: When employees are saved the hassles of daily commuting, they are able to focus and work better, and their productivity improves. This helps the organisations achieve their goals.
Saves cost: The cost otherwise spent in maintaining huge office spaces / properties is saved. The employees also save on fuel costs. To top it all, with lesser people on the roads, there is less traffic, which is good for the environment on the whole.
Ensures employee well-being: The focus of the organisations shifts to the overall well-being of the employees. In exchange, they earn the trust and loyalty of the employees.
