November 10th 2022
Over the last few years, we have seen a dramatic uptick in people working remotely. The pandemic hit businesses hard, as they tried to adapt to what seemed like an ever-changing set of rules and setbacks. Despite many workers favouring their new work lifestyle, many businesses have returned to some sense of normal – requiring employees to be back in the office (even for a few days a week).
Businesses will likely always see value in maintaining a physical workplace office for their employees. The office doesn’t just provide a base of operations for a business, it allows for in-person collaboration and boosts overall team morale too.
Today, we’re going to discuss why the workplace office is still vital in modern day business and give you some key points on why we don’t think they’ll be banished to history any time soon.
Work Life Balance
We’ve all heard the term ‘work life balance’ – but how does the office factor into it? Well, put simply, going to work in the office draws a clear line between home life and work life. Whilst in the office, the everyday distractions of home are taken out of the picture. And, on the flip side, whilst at home away from the office, employees are much more likely to switch off and relax, knowing that this is their time for respite before another days work.
Being able to leave the workplace office and return home with no burdens can help to create a better work life balance for employees, allowing them to recharge and focus on their lives at home. All too often people’s home and work lives overlap to the point of stress, especially when working from home, so having a clear distinction between work and leisure – by having a physical workplace office – will no doubt help to curb that stress over time and cultivate a more positive work life balance.
Wellbeing
As discussed previously, some employees might take their work stress home with them. But we must also consider those that may take their home life stress into work with them. A positive office with supportive co-workers can also provide a huge boost to overall wellbeing for employees who feel like they’re getting hit from all angles.
During the pandemic, and with the rise of working from home, many people began to feel stifled by being at home 24 hours a day. Lockdowns across the world saw people not being able to leave the house unless it was necessary, and mental health was severely impacted as a result. As the pandemic eased, and businesses and offices opened back up, many were glad that they got to return to work to regain some sense of normalcy.
Local Community
At the height of the pandemic with businesses being closed for so long, local communities felt like ghost towns with not a person in sight, like a scene from a horror movie. The near non-existent footfall in these communities severely impacted them from both a cultural and financial standpoint.
Local high streets are home to many offices too, so with barely anyone travelling to work, these local communities were stripped of any character they had before. With people now being able to return to the office, the colour is now slowly returning to the once-dimmed picture of local life.
On a lighter note, offices in popular areas simply breathe more life into the communities they are in.
Company Culture
Employees being together in a physical space can really help to cultivate a positive workplace culture over time. When we say this, we mean the daily interactions between co-workers which can provide an uplifting and collaborative work environment for all those involved.
Those working remotely don’t benefit from the culture of your company as easily, especially when considering new hires and the impact that being remote can have on them. This is only something that physical workplace offices can give to them. Being able to work together in person gives a much-needed boost to team morale and helps newer employees to get to grips with their everyday tasks much quicker.
A positive office culture can also play a huge part in recruitment and retention of employees too, with job seekers likely looking for a place that they can thrive. In short, the office provides a place where the core values of your business are instilled.
Socialising and Connecting
Being in an office allows your employees to share community, collaboration and camaraderie every single day. The so called ‘Three Cs’ are a pillar of what makes a good business, and happy employees are hard-working ones!
Through community people are able to socialise and get to know each other personally, which allows them to more readily ask for help if they are struggling.
With community comes collaboration, where employees are happy to work together to get things done during the day or work together on bigger company projects.
And finally, after all of this, camaraderie is cultivated, where employees are more likely to have each other’s backs and trust one another’s instincts when it comes to making creative or business decisions.
This is all much more likely to be successful when coming together in a physical space in close proximity to one another, where those work relationships are afforded the time they need to develop and flourish, and is one of the many reasons why people will happily admit they love working in an office.
Training and Development
Training and developing your staff to tackle more difficult work can be a hard task, and one that is made even harder when they are working remotely. Being in the office affords much more opportunity for in-person training courses and career development.
Employees are more likely to pay attention if they are present in the room, which a big reason why physical offices are still so important when considering career progression within a business. Like our previous point, the interpersonal relationships within the workplace can also help to develop the skills of your existing workforce – opportunities that remote workers may be missing out on entirely.
With co-workers being close by, newer employees are much more likely to learn faster – as us humans are naturally inclined to learn from watching and doing rather than being told from afar. This means that the workplace office environment itself can help contribute to upskilling and reskilling your employees over time too.
Maintaining Client Relationships
Having a workplace office isn’t just good for your employees, it can have a huge impact on your client relationships too. Having a permanent base of operations allows your clients to know exactly where they can find you for meetings or events.
Basically, to clients, this makes you look professional. From first impressions to more long-term business relationships, having an office lets them know that you take things seriously. With set times during the day that employees are working, your clients will know where to call or visit when they have a query. Clients will also be able to share in the culture of your workplace and understand your values, which helps them to have more confidence in what your teams can deliver for them.
At the end of the day, client satisfaction is one of the most important things for a business, and having an office helps to bring them into the fold and give them an understanding of your business and its values.
We believe offices are not going away any time soon. They’re still vitally important to businesses across the world, despite the increase in remote working in recent years.
We hope you’ve taken something away from what we’ve discussed today, and how the physical workplace office can still benefit your business long into the future.
If you finally realise how important an office can be for your business, why not head over and take a look at our extensive range of serviced offices and managed offices throughout the UK & Ireland if you’re looking to upgrade your space, or simply want a change of location!
