How will Covid-19 influence the future of the offices?

It is abundantly clear that the corona crisis has radically changed our society.  The way in which companies set up their offices and organize working remotely, will not escape this either. 

Office experts are already asking themselves to what extent an open space office will be successful in the future. Once again, because of the strict homeworking measures in recent months, company managers will tend to question the size of their own office space by promoting additional homeworking... At BluePoint, however, we ask ourselves whether another form of working environment in addition to homeworking, will be the winner at the end of this crisis

Impact of homeworking on the climate and motivation of employees

One thing is certain: in addition to a negative impact on our society and rather disastrous consequences on the economy, the crisis has also led to a reduction in CO2 emissions and suddenly Belgium no longer had any monstrous traffic jams.  This is partly due to the many homeworkers in recent months. But is homeworking the only work solution to keep employees motivated and untangle the traffic jams in Belgium?

We don't think so:  

In addition to saving time on commuting, homeworking can, for example, create more distractions with regard to domestic tasks; the living spaces and furniture in a home environment rarely meet ergonomic requirements, and even in a 'paper poor' organization, documents will always pop up that either need to be printed or scanned. Rather difficult to do this remotely without a professional printer/scanner. 

Despite the time savings on travel, there are other factors that cause loss of time, such as preparing a healthy and balanced meal. In a professional work environment or at a company, these meals are available prepared for you and ready to eat.

For single people, working from home provides a great deal of social isolation, which must be broken in order to maintain a good mental balance.

In a nutshell: Home working does not provide the answer to the expectations of all employees.

What alternative office solution can ensure that employees can work both efficiently and motivated, and without having to commute to far?

The past few weeks have taught us that working remotely is perfectly possible, thanks to the rapid evolution of technology. But should working remotely only be done in a home environment?

Offering a subscription in a nearby co-working space can be a possible way for companies to motivate their employees. These coworking settings offer very flexible conditions in the form of monthly subscriptions. The workspaces are creatively designed and offer a solution for any type of work to be carried out (concentration work, work in teams, joint consultation) as well as sufficient space for relaxation. High-speed Wi-Fi and print and scan facilities are provided, as well as a wide range of support services (catering, cleaning, meeting rooms, etc.) Everything is so well organized that everyone can focus on their own business activities.

Additional advantages of coworking are the many facilities offered to promote networking between individuals and companies in a natural way.

Coworking - a possible saving on your own office infrastructure?

Remote working allows many companies to optimize office space and thus save costs.  In addition, it ensures better mobility.  However, if you give your employees a choice of location from which they want to work remotely, you can increase their motivation and increase the efficiency of your teams.

If you would like more information about the advantages of coworking as an additional remote working solution, please contact BluePoint's experts.  They will be happy to help you optimize your office space.

Tech.Lounge Brussels and Antwerp are new co-working spaces, equipped with the latest technological applications. They offer fixed and flexible workspaces, private offices, meeting rooms, relaxation and networking zones, a brainstorming Arena, a recording studio and a fully digital training space.  Contact us at marketing@bluepoint.be or +32 2 706 88 00.