New moves for companies keen to get staff back to the office

As the productivity debate between the proponents of remote and onsite work rages on, companies are starting to recognise that they may need to make significant changes if they want employees to return to the office full-time - or even most of the time.

That’s the word from Chaim Bronstein, head of the commercial department at Firzt Realty, who has recently concluded two major transactions involving companies moving premises to provide a better work environment for employees. “We’ve all seen the headlines about employees overseas threatening to quit or being willing to forego any promotions rather than being forced to return to full-time onsite work. But the reality in SA is that very few corporate employees can afford to do that, so what they are generally doing instead is negotiating more favourable working hours or conditions.

“Many are now working on a ‘hybrid’ schedule, for example, which allows them to divide their work-week between the office and home. Others are working onsite in the mornings and remotely in the afternoons.  And an increasing number are persuading their employers to implement physical changes that will make onsite work more attractive.

“For instance, we have just facilitated a move by one major company from Parktown to Rosebank primarily because this enables a large number of staff to use the Gautrain instead of having to commute to work and back by car or taxi. We recently also enabled another company to move to a workspace that encourages their staff to express their creativity, which enhances productivity and a happy atmosphere. The premises offer employees a range of lifestyle facilities such as a fitness centre, a coffee bar and relaxation areas and outdoor social spaces, as well as proximity to more shops and schools for working parents.”

He says that corporate employers have four main reasons for wanting to reverse the massive shift to remote work that has become increasingly entrenched since the Covid-19 pandemic. These are:

*  Concerns about productivity. Managers worry that they cannot supervise those working from home as effectively as those working onsite, and executives have concerns about reduced productivity and thus profitability if employees are not present in person for a certain number of hours a day, week or month.

* A desire for more direct communication. Humans are inherently social, and research has shown that face-to-face interactions between co-workers foster deeper connections and better conditions for collaboration and teamwork. They also lead to more spontaneous discussions and impromptu problem-solving that can result in rapid service or product improvements and higher revenues.

*  Worries about weaker corporate cultures. For many companies, a shared work environment is a physical representation of their corporate culture and brand identity, and executives worry about the loss of shared values and goals if employees become too detached from that environment. They fear that workers who have too little direct contact with one another could easily become isolated and lose the sense of unity and common purpose that underpins most corporate success.

* The cost of unused space.  Many companies have downsized to smaller premises or let out some of their unused space since the pandemic and some have even progressed to hot desking as they accept that most of their staff are only going to be in the office for a few hours a week at most. However, there are still a considerable number paying rent for large spaces or whole office blocks that they would like to see being fully utilised as they were before the pandemic.

“However, it is very clear that a large number of employees don’t see things the same way. For example, many different studies have shown that the majority of remote workers are more productive, in large part because they don’t have to spend time or energy commuting and can also arrange their schedules to suit their family’s specific needs. So to them, a management concern about productivity can easily feel like a suggestion that they are not trusted to do their best work, reach their targets or meet their deadlines without constant oversight, and that is hardly likely to make them feel really good about their employers.”

Similarly, says Bronstein, employees may well argue that companies have many other ways to encourage collegial bonding and corporate unity without requiring them to be in the office five days a week from 9 to 5. In addition, those who have spent considerable amounts of their own money to create and equip a home office because their companies asked them to, may not now be entirely sympathetic about those companies’ unused space.

“Resistance to a full-time return to onsite work is also coming from those who moved home post-pandemic and no longer live close to their workplaces, those who sold a second car because they were not anticipating having to commute anymore and those who love the fact that they no longer have to commute because they have more time to spend with their families while still keeping up their work hours.

“In fact, we believe it is the lifestyle benefits of remote work that companies will need to focus on and try to accommodate if they want to be successful in attracting their most skilled and experienced staff back to the office. We also strongly suggest that they don’t attempt to do this without the help of both human resources and real estate professionals who understand what’s at stake."