Offices must evolve to make the ‘return to the office’ successful. Here’s how they can – Dan Drogman
“Microsoft has hinted it could get rid of hybrid working. According to Business Insider, the Microsoft Cloud + AI Group Executive Vice President told employees that the company’s remote work policy, put in place in 2022, isn’t etched in stone. Other reports say that Microsoft’s happy to continue its remote work policy – but only if productivity stays high. It followed Amazon’s widely reported move back to the office which, according to a poll of staff, hasn’t gone down well. Just nine percent said they were happy with it. Nearly three-quarters were thinking about quitting.
I’m not here to pass judgement on internal policies at Microsoft or Amazon or anywhere else. That’s not just because these are big, successful companies that tend to make good decisions. It’s also because you can find about as much evidence for the business benefits of remote working as you can for the benefits of coming into an office. But it does seem true that more and more companies are telling their teams to come into the office, if only for three days or four. And the Amazon case shows that for some people, the answer to a request like that is: ‘No’.
The fact is that however much you want to, you can’t just order your team in. Even if they agree to, you could still find yourself with bitter and mutinous teams on your hands, which doesn’t exactly correspond to doing great work. So that prompts a question. Let’s say this really is the direction of travel. Let’s say employees really are reluctant to say goodbye to a world of more sleep, more convenience, more comfort, more independence and more freedom. Add let’s say employees really do believe they’re getting more done at home. How do you coax them back to the office? Not through threats, rewards or an internal communications campaign. But by making the office somewhere more attractive than home.
This is not the uphill battle it might sound like. It just requires making some adjustments so that, for example, entry and exit into the building is easy, the team’s property is secure and easy to track, the bathrooms are clean, the spaces are comfortable, the lifts are working, and every team member can do what they need to do for work in a frictionless way. And that’s what it’s really about: reducing friction so that the office experience isn’t frustrating or distracting – doesn’t make you wish you were still at home.
The secret? Technology. Specifically IoT and AI. IoT describes those physical sensors linked to each other and the internet. AI is how the data picked up by the IoT can be processed, rendered and used. Kit out a building or office space with these sensors, and all of a sudden you have a thoroughly detailed picture of what’s going on. You know who’s where. But you also know how hot or cold each room is, how dim or brightly lit each corridor is, whether the north-facing lift needs some upkeep, or whether the bathroom in the basement needs a clean. IoT provides managers and building owners with a volume of information that they could never collect by themselves, even if they had an army at their disposal.
That’s the IoT, generating a vivid image of the building that can even be rendered as a virtual replica or ‘digital twin’. And here’s where AI comes into play. It’s thanks to AI that all of this data, all of these insights, can not just be made intelligible, but can be used. Let’s say a room is too hot. No problem: it can be adjusted automatically in real time. Too stuffy? That can be tackled, too. Is a lift showing some wear and tear? It happens: a maintenance team can respond before that lift breaks down. Is one meeting room occupied? Not a problem. You can book a different one via an app. What we see with buildings like this one – ‘smart’ buildings – isn’t a space that anticipates the wants and needs of its occupiers. It’s one that responds to their wants and needs, and the difference is crucial. All people are different. All teams are different. Rather than guess, smart buildings ‘listen’ – and then give their reply.
These are buildings that are as close to ‘living’ as it’s possible for a building to be. And the benefits of working in a place like this go further. Through an app, smart buildings can allow staff not only to book rooms, but exercise classes. They can track their bikes or lockers if they’ve cycled or run to the building, or if they fancy a shower and a change of clothes. This is a level of convenience, comfort and security that you can rarely find anywhere, including at home. And though working remotely spares you the commute, it can present other challenges, if only in the shape of an unruly dog.
So smart buildings are places people like to work. They’re places people like to be. And managers benefit just as much as their teams. Yes, they’re less likely to have to deal with frustrated employees and can focus on other tasks. But they’ll also see dramatically less energy consumption, which boosts their company’s sustainability credentials and helps them appeal to climate-conscious customers and younger talent. They’ll save money, too, since optimal environments reduce waste to the bare minimum. Their lives, in short, will be easier.
Is the return to the office unavoidable? Only time will tell. But to make a success of what, after several years of remote working, will seem to some people like a massive shift, offices must evolve. If they do, then people will want to be there, and that will strengthen company culture, boost worker productivity – and spare managers a headache.”
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