Originally posted as Guest Post on CoreNetGlobal.com
By Heidi Hendy and Anna Grayhek, H. Hendy & Associates
There is no going back. Only moving forward to a healthy, well and resilient new generation of space.
No one could have predicted the tectonic disruption to America’s business community that we’re experiencing right now.
At the flip of a switch, everything we have ever known to be true about corporate protocols and operations came to an abrupt halt.
A new era of business is upon us and we need to reimagine a new generation of workspace to fit its needs
Overnight we found ourselves conducting business in an alternate reality. A remote reality. A digital reality. A reality where bedrooms and kitchens double as makeshift home offices, and it is acceptable for kids and pets to crash a meeting.
Despite how uncomfortable business leaders were with this reality at the onset, they had no choice but to problem-solve their way through these disruptions, or their businesses would not survive.
At the beginning of the lockdown, many leaders felt vulnerable and upended. Now more than two months in, the C-suite is seeing an amazing transformation unfold in their companies: increased productivity; more frequent and effective team communication; more trust at all levels of the organization; more humanism; more work-life balance; more satisfaction. The list goes on.
This is a catalytic moment in history. Business leaders have been forced to push their comfort level, and it is bearing results unlike they had ever imagined. We cannot, should not unlearn these lessons. They are unexpected gifts and we need to embrace them.
By 2021, a new blended workforce will emerge with 20-30% of people working remotely 2-3 days a week.
A new era in business is upon us and we need to reimagine a new generation of workspace to fit its needs.
Space has a new purpose. Hendy, a leading interior architecture and planning firm, predicts how business and workspace will change in the near future:
1. Increased Need for Trust
As we emerge from this time of uncertainty, trust will become an organization’s most important value. Employees and clients must feel confident that leadership has made safety a priority. This includes addressing how spaces are configured, used and maintained.
2. A Rise in Demand for Healthy Buildings
The new workplace experience will be a concerted effort between building owners, organizational leaders and end users. It will be increasingly touchless and automated, with a focus on strategies that maintain physical distancing via scheduling, space utilization apps and improved health and safety protocols.
3. Remote Work Becomes a Business Strategy
Remote work is here to stay. Hendy predicts by 2021, a new blended workforce will emerge with 20-30% of people working remotely 2-3 days a week. A strategy that adopts the blended workforce model will be key to attracting and retaining talent, reducing real estate and operational costs, increasing performance and productivity, and creating a better work-life balance for all.
4. Certified-Healthy Workplaces Gain Momentum
As people return to work, they will be more aware of how offices impact their wellbeing. Businesses can address these concerns by working with interior architects to design a WELL Building Institute™ or Fitwel healthy certified space for improving human experience and wellbeing through healthy design, construction and operations.
5. Technology and Innovations Explode
The need for safe environments will create a surge in tech innovation. Integrated workplace management systems will help us better understand how space is being utilized. And voice-activation, motion sensors, augmented reality and video platforms will be leveraged within physical and virtual environments.
The need for safe environments will create a surge in tech innovation.
6. Leadership Style and Culture Transforms
A new management style will emerge to guide these new blended organizations and strengthen the attributes of a virtual culture. These leaders will drive a sense of belonging, manage by results, communicate abundantly, and empower people to a new level.
7. A New Generation of Space Emerges
Our collective work-from-home experience has shown that we are social beings, and that the office remains relevant. The new generation of space will be the hub for a dynamic new blended work model, balancing remote work with the need for cultural connectivity and creative brainstorming, with an emphasis on health, wellness and organizational resiliency.
This time is an opportunity for businesses to pause – reexamine your priorities and reset your corporate vision. Focus on building a better office with the adaptability needed to evolve, and consider how your employees and space can best support your long-term objectives.
The New Generation Space Adapting to all this change understandably may feel overwhelming. Hendy’s new service offering The New Generation Space is focused on guiding businesses of all sizes to adapt to today’s new normal, creating environments for a dynamic blended workforce.
Heidi Hendy is the founder and managing principal at H. Hendy Associates (Hendy), a Southern California-based interior architecture and planning firm commemorating 40 years in business.
Anna Grayhek is a workplace strategist and certified change practitioner at Hendy with more than 20 years of experience planning and designing commercial offices for clients like Behr Paint Company, Monster Energy, Yamaha Music and more.
