By Sean McDermott
70 percent of executives plan to get employees back to their desks at least part-time by fall 2021, according to a LaSalle Network survey. In fact, JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs are already well on their way to getting their people out of homes and back into commercial office spaces.
My question to these corporate giants: Why maintain the status quo? A Gallup poll indicates that almost half of America’s workforce wants to continue working from home. What began as a strategy to avoid Covid-19 transmission has become a lifestyle.
I blew up the conventional notion of an office for my information technology consulting firm. As executives, we could attempt to force people back to traditional office spaces (and lose a lot of talent in the process). Or, we could lead with the creativity, collaboration, and compassion that will drive competitive advantage.
As the founder and CEO of Windward Consulting, I believe executives have a fleeting opportunity to reinvent the modern workspace. To leverage this opportunity, I’m taking my once conventional corporate office and transforming it into a collaboration destination. This new vision of a workplace focuses on a collaboration-first approach to workplace practices and a holistic assessment of workforce well-being.
Create an Environment Where People Can Do Their Best Work
As leaders, we need to tune into what employees want and how they can be most productive, especially during this time of workplace transformation. In short, we need to listen to our people.
My workforce doesn’t want to go back into the office full-time, and during the pandemic, they proved that they can be productive from anywhere. They don’t skip a beat working remotely.
But are we missing out on human connection? Absolutely.
I actually like Zoom meetings, but the platform is too rigid for fostering the kind of office banter that builds camaraderie—and online happy hours only go so far in developing a cohesive team. Ideally, teammates should gather to talk, laugh, and bond—yet be empowered to work from home.
What will foster our unique approach to working remotely and retaining company culture is a new kind of flexible gathering place that transcends offices and coworking spaces: a collaboration destination. It’s not a place to work. In fact, we won’t even plan to have enough desks for everyone to be in the office Monday through Friday.
The collaboration destination is a small, collaborative space (think 3,000 square feet) that’s heavy on conference rooms and technology and light on desks and office supplies. It’s like our own private Starbucks—inviting, eclectic, and full of ideas. Heck, maybe we’ll even have a full-time barista.
A collaboration destination is a perk, not a requirement. It pushes past a hardline, office-centric culture and cultivates authentic connection and ingenuity. But designing and building a collaboration destination is just a first step. It can’t exist on its own. Instead, it must become the central theme around your workplace culture and be supported by a progressive remote program and a comprehensive look at workplace well-being.
