Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, the work culture across the world – perhaps, for the first time in recent memory – underwent almost uniform transformation, albeit with some minor regional specialties, migrating to what the world has come to acknowledge as the new normal. What this transformation would be like, explains VARUN NAIR, B2B Marketing Head-India& SWA, Logitech Electronics.
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Our society is busy trying to adjust to the current situation, and make sense of what the word will look like in the future. With the global COVID vaccine rollouts starting in most major economies, we have to prepare for what comes next. As cool as the buzzwords like #WFH and #remotework sound, there are cracks showing up already. Communication, collaboration, and both physical and mental health of employees have become the top issues for the management.
So what will the post-pandemic work culture look like? Some people want to return to the office. Others won’t take that chance, and prefer to work from home. So how do we take advantage of being able to work in-person again, while leveraging the lessons we are learning now during the pandemic?
The thing to note is that ‘new normal’ for organizations will differ from industry to industry. I don’t think it’s going to be either completely Work-from-Office or completely Work-from-Home, which are two ends of the same spectrum. The ideal work culture will sit somewhere in between as a hybrid between these two extremes. Hence, I say that the future of work would be “Flexible Work” or “FlexiWork.”
FlexiWorking will consist of three major elements:
- FlexiWorkspace
- FlexiWorkforce, and
- FlexiWorkculture
We will need to re-organize our physical workplaces. Clearly, the old layout won’t work. Space, ventilation, cleaning protocols and positioning of work desks will require careful reconsideration. Architects and interior designers are already incorporating “Desk Distancing” and “Contactless Offices” into their vocabulary. Also with limited seating, probably an internal online reservation system for seating will become necessary, so as to avoid overcrowding in office premises.
There will also be a dramatic change in the work culture for most organizations. Decentralized organizations will be flat with smaller cross-functional, self-organizing teams. There will be an emergence of contractors, gig worker and freelancers to make up a Hybrid Workforce. Work will consist of smaller projects with agile processes. A decentralized workforce needs best-in-class communications that take them as close as possible to being with co-workers in a physical office.
Organizations must prepare now to give users more choice of work environments and collaboration tools with a focus on people and performance. Employees may wish to come to office at different timings and on different days. Many companies may adapt to have specific days for in-person meetings and collaboration, and then other days allocated for WFH.
Video collaboration will be the glue that holds together an increasingly fragmented workforce. This is how we, at Logitech, are making a profound impact on businesses worldwide. We have a complete range of WFH solutions including the world’s best webcams and headsets to maximise the productivity of remote workers.
For those returning back to the office, we have a complete portfolio of meeting room solutions for small Huddle rooms, Medium Rooms and large Boardrooms.
Year 2021 has already gotten off to a great start in this direction with the launch of our RALLY BAR Portfolio of products, which are all-in-one solutions that are not only incredibly simple to use, but also provide an inclusive experience to every employee, from wherever they are joining.
Finding the right balance between the physical and virtual workplace will determine our success in the eventual new normal. It will take new tools and new attitudes. Successful companies in the future will be those which start figuring this out sooner rather than later.
FlexiWorking will be the new mantra for organizations worldwide to attract, retain and motivate key talent to catapult them to new heights.
