Companies large and small have been forced to shift to a remote workforce as the pandemic continues to impact many parts of the country. Now that the challenges of this sudden transition have mostly been ironed out, what can we expect from the future of remote working?
“Many individuals flourish working remotely, however, some are more productive working in an office environment that provides structure and camaraderie,” said Cindy Cooke, SVP at Colliers International. “As companies continue to embrace remote working, I anticipate changes in office designs, especially those that adapt to having fewer employees in the office at the same time and those that prioritize employee health and safety precautions.”
Technology integration has been and will remain key to conducting an efficient distributed workforce. This includes communication tools such as Zoom and Slack, as well as collaborative software that make sharing files simple.
“Our team used video conferencing systems to conduct our weekly pipeline meetings, speak to investors, and we hosted a webinar on the state of commercial real estate for our professional community,” said Russell Appel, founding principal at The Praedium Group.
Still, while such tools have made conducting business and communicating with colleagues easier during these unprecedented times, they do not fully replace in-person collaboration. Due to this, it is likely that businesses will continue to adopt remote work arrangements, but keep some form of physical office to accommodate in-person work-related needs.