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29/09/2020 INDEPENDENT PUBLICATION BY #0691 RACONTEUR FUTURE OF WORK in September 2019 it was 24 per cent. Seven in ten also thought remote and flexible working terms will be written into more contracts in the future. But Nicola Downing, chief operat- ing officer of Ricoh Europe, believes a blended approach would eventually be logical, where staff can choose to split their working time between the office and elsewhere. She explains: “Ive fully appreciated the extra time with family and lack of commute, but we must remember not everyone has had the same experience. For most people, the office is undoubtedly the place where theyre at their most social, spontaneous and effective. “Leaders must equip them with the right technologies and processes so they can be connected, productive and dynamic from anywhere.” However, even before the govern- ments latest guidance, a poll by the TUC released in early September showed how three quarters of work- ers had at least one concern about returning to the workplace, with 34 per cent citing social distancing as a factor. Meanwhile, a separate study by TUC and BritainThinks found that just 38 per cent of workers said they knew their employers had carried out COVID-secure risk assessments. When speaking to Parliament on September 22, the prime minister appeared to give one indication of countering this on a wider scale. He explained how retail staff would have to now wear masks and that COVID- secure guidelines within retail, lei- sure, tourism and other sectors would become a legal obligation. Steve Vatidis, executive chairman at Smartway2, a smart buildings com- pany helping organisations to adapt workplaces, believes ensuring work- places are safe, clean and adhering to guidelines can be possible with the right technology in place. He says: “The new normal may be easy for a small office of ten, but for offices with over a thousand staff, multiple floors and various meeting rooms, its a logistical nightmare. “Understandably, some employees will feel wary of returning. Businesses need safety nets of advanced mon- itoring to ensure social distancing, hygiene and contact tracing of staff, which can help workers feel comforta- ble to venture into the workplace.” However, with the Ricoh Europe research also showing 26 per cent of people had felt pressured to return to the office, Jason Braier, an employ- ment and discrimination barris- ter from 42 Bedford Row Chambers, explains there are legal risks in adopt- ing a “come back or there will be con- sequences” approach. He says: “Older employees and those with disabilities may be most resist- ant to returning to the office out of fear of catching the virus. Dismissing them, or subjecting them to detri- ment for refusing to return, places the employer at risk of various discrimi- nation claims. “Statutory protections are also in place for employees who genuinely fear being at work would place them in danger of catching coronavirus and arguably for those whose refusal to attend stems from fears they might catch the virus when commuting. “Employers should treat concerns with sympathy and work together with staff to reach an acceptable solu- tion rather than taking drastic action they might later come to regret.” Mixed messages cause conflict and confusion FUTURE OF WORK it gives us all a sense of normality and familiarity It will be a real struggle trying to convince people to pay to come back to o ces when COVID-19 dies down day in the offi ce every so often is not suffi cient to get to know people at a deep enough level to trigger love. Our overall mental health could be the worse for not fi nding at-work friendships. New research by Milkround fi nds millennials want, and seek, real friendships through work, and 75 per cent of those who say they struggle to make friends at work say it has a negative impact on their mental wellbeing. Chit-chat Those who say theyll miss nothing about offi ce culture are in the minor- ity just 13 per cent according to data from collaboration provider Unipos and by far the biggest thing they say they miss is informal face-to-face chit-chat (71 per cent). “Were social creatures and its lots of micro-moments that make us feel more connected to our colleagues and even connected to the purpose of the business,” argues Noreena Things we will miss “People are realising they can be doing other stuff now with their previous commute time. They dont miss the office culture of old and arent rushing to get back to it. Instead theyre doing things that emotionally or physically enrich them. Data shows people who feel they control the hours they work do 20 per cent more work in 20 per cent less time. “It will be a real struggle trying to convince people to pay to come back to offi ces when COVID-19 dies down.” Bullying and discrimination While Zoom calls rarely recreate the spontaneity and vibrancy of a bus- tling offi ce, signifi cant new data fi nds this technology ushering in positive changes to a form of offi ce culture many wont miss: bullying and discrimination. New post-lockdown research by Culture Shift fi nds 37 per cent of employees felt more likely to experi- ence something they would describe as bullying or harassment in the workplace, compared to 26 per cent while working from home. Culture Shift chief executive Gemma McCall says: “With fi ndings like this, there wont be a stampede back to the offi ce, because people sense that if they do, old ways will return too.” Meanwhile, without an offi ce to be judged in, people could be hired and assessed according to their skills or output, rather than their colour, eth- nicity, gender or sexual orientation. Dr Esther Cannico, lecturer and researcher at the London School of Economics, says people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who face signifi cant employment challenges, will benefi t from a more level play- ing fi eld. “Communications asso- ciated with teleworking often suit workers with ASD,” she says. “Working remotely allows less neurotypical people to have more control on aspects of their work- space, for instance noise and light levels, than they would otherwise have at the offi ce.” O ce irritants, meetings and hot-desking While theres plenty a happy office culture provides, for legions of newly confident home workers, one thing they certainly wont be missing is the contagion of con- stant interruption. A post-lockdown poll by Capterra among 500 small business employ- ers found 27 per cent of staff say they welcomed disappearing distrac- tions and the ability to get on with work unimpeded. Other data suggests employees would happily live without having to work alongside loud, rude, unhy- gienic and smelly colleagues. Pet peeves, an AXA PPP Healthcare study found, include working with colleagues with “disgusting” hab- its, such as nose-picking and eating messily in front of them. Now online meetings have to be scheduled, rather than convened by rounding people up at the drop of a hat, staff wont be pining for meet- ings for meetings sake. Also, staff who hated hot-desk- ing will be breathing a sigh of relief. “Many offi ce workers are creatures of habit, fi ercely protective of their right to create their own base camps in the offi ce,” says Gavin Sutton, head of learning and development at media agency Ogilvy UK. “The advent of more working from home means hot-desking will no longer be a thing and many will applaud this. Most of an employ- ees desk work will be done at home, while the offi ce could become more about community, collabora- tion, co-creation, working sessions and anything else that it might be deemed advantageous to carry out in person.” Things we wont miss Dr Sophie Ward,programme team leader for postgraduate psychology at Arden University, says that due to a lack of visibility, theres a very real chance remote workers will now get left behind. “They could miss out on training opportunities and/or be passed over for a promo- tion,” she says. Evidence suggests staff are now realising for themselves that being out of sight could indeed see them out of mind too, with LinkedIn this month revealing that employ- ees are having to take matters into their own hands. It found workers have invested more than 1.3 million hours learning new skills over the past year, a 153 per cent increase compared to the previous year. The most popular skills being devel- oped include strategic thinking, developing emotional intelligence and time management. The commute Take your pick: an hours commute or a three-second walk from one room to another? Some 34 per cent of people, according to e-days, fi nd the sheer grind of commuting is enough of an annoyance to maintain a pref- erence for working from home. Notwithstanding new-found health fears of being on public trans- port, some staff were already tiring of the daily commute. According to human resources consultancy Robert Half, 23 per cent of work- ers claim to have quit their jobs due to their commute, rising to a third among those aged 18 to 34. The Offi ce for National Statistics says women feel most strongly about commuting to work; women who have an hour-long commute are 29.1 per cent more likely to leave their jobs than if they had a ten-minute journey, compared to 23.9 per cent for men. Even though some people dont have room at home, particularly fl at-sharers, on balance they seem to be prepared to put up with this. Flexible workspace provider OSiT found 72 per cent of workers say avoiding commuting has been the main benefi t of working from home. Pre-coronavirus, one in seven workers spent a wasteful two or more hours a day getting to and from the offi ce, and paying a lifetime 135,000 for the privilege, according to research from Instant Offi ces. Jessica Heagren, founder of flex- ible working recruitment consul- tancy That Works For Me, says: Things we will and wont miss about o ce life WORKPLACES Commercial feature mall businesses are often lauded as the backbone of the economy, accounting for three fifths of employment in the UK and more than half of private sector turnover. Yet while they are subjected to the same regulations as large com- panies and, during the coronavirus pandemic, the same restrictions, they are often more vulnerable. Many work on smaller, more precarious margins, with less access to finance. Therefore, though many are very resilient, gener - ally speaking they are less stable than their larger counterparts. To survive during the pandemic, businesses have effectively been told to migrate online, embracing remote working and opportunities like e-shops. Though this may seem an obvious solu - tion, it is also an overly simplistic one because it completely overlooks the reality that a huge number of particu- larly localised small businesses rely on a physical presence. Its impossible to get a virtual haircut or sports massage and, even companies that could oper - ate online, require drastically different business models and skillsets. A personal trainer at the local gym and online coach Joe Wicks can both get Small businesses must overcome the digital divide Small business owners face the greatest challenges to survive during the coronavirus crisis. In a rapidly changing environment, they have to embrace opportunities to be more digital you in shape, but they monetise their service very differently, as do a corner shop owner and an Amazon seller. A lot of small business owners are out there in the big wide world on their own, with - out the training budgets of large corpo - rates and so lack the understanding and skills to adapt to a digital environment. However, there are still opportunities available to them. “The most basic digital skills are actually very common,” says Adi Engel, chief business development officer at vcita, a business management app that allows small businesses to manage their day-to-day operational needs and processes. “We all have smartphones, we all know how to use an app and we already manage so much of our lives in this environment, such as contacts, emails, Facebook and WhatsApp conversations. “The digital divide lies in the ability to assess how technology can be applied to your own business. If you are going to use social media as a promotional tool, how do you reach your target audience with social media-friendly content? Business owners need guidance and education, as well as platforms that support their transition to digital.” Ultimately, small businesses require more than just technology to adapt to the new normal; they need to learn the rules of this new medium, through dedi - cated educational and upskilling oppor - tunities that will help them survive and thrive in the digital age. Already, vcita has 1.5 million small business users and works with strategic partners to extend its reach even further. Partners include traditional ser- vice providers to small businesses, such as financial services firms, telcos and marketing agencies, which share vcitas eagerness to support small and medium-sized enterprises through the COVID-19 crisis and beyond. Earlier this year, vcita and Mastercard launched Business Unusual, a customer relation- ship management and learning plat- form enabling small companies to run their business more digitally. And vcita also runs a series of webinars to help businesses assess their current situa- tion, working with strategic partners to expand their opportunities. Business management platforms and upskilling opportunities are vital to ensuring small businesses can adapt to a much more digital world. If com - panies fail to adapt, in an increasingly unforgiving and uncertain business landscape, their customers will move to those that do. The threat of being displaced by more formidable com- petitors has always existed, but the difference now is the pace of change is rapidly accelerating. “The core of managing a business is never going to change; you need to provide a great customer experience and a great service to survive,” says Engel. “That has always been hard work and will remain so. But technology will be there to extend the business own- ers reach and automate some of the work, allowing them to spend more time engaging with their clients. A lot will change, but nothing will change at the same time.” For more information on how we can support small businesses operate more digitally, please visit: S The digital divide lies in the ability to assess how technology can be applied to your own businessRACONTEUR FUTURE OF WORK in fact, far from it, says Mulcahey. Instead he believes: “Its about repurposing the office and using it for what its really good at: bringing people together to collaborate, inno- vate, learn and share. I dont see that disappearing.” Gartners Kropp takes a similar view, saying office space is on the verge of a big redesign as it starts to take on “a different job”. “Companies are currently think- ing hard about what they want their corporate office space to become and I believe it will be quite
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