The COVID-19 pandemic has painted a new picture of India’s commercial office segment. It will never be the same again. Most people are working remotely and have now recognised the benefits of remote working. While we cannot say that traditional offices will completely disappear in 2022 or beyond, but most likely, the hybrid office model will become the new normal.
What is the Hybrid Work Model?
A hybrid work model is where some employees work from the office, some permanently work from anywhere, and some might be required to go to the office occasionally. Employees can work in different spaces, including corporate offices, public spaces, co-working spaces, or from home itself.
The hybrid work model has impacted the real estate market as well. As per the report named ‘The Future is Flex’, property advisory CBRE South Asia estimated India’s flexible office spaces to expand 10-15% year-on-year during the next three years.
With pandemic-led uncertainties, many companies are now looking at opting out of long-term leases, which is why companies like 3M, Welspun, and Starbucks have adopted co-working spaces for their HQs in order to optimise costs. A co-working space enables corporates to not commit to huge capital investments like commercial real estate.
Experts opined that some of the industries are thriving on the hybrid model within the pandemic challenges and the companies are expected to change the model to get the best out of it in the next year.
A certain stigma comes with remote working and employees may have changed their behaviour drastically during the pandemic. However, they are open to remote working opportunities and have shown great positive impacts. As a result, organisations are enjoying their employees being productive no matter their work location, provided they have the right collaboration tools.
The Growth of Co-working Spaces
In India, the growth of co-working spaces was initially limited to the top 6 cities. But, since the pandemic is getting its hold, operators are expanding into tier-II cities. Now we can see large companies setting up satellite and sales offices in smaller cities too.
Moreover, giant delivery players are also setting up small offices in multiple locations to commit faster deliveries. This has brought multinational job opportunities on hyper-local levels. This trend will continue and demand from e-commerce and fintech for the next two years. Many of these existing centers are currently operating at more than 70% occupancy levels.
Hybrid working is coming as the new normal in India, and reports also suggest that it is one of the most preferred working arrangements alongside full-time remote working.
Companies are now seriously investing time in mapping out strategies and technologies to make the hybrid work model a success.
Top Hybrid Working Predictions for 2022 for India
1. Productivity anywhere is shaking up the workforce and workplace structure
Remote working is allowing employees to be productive anywhere, everywhere, and anytime. With hybrid work, the model is now a default arrangement. Decision-makers in the companies will start looking into providing a more honest work experience for those inside and outside the office, particularly during meetings and group discussions.
The recent survey on Employee Experience by Willis Tower Watson in 2021 found that 90% of APAC employers are emphasising on enhancing the employee experience over the next three years.
This coordinated infrastructure will also complete the greater adoption of asynchronous work practices – a trend begun since the pandemic. It will not just change how employees collaborate with each other, but also help businesses restructure hiring practices and tap into a more global and diversified talent pool.
Industries are now changing how they work, with decentralised work practices and processes allowing effective business continuity for employees that may be largely working from home.
2. Office spaces are now changing for a hybrid future
With most employees working remotely, companies are turning to a flexible cost-efficient approach for their office space investment. More rooms in the office will be video-enabled, and turned into collaboration hubs, working as a place for teams to collaborate for brainstorming in small groups, conduct client meetings, celebrate milestones, and work on joint projects.
There will be a trend where offices will get on-demand workplaces to help businesses effectively add on workspaces as needed.
Business leaders are also thinking about how to make a return to the office, something that employees are also thinking of.
3. Using data analytics in the workplace
Leaders are now preferring AI and data analytics to support and improve employee productivity and safety, along with driving business growth, as part of their continued digital transformation plan.
IT departments of companies are now using data and insights to have a more objective view on employee productivity anywhere; may it be in the office or anywhere they are working from. These data and insights will allow them to decide what technology investments they need to make to help a hybrid workforce collaborate better.
Office managers will use these insights like occupancy data to choose the most effective office layout, minimise wastage of space, and support or improve proper safe distancing measures.
4. Investments in technology that improve employee experiences
As we move forward, the investments companies make in technology and collaboration strategies will focus on improving their work experience both remotely and on-site.
The focus will be on investing in technology that reduces disruption affecting productivity and collaboration, and enable employees to spend more time getting real work done and not on figuring out how the tools work.
These new changes in the work model have also led to limitations on business travels and in-person meetings during the pandemic. This has thereby resulted in a new model of videos like telemedicine, hybrid events, virtual property viewing, and educational courses via videos.
This trend will continue in India in 2022. More organisations will adopt this attitude to ensure the highest quality of work is done through employees and employees find the right balance of work and life. This will drive increased demand for top-notch technology and collaboration tools that drive better user experiences.
At Deshpee Group, we’re always excited about the new trends coming to the workplaces and will keep a keen eye on them to share them with you via our blogs posts!
The COVID-19 pandemic has painted a new picture of India’s commercial office segment. It will never be the same again. Most people are working remotely and have now recognised the benefits of remote working. While we cannot say that traditional offices will completely disappear in 2022 or beyond, but most likely, the hybrid office model will become the new normal.
What is the Hybrid Work Model?
A hybrid work model is where some employees work from the office, some permanently work from anywhere, and some might be required to go to the office occasionally. Employees can work in different spaces, including corporate offices, public spaces, co-working spaces, or from home itself.
The hybrid work model has impacted the real estate market as well. As per the report named ‘The Future is Flex’, property advisory CBRE South Asia estimated India’s flexible office spaces to expand 10-15% year-on-year during the next three years.
With pandemic-led uncertainties, many companies are now looking at opting out of long-term leases, which is why companies like 3M, Welspun, and Starbucks have adopted co-working spaces for their HQs in order to optimise costs. A co-working space enables corporates to not commit to huge capital investments like commercial real estate.
Experts opined that some of the industries are thriving on the hybrid model within the pandemic challenges and the companies are expected to change the model to get the best out of it in the next year.
A certain stigma comes with remote working and employees may have changed their behaviour drastically during the pandemic. However, they are open to remote working opportunities and have shown great positive impacts. As a result, organisations are enjoying their employees being productive no matter their work location, provided they have the right collaboration tools.
The Growth of Co-working Spaces
In India, the growth of co-working spaces was initially limited to the top 6 cities. But, since the pandemic is getting its hold, operators are expanding into tier-II cities. Now we can see large companies setting up satellite and sales offices in smaller cities too.
Moreover, giant delivery players are also setting up small offices in multiple locations to commit faster deliveries. This has brought multinational job opportunities on hyper-local levels. This trend will continue and demand from e-commerce and fintech for the next two years. Many of these existing centers are currently operating at more than 70% occupancy levels.
Hybrid working is coming as the new normal in India, and reports also suggest that it is one of the most preferred working arrangements alongside full-time remote working.
Companies are now seriously investing time in mapping out strategies and technologies to make the hybrid work model a success.
Top Hybrid Working Predictions for 2022 for India
1. Productivity anywhere is shaking up the workforce and workplace structure
Remote working is allowing employees to be productive anywhere, everywhere, and anytime. With hybrid work, the model is now a default arrangement. Decision-makers in the companies will start looking into providing a more honest work experience for those inside and outside the office, particularly during meetings and group discussions.
The recent survey on Employee Experience by Willis Tower Watson in 2021 found that 90% of APAC employers are emphasising on enhancing the employee experience over the next three years.
This coordinated infrastructure will also complete the greater adoption of asynchronous work practices – a trend begun since the pandemic. It will not just change how employees collaborate with each other, but also help businesses restructure hiring practices and tap into a more global and diversified talent pool.
Industries are now changing how they work, with decentralised work practices and processes allowing effective business continuity for employees that may be largely working from home.
2. Office spaces are now changing for a hybrid future
With most employees working remotely, companies are turning to a flexible cost-efficient approach for their office space investment. More rooms in the office will be video-enabled, and turned into collaboration hubs, working as a place for teams to collaborate for brainstorming in small groups, conduct client meetings, celebrate milestones, and work on joint projects.
There will be a trend where offices will get on-demand workplaces to help businesses effectively add on workspaces as needed.
Business leaders are also thinking about how to make a return to the office, something that employees are also thinking of.
3. Using data analytics in the workplace
Leaders are now preferring AI and data analytics to support and improve employee productivity and safety, along with driving business growth, as part of their continued digital transformation plan.
IT departments of companies are now using data and insights to have a more objective view on employee productivity anywhere; may it be in the office or anywhere they are working from. These data and insights will allow them to decide what technology investments they need to make to help a hybrid workforce collaborate better.
Office managers will use these insights like occupancy data to choose the most effective office layout, minimise wastage of space, and support or improve proper safe distancing measures.
4. Investments in technology that improve employee experiences
As we move forward, the investments companies make in technology and collaboration strategies will focus on improving their work experience both remotely and on-site.
The focus will be on investing in technology that reduces disruption affecting productivity and collaboration, and enable employees to spend more time getting real work done and not on figuring out how the tools work.
These new changes in the work model have also led to limitations on business travels and in-person meetings during the pandemic. This has thereby resulted in a new model of videos like telemedicine, hybrid events, virtual property viewing, and educational courses via videos.
This trend will continue in India in 2022. More organisations will adopt this attitude to ensure the highest quality of work is done through employees and employees find the right balance of work and life. This will drive increased demand for top-notch technology and collaboration tools that drive better user experiences.
At Deshpee Group, we’re always excited about the new trends coming to the workplaces and will keep a keen eye on them to share them with you via our blogs posts!
