The COVID-19 pandemic changed the world as we know it in nearly every way. Industries across the globe were forced to learn new ways of operation to accommodate the new way of life that we adopted. Businesses specifically took a hit, finding and putting into motion new ways to communicate, travel, and hold events for employees.

Events needed to change quickly

The shift to digital engagement was rapid, as COVID-19 hit rather quickly in March 2020. Since that point, its integration has been gradual, a shift that we are still seeing in abundance today.

Modes of communication were the first to see this change, as their impact was immediate for most businesses. Email and video conferencing took over the scene, with phone calls, messaging platforms, audio conferencing, and other virtual methods of correspondence becoming imperative to corporate operations.

Also Read: Data-driven financial services, a bigger imperative in a post-pandemic world 

Among these, email was the most popular and common, replacing physical conversations and meetings that would otherwise be held in a physical office.

Business travel is another sector that has forever been changed by the pandemic. Many frequent travellers who often did so for business have claimed that they “will never return to the road” thanks to the ease and accessibility of virtual options.

These numbers remain strong in 2022, with 42 per cent of those interviewed still standing by these claims. Business travel’s share of hotel room revenue is also expected to continue to drop in the coming years.

Event holding and attendance is the sector of business operations that took the biggest hit and saw the most changes. With the emergence of platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams, 70 per cent of physical events were switched to hybrid or virtual in 2020.

In fact, Zoom held more than 45 billion minutes of webinars in 2020, and Teams saw 894 per cent growth in the first three months of the pandemic alone. This exponential growth, however, has not slowed as the pandemic draws to a close.

In 2022, digital events will remain popular. Almost 50 per cent of events are planned to be virtual, and almost 40 per cent are planned to be hybrid.

People crave better virtual experiences

Despite the success and popularity of these platforms, when they are designed poorly, they create challenges. Many employees that use video conferencing regularly experience technical issues, poor communication, and a loss of productivity.

In addition, the amount of eye contact and participant face size on screens during a video chat is unnatural. It has been found that this can create a stressful experience and can lead to a detrimental hyper-aroused state. Seeing oneself in real-time on a screen can be draining and even increase self-criticism.

Despite these challenges of interacting digitally, people still prefer attending events online. Of people who attend ten or more events every year, studies show that 46 per cent attended online events, and only 13 per cent attended physical events. From a business perspective, they need virtual programming for a number of reasons.

Holding events online instead of in person saves time, as employees don’t need to travel and physically gather at a set location. Also, it reduces costs as there are fewer expenses due to travel, cutting some existing travel costs by 30 per cent.

Also Read: The 5 pillars of digital transformation that meet business objectives efficiently

Virtual events also can increase productivity by allowing more time to be allocated to other important tasks. Finally, these platforms increase employee engagement and focus as they are less likely to multitask while on videos compared to phone calls.

The rise of hybrid events

Hybrid events have been found to be the best way to create a more engaging and exciting corporate event. Hybrid programming can be defined as a separate experience in which two audiences are connected by the content they’re accessing.

Studies show that 72 per cent of virtual event attendees believe that they will get more value from attending a hybrid event than a physical event. With the goal in mind to create the best experience for every audience, event planners use gamification and metaverse technology to ensure this outcome.

These tools can boost engagement and curiosity in the topic at hand, using new and revolutionary technology to foster a better environment for all involved.

As the height of the pandemic draws to a close, it is clear that physical events are not going away. However, businesses can reach new and greater audiences than ever before through hybrid and virtual events on digital campuses.

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The pandemic is entering its third year, and most businesses in Asia-Pacific are moving towards adopting office space plans that acknowledge the current condition.

We have witnessed businesses being compelled to restructure their operations, adapt their staff to flexible working arrangements, and develop greater agility to react more rapidly to changes in the market and consumer demand.

The need for flexible offices is predicted to increase sharply. Businesses have to think very carefully about ensuring the productivity of the employees and having a physical office to cater to the business needs and growth.

Increased use of flexible office space in the future

The global pandemic has highlighted the need for businesses to be agile. Therefore, the demand for flexible office space, such as coworking spaces, will increase in the upcoming years, according to the CBRE Spring 2022 Asia Pacific Occupier Survey (2022).

By 2024, survey participants predict that flexible space will make up roughly 17 per cent of all real estate portfolios, up from the present level of seven per cent. The statistics show that by the next two years, around 50 per cent of companies will benefit from flexible offices, while only 18 per cent of companies will not be using them.

Flexible office space providers must continuously meet their client’s requirements by making broader choices of flexible office space available, ranging from on-demand event space to customisable private offices.

Also Read: What the entrepreneur community says about King Charles III’s visit to WORQ

According to CBRE, tech companies would still be the primary user of flexible offices, with business services, banking, retail, and life sciences sectors all expected to use flexible offices in a far higher amount than in the past.

Flex space is now commonly used by businesses to offer temporary solutions to a scattered workforce, providing on-demand meeting and collaboration space for staff and increasing staff location alternatives.

Post-pandemic situation: 76 per cent of employees prefer the hybrid working model

Although capital expenditure (CapEx) reductions continue to be a major factor driving demand for flexible space, the remote working arrangement is the main motivator.

Surveying 150 companies, CBRE (2022) found that 60 per cent of respondents chose hybrid working, which entails staff members dividing their time between working from the office and working from home.

However, about half of employers who impose hybrid working prefer that their employees spend most of their time at work, with the remaining employers expecting an equal balance.

With the findings, WORQ Coworking Space, which currently has more than 10,000 community members, found that 76 per cent of these members prefer a hybrid working arrangement, while 51 per cent of companies impose a hybrid working policy.

In total, 1,183 out of 1,563 people come to WORQ for the hybrid work model, whereas 240 companies from 469 have their employees in such an arrangement.

Methodology

The data is gathered from OfficeRnD to see the total days 1,563 members and 469 companies come to WORQ in two weeks from January to September 2022. Then, the data is filtered to the frequency of coming to the office equals four days or less, and this population is labelled as a hybrid worker.

Flexibility: The key to overcoming modern workplace challenges

With workers demanding hybrid working arrangements, things will change when more companies return to work in the office. Businesses must embrace flexible working as the new normal by improving workplace flexibility.

Also Read: With a looming recession, is office space really a wise investment?

CBRE data (2022) shows that many businesses have transitioned to hot-desking and other flexible seating arrangements and this process has sped up since 2020. Just 28 per cent of businesses still use fixed seating arrangements as of 2022, far less than the 58 per cent of businesses that did so before the pandemic. This number will decrease sharply to 12 per cent in the next two years. 

Companies are expressing a positive take on investing in long-term office as the return to the workplace continues. Over the next three years, almost 47 per cent of respondents in the CBRE survey want to expand the size of their real estate portfolios.

Only 23 per cent of respondents said they planned to reduce the size of their long-term real estate assets, down significantly from 46 per cent in 2020 due to the adoption of hybrid working in many organisations.

While these businesses reduce the size of their offices, many other businesses take advantage of the opportunity to upgrade to better locations and higher-quality buildings.

WORQ: A flexible office provider supporting hybrid workers

With all the flexibility it can offer, utilising coworking space is the most effective strategy for businesses to tackle future workplace challenges. Through Enterprise Solutions, WORQ can build a flexible office for businesses to scale up in the future and to design and customise the workspace the way they want it to be.

WORQ is also opening its fifth outlet in KL Sentral. The office is certified with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) & Green Building Index (GBI), catering to the demand for green buildings without paying the green premium.

In the end, coworking space is the solution to ease the transition to hybrid working and support the return to work. The future of work is here; it is hybrid and uses flexible offices.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic

Join our e27 Telegram group, FB community, or like the e27 Facebook page

The post The future of work is flexible: Data shows appeared first on e27.