Return to the office.

According to the Leesman research agency, remote work is a good solution only in the case of a small number of tasks requiring concentration. In the case of high complexity of activities performed, the office offers considerably better working conditions. Why? The atmosphere at home helps us to focus. There are no distractions typical for the office – we do not hear talking and phone sounds in the distance, no one passes our desk, no one distracts us with informal chat. And we also save time and money on commuting. Researchers from Leesman have investigated in what home conditions we work best. Of course in a separate dedicated room, and if we do not have such a room, in a place arranged for remote work: a table, chair, computer, good lighting and access to the Internet. The worst option is to work ad hoc – sitting on a sofa, at the kitchen table or standing at the windowsill. Researchers have also checked what we miss when working remotely. At first, companies equipped employees with devices that gave everyone permanent access – to Wi-Fi, network drives, video conferences.

The things employees find most inconvenient to do without and are least satisfied about include access to a printer and scanner, and then an ergonomic chair and desk. It is a more complex issue. No one knew how long employees would work remotely and everyone treated this model as a temporary solution. Meanwhile, home office turned out to be effective, and the time has come for more systemic solutions. Employees may receive a subsidy for additional costs of working from home. They may be permanently provided with a height adjustable chair or desk. Finally, the system of benefits is changing. Until now, employees have received private medical care or gym membership as a benefit. Today, the first cafeteria systems, such as Motivizer and Nais, have added chairs to their offers. A chair or gym membership. Both offers are good for the health, and the employee may choose what is best for them at a given time.

The change of several individual workstations into a few hot desks may be a good idea. In this way, people working in hybrid mode will have a place in the office and the space gained may be used to create places for working together. Even before the pandemic, there were no places in offices to organise internal meetings or to perform creative work. This area has not been appreciated so far. Research shows that a lack of face-to-face meetings constitutes the biggest problem during remote work. Interactions between employees strengthen bonds and build the culture of the organisation. It is worth creating space where employees can meet, talk, exchange knowledge, but also do some brainstorming, carry out training and work together. In this case, the choice of appropriate furniture is important. It should be easily adaptable, mobile and soft, encouraging employees to rest, talk and exchange experience.

An important role is also played by different types of partitions, such as mobile screens, sliding walls, pots – which will allow an easy rearrangement of the space – dividing it or opening it up. The key is flexibility, i.e. the skill to adapt the space to the needs of the moment – so that different teams can work alternately, but also when all employees need to meet in the office. Building a friendly work environment does not only involve the arrangement of furniture, but also taking care of an appropriate atmosphere affecting the culture of the organisation and improving the team cooperation. Employees need training to make best use of the solutions proposed, to strengthen relationships and to build the feeling of belonging.