Returning to the Office: A Global Perspective

As restrictions begin to lift, what will a return to the office look like? What must employers do to ensure safe environments while preserving organizational culture and continued innovation? How will employees embrace the workplace; what will be their expectations? What role will remote work play going forward, and how successful was it during the lock-down?

The effort to confront the COVID-19 pandemic on a global scale has driven one of the great social experiments of modern times. Social distancing and a shift from office to home of the traditional work paradigm has affected millions of people worldwide, reframing business and social interaction amid a devastated world economy and human tragedy. As restrictions begin to lift, what will a return to the office—arguably “one of the most important arenas for epidemic prevention”—look like?

What must employers do to ensure safe environments while preserving organizational culture and continued innovation? How will employees embrace the workplace; what will be their expectations? What role will remote work play going forward, and how successful was it during the lock-down?

To help answer these questions and facilitate the awaited transition, in early April, IA Interior Architects (IA) developed and issued a client and end-user survey to quantify critical areas of concern, and understand how facilities management and workplace experience personnel might best meet the new workplace challenges. Approximately two weeks after the release of IA’s findings in a white paper, Space Metrix (SM) issued the same survey, with the addition of minor cultural nuances, to its clients and end-users in Asia. The results of the two surveys taken together represent a data-gathering effort across much of the globe.