Future-proof work thanks to Corona
Are we all going to be standing still in traffic jams again? Or are we going to stay at home post-Corona? Organisations around the globe are wondering what Corona’s impact will be on the future of work and organisation.
Corona is accelerating digitisation and automation. This may have a bigger impact on our way of working than the negative short-term effects that organisations are currently experiencing. The changes in terms of work and organisation have been ongoing far longer. Pre-Corona surveys, for example by the World Economic Forum, show that many of the current jobs are disappearing due to new technology and that new jobs are being created. Routine and repetitive activities will be digitised. For example, there’s the chatbot you ‘talk to’ increasingly in helpdesks rather than people. And it’s not just routine work that’s disappearing. During the lockdown, 9/10 people working from home performed different activities, says TNO.
Less and less individual work
Many organisations believe they can make do with smaller offices as large proportions of their staff will continue to work from home. A survey by television programme Nieuwsuur states that the number of square meters will even be cut in half. And if people do go to the office, they mainly need a place for meeting others and discussion. But that’s the million-dollar question. Working together in teams, often cross-borders, is becoming increasingly important. Individual work – the work best suited fr an office at home – is decreasing.
Provide an office that supports activity-based working
The way in which work will develop moving forwards depends on the type of organisation at hand. Organisations in which, pre-Corona, people went to the office for individual work, are now facing a challenge to effectively facilitate work in the future. Those organisations that already had an office based on activity-based working will probably be able to make do with less incisive measures.
Look beyond now
To only take into account the number of square maters is not sensible. It would be better to take a look together at which activities will genuinely add value in the future, and to think about how you can facilitate these activities – perhaps at the office, which IT you’ll need and what the implications are for your leadership and culture.
