Always ahead of the curve when it comes to predicting the future trends in office fit-out and design, Downtown in Business caught up with Rob Day from workplace consultants Blueprint Interiors to understand why some businesses were able to adapt more easily than others to lock down and the need to work remotely.
Throughout the evolution of our business, the concept of designing workplaces that create happier, healthier and more engaged people has been our driving ambition. Even before the pandemic, everyone at Blueprint Interiors believed the ideology of delivering office designs that mean people come to work and sit in an office with rows and rows of desks was simply an outdated concept.
In our opinion, these work environments are as toxic as those in which battery farmed chickens are kept and somehow the phrase ‘free range employees’ has recently slipped into our vocabulary! (I am indeed guilty of coming up with this quote!)
Whilst I fully acknowledge that we’ve been living in a topsy turvey world over the last few months, I hope there is at least one positive legacy that will result from the coronavirus pandemic – and that is the realisation that if provided with the technology and a choice of options of where to work, employees are an even greater asset because they are healthier and more motivated.
This passion to provide our clients with agile office spaces meant that like us, many of our clients found the physical and psychological challenges of remote working far less of an issue because agile working was already fully integral to their culture.
Even when lockdown measures are fully lifted, it’s highly unlikely that it will be practical and perhaps even desirable for everyone to return to work in an office. There is no doubt in my mind that agile working is here to stay and will be part of the ‘new normal’. See we’re back to ‘free range employees’ already!
The good news is that some businesses have now readily acknowledged that they were caught napping and were unprepared for the challenges of working remotely at such short notice. Naturally, everyone at Blueprint Interiors is delighted that they have been converted to the concept of agile working because we know that creating people centric workplaces has so many benefits and are very excited that more businesses want to achieve this ambition.
