Why is it important not to completely forget the work model in a workspace?

Gran Via Business & Meeting Center calibrates the biggest office design trends of 2021, considering the influence of COVID-19 and how they can affect employee well-being and productivity, among other factors.

While everybody looks for a way to look to a post-pandemic future, many people also crave to return to life as it was known prior to coronavirus. Many would like to be able to go back to the gym, to eat outdoors again and yes, even to go back to the office.

It is said that a new habit is built in 21 days. Well, since March 2020, we have had about 14 cycles of 21 days. This means that new work approaches have been consolidated and may even have taken hold, such as the telework model. Therefore, what can be learned from last year, and why is it important to create the conditions to motivate, engage and get people back to usual workspaces? To answer these questions, Gran Via Business & Meeting Center in Barcelona wants to provide some of the reasons to get back to the office as soon as possible.

• The atmosphere of an office enables concentration

It is necessary to understand that, unfortunately, a house is not designed to work, because it does not have enough space, nor the right furniture to work for long days.

On the other hand, people who share the same space at home have their own needs, concerns and goals; besides, with a door as the only separation between work and family, there will always be other factors that can deconcentrate and distract from work, therefore reducing productivity.

Design and architecture are taken into account in the offices to provide a good space for each work team. It is also prioritized to have a good source of lighting, especially if natural light is available, to ensure concentration and productivity at all times. Likewise, all the necessary materials and furniture are available in an office.

• Family at home and work in the office

Although working from home has always been presented as an ideal choice, this pandemic has shown that it also has its disadvantages, such as the difficulty of being able to disconnect from house and work problems. Closing the door of the room closes the office and, if you take another step, you are in the kitchen.

This way, being able to “leave the office to-do’s in the office and those from the house in the house” will allow greater concentration in the tasks, say Gran Via BC professionals. This is something that can be achieved by renting a workspace, as it will also make it easier to disconnect from work when you get home, and therefore to achieve a better rest.

• Hello, creativity, goodbye monotony

Zoom, Meet, Teams, and other video conferencing applications may have been a solution to internal or customer meetings. But the same is not true regarding meetings of a team, because although simple tasks can be performed this way, it is difficult to achieve creativity and inspiration through telework.

In addition, it should be noted that online communication with colleagues is more limited, discussions are shorter, teamwork has limitations and the possibility of sharing ideas is greatly reduced.

Emotional factor and motivation

It is necessary to know that working from home affects each worker in a different way. But by spending a certain amount of time in these circumstances, mental health challenges can begin to arise, ranging from stress to social isolation from being in a locked room, among others.

Returning to face-to-face work will allow these two personal spheres to be differentiated, provides an opportunity to change environments and to socialize again with peers. This will help face, in a better way, stress, isolation and is a source of motivation.

Gran Via BC has been implementing reinforcing measures for about a year to resume work activities as safely as possible, with all safety and hygiene measures, taking care of everyone’s health in their offices. To do this, its flexible office model allows to adapt the use of services of their workspace, and to customize them according to the different needs, which makes it a great option not to waste any more time and return to face-to-face work as soon as possible.