When the internet became widely adopted people believed that remote working would kick off with a bang. But, people need people — and human contact and engagement is a need for us social beings. Now, post-pandemic the chatter has picked up again… could this be the catalyst that sparks this trend — with motivating factors like commuting, policy change, and coworking spaces acting as strong supporting arguments to the transformation?
The crazy commute
The pressures of the working world have driven us to rise early, rush the kids off to school and spend crazy amounts of time on the commute – 38 minutes BTW, one way. In the end it’s just not a sustainable lifestyle to lead. And, according to a study commuting is one of the least enjoyed activities that people face daily.
Commuting is also downright bad for us! Facts show that making these long journeys for a higher salary is not worth the toll it takes on our mental, emotional and physical well-being.
People based in bigger cities with higher-paying jobs are not happier and are also less satisfied in their occupation — and people just don’t get used to the wasted time and energy of the commute.
The time to create fair and inclusive policies is now
Another study has revealed that while many companies provide a weighted salary for employees working in Greater London, for instance, the consensus among remote workings is that salary and benefits should be based on the individual skills and not where they’re based for work.
Respondents also cited that, in order of importance — pension scheme, home office allowance, and healthcare are some top benefits remote workers seek. While, the most common challenges experienced are time differences, IT set-up issues, lack of face to face contact, and language barriers to name a few.
Local coworking revolution
Large scale office spaces could become less of an expense, as companies look to change their working models post the pandemic. If this has taught us anything it’s about being business-agile and adopting new ways of thinking. It pushed employers to think beyond the traditional office set up, and it gave employees the taste of remote working and the disciplines that require.
We have witnessed a steady increase in the popularity of the local coworking scene, with our podcast guests like David Brown from GOOD SPACE and Gareth Jones from Town Square in Caerphilly, sharing how coworking spaces are booming amid the pandemic, and the mindset shift people are going through to realise that there isn’t a need to be trekking across town when workspaces and the collaboration that comes with it are available right on their doorstep.
Cue the 15-minute City
And all of these fits into the 15-minute City lifestyle we’ve been talking about. It is a chance to rethink and reinvent our daily lives for the better, and the 15-minute City scenario explores the possibility that everything you need is within a 15-minute journey from home.
This ‘complete community’ lends itself to the opportunity for coworking spaces to market to a new target audience, to identify new locations in villages, towns and smaller cities and to become a central community point.
This scenario does, of course, come with some careful considerations too, as Jean-Yves Huwart from Social Workplaces points out. Businesses and individuals need to rethink how they run and go about doing their business, being open to scrutiny and adapting from the old ways into the new format of working to ensure profitability and business continuity.
While many waits to see how the ‘next normal’ pans out, we’re excitedly planning to bring together the experts and invite you all to discuss the #FutureofWorkandLife in the 15-minute City webinar we are hosting.
Join us and let’s explore how can we encourage, integrate and evolve into this potential lifestyle as we bid the traditional office set up farewell.