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A Hybrid Office How-To: Developing a framework to address the complexities of the post pandemic return to the physical office

Sailer, Kerstin; Thomas, Matt; Pachilova, Rosica; (2022) A Hybrid Office How-To: Developing a framework to address the complexities of the post pandemic return to the physical office. In: Proceedings of the 3rd Transdisciplinary Workplace Research Conference. (pp. pp. 543-552). TWR Network: Milano, Italy. Green open access

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Abstract

Organisations wishing to combine working from home with some office-based activities in a so-called hybrid model seem to struggle knowing where to start and how to decide what is right for them. In this paper we address this apparent lack of strategies on how to make decisions around a hybrid office and develop a systematic framework covering five distinct aspects of the post-pandemic office: 1) Where will staff work? 2) How will the office be organised spatially? 3) How do management and practices need to adapt? 4) What to do with existing real estate? 5) What technology will support this? The COVID-19 pandemic has provided a natural experiment for many organisations to trial working from home at speed and at scale. Employees have adopted these more flexible practices, and many are now demanding a different approach to physical office space allowing them to work from home for 2-3 days a week. In setting their return to the office policies, organisations find themselves faced with tricky decisions to make to be able to balance competing objectives with newly introduced variables. A review of the latest published research, surveys and articles covering the topic of hybrid working. By defining a series of parameters and spelling out decisions, options and parameter interplay as well as potential outcomes such as collaborative cultures, learning, onboarding, knowledge exchange, coordination or well-being, this framework allows organisations to ask themselves a series of relevant questions, helping to reflect on the hybrid office, its possible shapes and variations, and how those might support desired organisational outcomes and strategies. This newly developed framework will help organisations who wish to adopt hybrid working to decide where to start from and understand hidden implications of certain decisions and their interdependencies.

Type: Proceedings paper
Title: A Hybrid Office How-To: Developing a framework to address the complexities of the post pandemic return to the physical office
Event: 3rd Transdisciplinary Workplace Research Conference
Location: Milano, Italy
Dates: 7 Sep 2022 - 10 Sep 2022
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
Publisher version: http://www.twrnetwork.org/events/
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Hybrid work, workplace, space syntax, Covid-19, work from home
UCL classification: UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment > The Bartlett School of Architecture
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10155289
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