The positives to gain from blended working
13 August 2020

By Rachel Mason, Operations Director at Motif

The lockdown has forced us to work differently and this has demonstrated that there are a lot of benefits to a more flexible working life.  Whilst many companies have introduced this to some extent in recent years, it had not been embraced by all and some companies were resistant to change.  The lockdown has changed many people’s opinions on this.  Motif offered flexible working before the lockdown, but attitudes have changed considerably over the past couple of months.

Many of our team have been surprised by how much they have enjoyed this prolonged period of working from home – so much so that there is a reluctance to return to the old office way of life.  The added benefits of not commuting or spending time travelling to meetings has meant that there is better work life balance for most.  Whilst initially there was an increase in virtual meetings whilst everyone adjusted to not physically seeing their colleagues, productivity has remained high.  Everyone, including clients, has adjusted to life on Zoom and Teams.  There is now wide acceptance that many face to face meetings can be replaced with the use of video.  It will be interesting to see whether the current relaxation of meeting etiquette continues beyond lockdown – or whether gatecrashing by uninvited pets and/or children joining will no longer be treated with the humour it is now! 

In many ways the lockdown has forced us to think outside the box and develop a new normal – it has vastly accelerated the uptake of flexible working by companies and individuals.  Life in the office will not be the same again.  The role of the workspace has changed emphasis – it is likely that this will be a space for collaborating rather than sitting at a desk.  For businesses this could lead to reduced costs with the amount of office space required reducing considerably.