The world of work continues to flex and change, and businesses need to be able to adapt and keep ahead of the trends. Here are five of the biggest trends shaping the way we work in 2023.
There’s no denying that the last few years have seen the shape of work change. From office-based, to purely home-based followed by the slow return to somewhere in between. It’s meant that businesses have had to cope with a vastly changing landscape. It’s also resulted in employees expecting much more flexibility than they would have been afforded pre-pandemic.
The world of work continues to flex and change, and businesses need to be able to adapt and keep ahead of the trends. A savvy company is one that stays one step ahead of the trends. And with that in mind it’s worth getting up on what experts predict is in store for the year ahead. Here are five of the biggest trends shaping the way we work in 2023.
Make no mistake: hybrid is here to stay. And its popularity is likely to keep rising in 2023, as employers realise that it’s increasingly what workers want. This ‘new normal’ may have been brought about by the pandemic, but we’ve all discovered that we like being able to cut down commuting and spend more time with our families, so it’s going nowhere.
Combining time spent in the office with time spent working remotely – whether from home or from a shared office – and utilising the right technology (see point 4!) will be key to striking the right balance for both business and employees.
For more information about building a remote workforce, read our guide on fostering high-performing remote teams.
The news that Jacinda Ardern has resigned as New Zealand’s PM due to burnout is a high-profile example of what’s been a growing trend in recent years: an increased focus on employee wellbeing. Work burnout is all too common, and it has an enormous impact on businesses.
Employee wellness is, of course, helped by hybrid, but this new way of working brings with it other causes for concern – such as the difficulty some employees have in switching off when working from home. That’s why the whole workplace experience is coming under review, the idea of being able to create the best possible environment for employees to do their thing.
Flexible working has become such a hot topic that we’re now seeing numerous studies revealing that an alarming number of employees would quit if they weren’t granted flexible hours. The message to businesses is clear: offer flexible working, or miss losing out on top talent.
And while we’re on the subject of working hours, the four-day working week is going to be one to watch. With a hundred companies having already signed up for a four-day week with no loss of pay to their staff, we may start to see a shift in employee expectations that puts pressure on businesses to offer the same.
The future of work is here, and it’s going to need the right tech to support it. We’ve all grown used to relying on remote working tools since the pandemic hit, but as hybrid becomes a way of life, we’ll see remote scheduling and collaboration tools come into their own as a regular part of working life rather than a temporary measure.
Indeed, the software available these days goes way beyond Zoom, with virtual huddle rooms, virtual reality and asynchronous collaboration all among the increasingly sophisticated tech we’ll see come to the fore as a way of bringing remote teams together.
Of course, all the trends we’ve talked about so far in this article also spell one big one: there simply isn’t going to be the same demand for physical office space as there has been traditionally.
With many employers already realising that they don’t need to fork out huge sums for commercial real estate that’s only being used part of the time, the year ahead will see more and more businesses embracing alternative options. And for many, the solution will inevitably lie in a virtual office, which offers the best of both worlds.
Virtual offices provide the advantages of a smart registered business address and/or mailing address, without the capital investment in physical premises that put a strain on finances at a time when costs only seem to be going one way. While this means the team can be fully remote, virtual offices also offer coworking or flex space for taking client meetings or when the team needs to come together to hash things out face to face.
Virtual offices also hold the key to easy expansion of your business into other geographical areas, as well as helping your local SEO. If that’s looking set to be an important part of your 2023 strategy, take a look at the virtual office locations we have on offer and find out how your business can tap into this trend today.
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