Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 16
COVER STORY
REASSESSING
the
WFH MOVEMENT
Actually, employees might prefer to
return to office spaces...if they're
activity-based and collaboration-optimized.
By Dan Ferrisi
AMID THE ONGOING COVID-19 CRISIS, some industry observers have forecast
" the death of the office. " Massive companies like Twitter have instituted
a permanent work-from-home policy for all who want to. Even in Commercial
Integrator's own pages, we frequently publish the views of articulate remote-work
exponents who argue that the old days are never coming back. This month, we ask
a provocative question: Are reports of the death of the office greatly exaggerated?
If so, what kind of office is viable in 2022 and beyond? CI approached St. Louis,
Mo.-based HOK - a design, architecture, engineering and planning firm - to get
some answers. We speak to Kay Sargent, director of workplace and senior principal,
and Rachel Rouse, director of interiors for the Dallas office and principal, both
of whom explored this topic during the Almo E4 Experience this past November.
Here, they help us analyze the contemporary enterprise market and its return-to-office
efforts. All told, Sargent and Rouse weave a much more equivocal narrative
than work-from-home (WFH) advocates typically propound.
Do People Still Want WFH?
There's no doubt that a portion of the workforce - knowledge workers, principally
- can do most of their job duties from home. And when the nation shut
down in early 2020 and workers were sent home, many employees were eager
to show that a non-office-based model could work. Those with long commutes,
for example, saw a way to avoid hours on the road, and vehicle wear and tear.
Unsurprisingly, then, early data analyzing remote-worker productivity buttressed
the WFH-is-viable theory. But, addressing productivity, Sargent notes, " We saw a
drop [that started] in August of 2020. "
For Sargent, any number of factors could be to blame. She highlights that, for
many WFH employees, commuting hours have now been rolled into working
hours; that means many WFH employees are putting in another 10 hours a week.
The mental and physical exertion - combined with the relative isolation of home
offices - is " taking a toll on people, " she says. " We're starting to see that. " Sargent
also highlights that productivity is just one metric of employee output, and it's
unwise to measure an associate's contributions to the company simply by gauging
their industriousness. Arguably more important metrics, she says, include work
16
Commercial Integrator FEBRUARY 2022
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Commercial Integrator February 2022
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Integrator February 2022
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - Cover1
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - Cover2
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 1
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 2
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 3
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 4
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 5
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 6
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 7
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 8
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 9
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 10
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 11
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 12
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 13
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 14
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 15
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 16
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 17
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 18
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 19
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 20
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 21
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 22
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 23
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 24
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 25
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 26
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 27
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 28
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 29
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 30
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 31
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 32
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 33
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 34
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 35
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 36
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 37
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 38
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 39
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - 40
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - Cover3
Commercial Integrator February 2022 - Cover4
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https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/april_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/march_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/february_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/january_2023
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/december_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/november_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/october_2022
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https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/february_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/january_2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/december_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/november_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/october_2021
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https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/march_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/february_2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/emerald/commercialintegrator/january_2021
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