Demand for flexible workspace solutions and policies has been increasing since the pandemic. Although today, more companies are attempting to implement return to office mandates, they still need to accommodate changing employee preferences and work styles.

Only a third of CEOs believe that they’ll be able to implement a full “return to work” policy in the next few years. Unfortunately, figuring out which solutions you’ll need to implement to preserve the productivity of your flexible teams can be complicated.

Here’s your guide to comparing and implementing the right technologies and systems for the future of flexible work.

Step 1: Consider Flexible Work Options

First, it’s worth noting there’s no single approach to designing a flexible workspace. In recent years, workplace policies have evolved from simple in-office, remote, or hybrid working structures. Countless organizations are taking a unique approach to enabling flexibility. In fact, over 24% of companies take an informal approach to enabling flexible work, according to the CIPD.

Before you start investing in hardware and software, ask yourself which type of flexible work will be best for your team members. Common options include:

  • Hot desking: Hot desking offices allow employees to choose available desks and workspace based on their specific needs. It ensures staff can choose where to work, according to the resources they need, and the tasks they’re trying to complete.
  • Hybrid workspaces: Hybrid workspaces allow employees to move in and out of the office depending on their requirements. Employees might split their time between attending a physical office, and working remotely, but will still need access to the same tools.
  • Office neighborhoods: Office neighborhoods, a concept that became increasingly popular throughout 2024, allow companies to set up flexible spaces with open layouts, and segmented areas for specific types of work, such as focus rooms for strategic projects.

The best way to determine what type of flexible work strategy will appeal to your team members is to speak to them directly. Pay attention to their requirements and preferences, and monitor how your teams collaborate when making your choice.

Step 2: Consider Essential Flexible Workspace Solutions

While the flexible workspace solutions you implement will vary depending on your policies and your team’s requirements, there are certain “essentials” that will be critical for all workspaces. Some of the most important areas to focus on include:

  • Meeting room technology: Today’s team members spend around 50% of their week in meetings. Ensuring your teams have access to meeting room solutions for all types of conferences is crucial. Consider options like plug-and-play meeting room bars and room kits. Explore webcams, speakerphones, microphones, and other critical accessories.
  • Booking and management software: In a flexible workspace, ensuring you can manage and allocate resources effectively is crucial. Booking and management software for desks, meeting spaces, and focus rooms will ensure team members can access the amenities you need, and give you insights into resource utilization.
  • Productivity software: All employees, regardless of where they’re working, will need access to critical tools, such as collaboration and communication apps, project management software, and software suites like Microsoft 365. Focus on creating an all-in-one toolkit that employees can access easily from any environment through the cloud.

Step 3: Embrace Customization Options

Flexible workspace solutions shouldn’t just enable flexible work, they should also give team members the freedom to customize their experiences in the office. The more your team members can adapt their workspace to their specific requirements, the more productive and engaged they’ll be.

Start by thinking about how you can provide your team members with valuable information they can use to organize their schedules. Apps like Microsoft Places, for instance, are excellent for helping staff decide when to attend the office, based on the presence of other team members. Microsoft Places even uses AI to suggest schedules to staff based on their needs.

Consider how you can make your physical office spaces more adaptable. Investing in modular meeting room equipment, ” Bring Your Own Device,” and “Bring Your Own Meeting” technologies will empower employees to tailor their desks and environments to their requirements. Making your meeting and office spaces more multifunctional can even save you money.

Step 4: Secure your Flexible Workspace Solutions

Hybrid and flexible work strategies can introduce a few unique security and compliance issues. Depending on your flexible work strategy, there are various areas you’ll need to address. Consider how you’ll manage guest access in coworking spaces, or enable secure remote access to tools for employees working outside of the office.

Other points to think about include:

  • Hardware and device management: How will you monitor and secure endpoints such as smartphones, laptops, and other devices? Can you use endpoint management tools to monitor all of the resources you share among employees and apply security patches remotely?
  • Network security: How will employees connect to your cloud-based software, both in and outside of the office? Should you be leveraging zero-trust network solutions, smart WAN management systems like SASE, and advanced firewall protections?
  • Data security: What strategies do you need to implement to ensure data remains secure in your business? Do all of the software systems your teams use include end-to-end encryption and access controls? How can you track and monitor security threats?

Step 5: Prioritize Insightful Analytics

Finally, intelligent flexible workspace solutions can do so much more than simply improve the office experience for your employees. They can also provide you with crucial insights you can use to reduce operational costs, minimize energy consumption, and improve resource allocation.

When shopping for solutions to enhance your flexible workspaces, prioritize tools that offer rich insights. Look for meeting room and desk booking systems that can show you accurately how teams use the spaces throughout your office environment. Leverage meeting room software that can share insights into how teams collaborate remotely, and in the office.

Look for platforms that use artificial intelligence to generate suggestions about how you can reduce waste in the office environment, and redesign spaces for hybrid teams. The more data you can access, the more you’ll be able to improve your work environment over time.

Choose the Right Flexible Workspace Solutions

With demand for flexibility in the workplace continuing to increase, it’s more important than ever for businesses to ensure they have the right technology and systems to accommodate their workforce. Think carefully about the solutions you can access to enhance hybrid employee engagement, improve resource allocation, and reduce operational costs.

At the same time, be prepared to adapt and evolve going forward. The workplace is changing at an incredible rate. The more agile you can be, the easier it will be to keep costs low, and both attract and retain the right talent for your team.



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