Changes Coming to Workplace Strategy and Design

Workplaces around the globe have been forced to rethink their workspaces in light of the  COVID-19 pandemic. Remote work policies and procedures, offices and conference rooms sitting empty, Zoom meetings! It’s not hyperbolic to say: This pandemic will forever change the nature of work. But how does it impact the built environment?

These initially disruptive changes have caused SHP to contemplate the lasting impacts of the pandemic on the corporate workplace environment. Members of our Workplace Design Studio dove into the topic in an article for the Cincinnati Urban Land Institute (ULI). In addition to sharing some ideas on how the workplace may change in the coming months, they share some forward-thinking questions our team is grappling with to help advance the next evolution of strategic workplace design, such as:

• What if the current conditions of remote work become the advantage of working as a high-performing “distributed” team?
• It is likely that the pandemic will stir a surge in innovation for distributed work technology. Will we be designing for open video links across multiple regions?
• Will innovation centers and team scrum districts supersede individual workstations and private offices?

Many thanks to ULI for the opportunity to share our perspectives and expertise.