Article written by Marc Gingras, Globe and Mail
For the past six months, global alpha cities have looked like ghost towns. Chief executives expect employees to work remotely for the foreseeable future (and for some, ever). All the while office tenants across Canada are looking to downsize with a smaller amount of staff now coming in (such as the essential business of wealth management).
Before the pandemic, large scale office buildings were major draws for businesses. At the base Bay Street hosts the forty floor gold tower which holds the head office for RBC that towers over investment banks and fellow big six banks alike.
Are corporate headquarters finished ?
Well, lets take a deeper look
Talent Reversal
One of the benefits of COVID-19 for the corporate world is that work talent is no longer restricted to certain time zones or specific areas. With the majority of people now working remotely, employees can essentially work from anywhere.
Though, corporate headquarters are more than just places to work, they are physical embodiment for a company and its culture, helping to instill corporate values and aspirations.
Office may shrink in size, but expect the majority of Canadian companies to still maintain a presence among the downtown core (and others).
Location
As mentioned earlier, the RBC south tower at the base of Bay Street, in close proximity to many bank rivals and investment houses. This proximity to other competitors, known as a “cluster”, can help increase productivity, drive innovation ,and stimulate new businesses in the field (i.e.s tart ups). Also, being in close proximity to such a talented and experienced work force is highly valued. Despite a mass relocation to the home office, expect companies to continue this trend by maintaining a physical presence.
Teamwork
One of the major drawbacks of working remotely is the limitations of creativity and teamwork.
Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, recently told CBNC that, while projects already well under way before the pandemic have continued at similar speeds, kickstarting new projects at the company has been difficult.
Common, shared workspaces help co-workers build connections and formulate the kind of creative sparks that cannot be re-created in a remote environment.
As employers across the country try to rethink what to do with corporate offices, many are deviating away from spaces meant for individual tasks (such as sending e-mails) and instead trying to create a space meant for collaboration and others that benefit from in-person interaction
Post-pandemic life
In Canada, CIBC has announced they are revisiting floor plans and making changes to their CIBC Square office complex in downtown Toronto to make it ready for employees to return by year-end, while other banks experiment with staggered shifts and start times.
As 2020 comes to a close, we have been taught that nothing is permanent and change in inevitable. Though, people will always need places to connect and gather.
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