What are the benefits of working in an office?

There’s certainly no doubt that over the last few months we have learnt how resourceful and resilient we can be in the face of huge change and uncertainty, and one example of this is how many of us have been able to transfer relatively smoothly to working from home.

This has prompted many businesses to reconsider their policies going forward, so as to enable a much more flexible approach to remote working for their employees.

At Vanilla, we have always offered our team the technology and flexibility to be able to work from home in situations where it might be easier or more cost or time-effective to do so.

However, we find that personally, for us, nothing beats working collaboratively, onsite at our office. Here are our top reasons why working from the office as a team will always win over working alone, at home:

It boosts productivity and fosters innovation

Working in a busy office environment is inspiring and motivating; when you are surrounded by an industrious team it encourages you to be just as productive and ambitious as your peers. The effects just aren’t anywhere near the same when you can’t see or hear this happening around you at home.

Similarly, being able to ask for instantaneous feedback and ideas from colleagues in the same working space creates an innovative and collaborative atmosphere, and keeps the working momentum and “buzz” going in a way which wait for an email response or scheduling a Zoom call could never replicate.

It provides a support network

Only your colleagues will understand that particular quirk of your in-house database or understand the processes unique to your business.

Similarly, they are much better placed to provide you with advice and encouragement in relation to profession-specific or company-specific scenarios or problems.

While all this can be done virtually, reaching out via email or video call can often be delayed or stilted. There’s no match for having several people around you who you can immediately turn to for their opinion and support.

It improves morale

Creating a positive working mentality day in day out can be difficult when you’re working alone, as it can be isolating and sometimes lack the spirit of a team endeavour.

Sitting in the same space as a team of likeminded professionals and working together with a shared purpose and goal, celebrating each other’s successes and problem solving together does wonders for morale.

It teaches important interpersonal and communication skills

As important as a well-worded email or a skilful telephone conversation can be, face-to-face interpersonal skills are an imperative part of professional life and some would argue that they can only truly be practiced and perfected in an onsite working environment, where they are called for routinely.

Presentation techniques, negotiation, team collaboration and conflict resolution are just a few of the skills which are much better learned and refined in person.

Onsite workers are easier to manage and mentor

Remote management can be tricky to balance. Make too much contact and your team member might feel like you don’t trust them to work autonomously. Make too little and they begin to feel unappreciated and unsupported and may lose direction or focus.

It’s much easier to be an effective and accessible leader when you work alongside your team, in person, in the same office.

Remote working tools can sometimes be poor

Technology is in many ways brilliant but has far from been perfected for the remote worker.

Server issues, internet speed and poor 4G signal can all play a part in slowing your day (and productivity) down when you’re working from home.

And while office-based tech isn’t without its problems, it’s generally much more reliable as it tends to be set up for the needs of the business. Plus, you are likely to have much easier access to a colleague or IT specialist who can help you fix any technical glitches!

Some employees don’t want to work remotely

Working from home is not for everyone, and never before have so many people had the opportunity to discover how difficult it can be.

Although there are initial advantages to the 30 second commute to the dining room table, over the past few months many have found that they have truly missed the routine of the office-based working day, and the clear division that it provides between working space and home life.

In addition, some people’s skillset and personality is attuned much better to working in an office environment, as part of a team. Where this is the case, the reality of remote working is that it can be increasingly lonely and lacks the camaraderie of the office, which can have a lasting negative effect on mental health and wellbeing.

 

These are a few of the reasons why we at Vanilla were keen to put all of our COVID-compliant processes in place as soon as possible to enable our team to be gradually reunited at Number 42 again over the coming weeks. We’re at our best when we can work together from Vanilla HQ to provide the best possible service to our clients and candidates.

If we can help you find (or fill) a job, please don’t hesitate to call us on 01858 898 058, or email [email protected]

We recruit throughout the East Midlands covering Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Rutland and the surrounding areas, especially Market Harborough, Lutterworth, Leicester, Corby and Kettering. We help people find their perfect job and match suitable job seekers with businesses looking to hire the best candidates across our five specialisms – Sales, Marketing, Accountancy & Finance, HR and Office.