As the summer holidays draw to an end, more and more businesses are looking at getting staff back working from the office. Is this something you are considering?
We are all still a long way off being completely back to normal (whatever that may look like in the future), but it looks like we are getting there. If you are thinking about going back to the office, here are a few things to think about…
How many people?
The average worker in London is allocated around 100 sq ft. But that includes their desk, space for movement at their desk and a proportion of the communal space. This means they are very close to the social distancing limits when at their desk. The people in the image are clearly not socially distanced, so how can you ensure your team are?
If you cannot increase the gaps between desks, here are a few suggestions on how to limit the risks:
- Have all desks face the same direction, so people don’t sit face to face.
- Add Perspex screens between desks if needed. Government guidance on this can be found here.
- Only allow people to sit at every other desk. On average, companies only have 70% of their desks being used at once. Reducing that to 50% only means a few more people working remotely.
- Consider people walking alternately from home and in the office. Week on, week off is something a lot of London businesses are considering and experimenting with.
Technology to help you manage social distancing in your office
We are all fortunate that there is a wide range of technologies that can help you manage social distancing in your office. Here’s just a few…
WiFi
If you have to re-arrange your desks, there is likely to be an impact on your IT infrastructure. Cabling is laid out according to the desk plan, often with cabling laid under the floor. Moving all the desks throws that into confusion. Adding a secure WiFi network to the office, with repeaters if necessary, means that problem goes away. Spreading desks to meet social distancing would no longer be a problem. Any future office layout changes, as restrictions are lifted, can be done quickly and easily. Ensure you have sufficient signal boosters to provide even coverage across your office and provide a separate network for any guests that will be coming into the office (not yet of course!)
Access control
If you aren’t able to increase the gaps between desks, perhaps you are going to limit the number of desks that can be used. Whilst we’re not advocating a first-come, first served approach, some access control systems can count the number of people in the office and then limit access when that limit is reached. You will need an Exit Reader on the system, so you may want to talk to your security provider about this. If they cannot help, have a chat with DS Security.
Cameras
If your concern is whether people are symptomatic when they come into the office, or aren’t taking the necessary precautions, today’s security cameras could help. Thermal cameras can measure an individual’s temperature and many security cameras can recognise whether people are, for example, wearing masks.
Microsoft 365
If you aren’t using Microsoft 365 yet, you’ve missed out on a huge productivity gain for remote workers. Using this means it doesn’t matter whether someone is in the office or working remotely. Whether you have a rota or simply leave it for people to choose, they can still work effectively and productively.
Desk sensors
More and more companies are rolling out solutions that will tell you which desks in the office are being used and which are available. They can even be set so that the desk space remains unavailable, even after its been vacated. It goes back to being available after it has been cleaned.
If you are thinking of going back into the office, these technologies may be of use to you. One quick warning before we go: Inform your teams of any new technology solutions you apply, and the reasons behind them. You don’t want them believing that this is tech for tech’s sake and that the office is constantly under surveillance.
Click here to talk more about how technology can help you return to the office
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