It’s safe to say that the thought of returning to an office environment is a daunting one. Since early 2020, the daily routine of professional workers has changed significantly.
The hustle and bustle of the daily commute has been replaced by a relaxing journey from bed to desk. You’ve been getting more sleep, saving money on transit and been getting more done around the house. However, returning to the office isn’t all doom and gloom. There’s plenty to be excited about, and so many benefits that come along with an office environment, especially for busy recruiters.
More Focus Time
Our recent article on ‘The Great Resignation’ highlighted a predicted increase in employees switching jobs post-pandemic. As a result, an increase in recruitment activity is inevitable. Given this, productivity will be more important than ever.
For some people, working from home goes along with a lot of distractions including kids, pets and noisy neighbours. On top of that, it can be tempting to try to split your focus between work and home life during work hours.
Working from the office will allow you to focus fully on work tasks, and any distractions that come your way will be work-related, allowing you to stay work-focused throughout the day.
Offices also have facilities that you may not have at home including access to printing, scanning and meeting rooms. This will allow you to be on the top of your game from a productivity standpoint.
Of course, this works both ways. If you’re based in an office that tends to be noisy, that may take some getting used to. Consider booking a meeting room to allow yourself some uninterrupted ‘focus time’.
Better Onboarding & Learning for New Hires
Onboarding can be a challenge in itself, and so moving from remote to in-person onboarding will be a relief for many HR teams. Any improvement to the onboarding process should be welcomed with open arms, especially considering that up to 20% of employee turnover happens within the first 45 days of employment.
There’s a lot to be said for the amount of information a new hire will absorb while working in close proximity with their new colleagues in the office. Consider how many things you discovered by simply overhearing something in the office. Learning about what other departments are working on and how they do business is invaluable, especially for new starters.
Shadowing more experienced employees is a great way for new employees to learn, and proved much more difficult to navigate while working remotely. In-person shadowing will allow your new employee to meet their teammates, see how things are done, and spend time working alongside someone who knows the business well.
Check out our latest episode of our podcast The Talent Scout for more information on the importance of onboarding.
Clearer Boundaries
A lot of people have struggled to ‘switch off’ at the end of their work day while working from home. It can be tempting to log-on in the evenings and respond to an email or two. This can lead to employee burnout, and in turn result in absenteeism and high staff turnover. Returning to the office will allow employees to set clear boundaries between their work life and their personal lives, resulting in an improved work-life balance.
Better Working Set-Up
So many employees have been working at make-shift office set-ups for over a year now. Balancing your laptop on a pile of books or sitting at your kitchen table is certainly not going to improve productivity. Returning to the office means comfortable office chairs, spacious desks, fast Wifi and easier access to IT support.
Remember these benefits as you return to the office and your transition will be a much easier one. If you are feeling overwhelmed with your recruiting, reach out to find out how our recruitment software and services can help.
