Cresa Denver Return to Office
Client Objectives
It’s been approximately 17 weeks since the majority of the US switched over to full time Work from Home. While it was pretty jarring to be forced into such a different work style so quickly, we’ve now had around 90 days since Cresa has re-opened to reflect on what’s happened and share our very own
Return-to-Office experience.
Our “Old” Normal
Our Denver office is shared by Cresa Advisors, Project Managers, Administrative staff, and Workspace Planning Design & Support team members. Our office had always been a social landing zone. Like many companies, we never had a formal work from home policy, but due to the nature of our industry, we generally had quite a few people in and out of the office on any given day. In addition to our regularly scheduled meetings, we often scheduled team lunches, happy hours and social activities.
How We Prepared
About 4-5 weeks before we knew our potential date for re-entry, we assembled a Planning team to help streamline decision making and create our strategic plan.
Our Workspace team began by creating a floorplan analysis to determine occupancy at workstations and common areas, outline new traffic flow patterns, and identify sanitizing stations and congestion areas. We were able to identify maximum occupancy at recommended distances and know what workspace modifications needed to be made before we stepped foot inside the office.
Once our guidelines were determined, a small team visited the office to physically prepare the space. We removed seats and furniture that did not meet distancing guidelines, ensure adequate supplies were staged. Signage was hung to help remind employees of new workplace etiquette and reinforce new protocol around the office.
A few days before the opening of the office, our re-entry team hosted an all employee call to prepare our team. It was a chance for everyone to learn about our preparations ahead of time and know what to expect day one before returning. Employee expectations were set and leadership reviewed employee resources.
Results
What Our “Current” Normal Is
After about four weeks, of having the office open for voluntary use, we’re tracking around 24% of employees are visiting the office each week. Most team members seem to be visiting the office for a portion of the day and utilizing it as an additional resource. As restrictions loosen, we anticipate additional team members will begin to come into the office as they choose, however, we also know some may choose to stay working from home for the foreseeable future.
What We Hope Our “New” Normal Brings
While the US slowly takes steps towards a more regular working environment, we most look forward to connecting with our team members again face to face. While virtual platforms have allowed us to carry on as best we can, it of course is no substitute for in-person collaboration. We know that it may be quite some time before we arrive at our “New” normal, however we will continue to monitor progress closely, continue checking in with our employees regularly, and gathering input that may inform our workspace decisions in the future.
Our Return to Office date was first and foremost aligned with State of Colorado and City of Denver Public Heath Orders. We decided to re-open our office to give employees an additional option for a workspace. While our return to Office remains voluntary, we know that after our thorough evaluation, opening the office to those that wished to return could be a beneficial option. Before we opened up for employee use, we assembled a Re-entry team to help prepare the office and develop our plan.Gillian Baikie | Principal
Cresa Denver
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