Post-Pandemic Hybrid Work Environment: Why Desk Reservation Software Technology is Critical More Than Ever

More than a year after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, many people got infected, and thankfully, the majority survived. Now that most people have received their vaccines, many organizations are transitioning to their safe return to the workplace.

The vaccination programs initiated the full reopening and restoration of the global workplace norms, especially in some parts of the US that have already achieved the 70% benchmark. As a result, business owners need to reevaluate workforce planning, performance management, and employee experience strategies.

Facing unprecedented challenges in maintaining the protocols while fully reopening, how can they successfully overcome this?

Let us examine how a desk reservation system can be an effective tool for a smooth switch from work from home (WFH) to work in the office in a hybrid work environment.

Workplace Concept Changes for The Better

Many forward-thinking organizations had transitioned from cubicles to open-office layouts in recent years, even before the pandemic happened. Instead, they began adopting dynamic working techniques such as flexible and activity-based working. And with the pandemic, these approaches are becoming a part of workplace modernization for good.

Pre Pandemic Work Setup

Before the Coronavirus took the world by storm, you might be gearing up for work at the office at 9 am. You would be expected to be working at your dedicated desk, attending in-person meetings, and engaging in the everyday chit-chat with your colleagues. Then, when the clock struck 5 pm, you would probably be heading home and then repeat the same cycle every day for years. You might sometimes think of working remotely, but your manager could have been skeptical about employees’ productivity working outside the office.

However, when you experienced working from home due to the pandemic, your company embraced remote working perfectly. Although there were challenges in digital meetings and communication within your organization, you would have navigated around it by now. The good side was it spared you from the stress of commuting and the long lines queuing elevators, shops, or even comfort rooms.

During Pandemic Work Setup: Remote Working (Work From Home)

By this time, you have probably been working from home for over a year. You might get used to virtual meetings, working in shorts and slippers, and enjoying the comfort of your couch. Of course, there may be times that you miss face-to-face interactions with your workmates, but somehow, virtual happy hour fills the gap.

The main focus of business leaders now is to determine how to get their employees back to the workplace without risking their health. The traditional work setup is no longer suitable for the situation. So, the big question is, how do you get ready your office for the hybrid work environment transition? 

Possibly some of your to-do lists are the mandatory regular sanitation and cleaning policies, alternate work scheduling, and wearing PPE. In addition, some organizations consider modifying their real estate strategies and acquire a headquarters. But this idea may cost them a lot. Regardless of how you address these concerns, it will significantly impact your workplace in the post-pandemic era.

The New Normal Office Setup after 2024

Propositions and ideas on how a hybrid work schedules workplace environment will work in the future are abundant. Due to the health consideration and government mandate, most people agree that things need to change. Many of your employees might even get accustomed to working remotely and hesitate to work at the office. But not all employees want to work at home all the time. Most employees still prefer to work in the office most days and have time to work at home on other days. In summary, most of them prefer to work in a hybrid workplace environment.

However, some employers may not agree to work from home, saying it can reduce collaboration, communication, and company culture. But everything can make way with proper planning, preparedness, and cooperation. Hence, it is safe to say that the future of the workplace can still be a haven for collaboration and interaction. Remote workers can still be at their highest productivity. All is achievable with a suitable system and technology such as an online scheduling tool that can support the new working method.

Essential Desk Booking Software Technology for A Seamless Transition

A new working method demands innovative solutions. Post pandemic workplace requires solutions that expedite flexibility and streamline workspace utilization management. Nowadays, institutions are getting help from an online meeting room booking system to satisfy these needs. Additionally, an excellent online room reservation tool efficiently facilitates the strategies required for a safe and smooth transition. Here’s what it can offer:-

Hot Desking Software

The days of working on a permanent desk and sitting close to one another are over. Since one effective way to prevent the virus infection is through physical distancing, business leaders need to re-arrange the desks that will comply to 6 feet distance in between.

Hot desking is a system that allows you to disable a desk for booking so workers can automatically comply with the safe space. It also supports the flexible or activity-based working that post-pandemic workers seek when returning to the office. This desk reservation software simplifies the hot desking system by:-

• Allows you and your team members to book an available workspace now or later so you can schedule your time in the office hassle-free
• Book a desk for a day or a week in advance, so you don’t have to do it every time you need to work in the office
• Quickly find your teammates without their dedicated seats using the web based desk booking software or the room booking application
• Adequate staff and Microsoft room scheduling software to decrease the workplace density
• Give ample time for cleaning and disinfecting workspaces between utilization
• Automatically notifies the disinfection personnel when a desk needs cleaning
• Allow you to create systematic cleaning policies for each workspace

Reset floor plan for additional hot desking areas.

Free Desk Booking App

A free desk booking app can quickly help employees adopt the transition like the hot desking software technology. Remote workers can still navigate the desk booking software even at home, café, or on the go. They can easily:

• Book a desk on-site or before they arrive at the office to spend only the hours you need for work
• It eliminates virus transmission as they are the only ones that touch their gadgets
• Fewer in-person interaction when checking-in to a workspace
• Check-in to a desk in few taps
• It saves you time when looking for a desk or a team member.

Room Scheduling Software

As your company returns to its whole operation, you need to count the number of days before you will find yourself in a meeting room because of the influx of scheduled reservations of the other departments. Of course, when you still work from home, virtual meetings are the trend, and even when you meet every day, you will not worry about getting the infection up close.

But now that people are physically present at the workplace, the risk is very high, especially for those who haven’t been vaccinated. So setting a face-to-face group meeting needs a safe distance and a proper meeting booking system.

A room scheduling software is a powerful program that allows you to manage your meeting room, especially when considering the safety of everyone. In addition, a conference room reservation system is an efficient tool for:-

• Quickly finding a vacant room using your room reservation website in a few clicks
• Using a room manager display, you can view the current and upcoming reservations for a specific room, so you know the best time to schedule your meeting
• Limit the meeting participants to accommodate the physical distancing inside the room
• Book equipment along with the room reservation, so you don’t have to contact the personnel assigned to it
• Automatically notifies the disinfection personnel when a room needs cleaning
• Give ample time for cleaning and disinfecting meeting rooms between usage
• Allows you and your team members to book an available meeting room now or later so you can schedule your time in the office hassle-free

Quickly find your teammates’ rooms using the web-based room booking software or the room booking application.

Free Conference Room Scheduling App

The meeting room reservation is easier with a free conference room scheduling app. Like the web based room booking software, it optimizes your time when needing a meeting room. The best thing is that you can take advantage of the system anywhere at any time. Here are some of the ways it can help you spend your workday in the ‘new normal’:-

• Book a room on-site or before they arrive at the office to spend only the hours you need for work
• Eliminates the virus transmission as they are the only ones that touch their gadgets
• Fewer in-person interaction when confirming the meeting invitation
• Check-in to a room in few taps
• Notifies you when there are any changes in your scheduled meeting, even when not in the office

It saves you time when looking for a room or a team member.

Vaccine Management Software

Each government in the world strives to provide vaccines to all their people. Countries that have given a vaccine injections to most of their population can now eliminate face coverings and may be expecting a lesser risk of getting infected. But as we said, not every is willing to get vaccinated.

Therefore, business leaders need to monitor each of their team members’ vaccine history to ensure that all of them are safe. A vaccine management software is specially built to do such that. It efficiently helps you:-

• Tracks and monitors your employees’ vaccination history, including the COVID-19 vaccine
• It is an essential software feature that supports contact tracing features and upholds safety protocols in the workplace.
• Notify you about your team member’s following vaccination schedule or upcoming booster shots through email and text notifications. 
• Provides real-time update on your team member’s vaccination history
• Generates a list of all your employees with vaccine categories, including date of vaccination, booster requirement, type of vaccine, administration date of the booster shots and completion of the booster shot, and
• It streamlines your team members’ vaccination procedure and makes sure they comply with their doses.
• Easy vaccine management with a vaccine management tracking and monitoring platform that tracks the team member’s vaccination process from registration, administration of initial dose to final dose, and follow-up of symptoms and reactions

Has reliable contact management that helps you address frequently asked questions and leverage email/SMS email for company engagement, vaccine eligibility, and health surveys.

Conclusion

According to recent reports, in some countries, people who got vaccinated still acquired the Coronavirus illness. Other countries experience another surge of the pandemic. The experts said that you need to get an anti-Covid vaccine jab to spare you from infection. However, the efficacy itself doesn’t tell that you will not get sick 100 percent.

People need to work, and not all people have the privilege to work from home. Therefore, the best of health and taking precautionary steps are still necessary for a safe workplace.

At DeskFlex, we are here to help you encourage your employees and organizations to maintain safe distance for a safe return to work to decrease the threat of virus contamination while in the office.

DeskFlex room and desk scheduling software have all the above-mentioned essential technology features to support the hybrid work environments and help you implement the health safety policies required. Returning to the office is not a walk in the park, but when you are equipped with the proper knowledge and room and desk scheduling software, your company will go back to your regular business operations in no time.