{"id":4400,"date":"2020-08-26T10:51:28","date_gmt":"2020-08-26T17:51:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.poly.com\/?p=4400"},"modified":"2020-08-26T10:51:28","modified_gmt":"2020-08-26T17:51:28","slug":"2020-the-catalyst-for-reinventing-the-way-we-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.poly.com\/2020-the-catalyst-for-reinventing-the-way-we-work\/","title":{"rendered":"2020: The Catalyst for Reinventing the Way We Work"},"content":{"rendered":"

The \u201cnext normal\u201d is hybrid working\u2014flexible, productive, and spanning multiple locations.<\/em><\/p>\n

There are a number of ways in which organizations around the world are going \u201cback to work.\u201d Many are planning to safely and effectively transition some or all employees back to the office. Some are reducing office space as they reevaluate real estate requirements. Still, others are extending their work-from-home policies until 2021 and beyond. While the right path forward varies for every company, there is one thing we can all agree on: very few organizations will go back to the way things were at the start of 2020.<\/p>\n

During this historic time, we see customers moving through three phases in order to survive and thrive despite the pandemic: Respond, Redesign, and Reinvent. Our recent report, Hybrid Working: Creating the \u201cnext normal\u201d in work practices, spaces, and culture<\/em><\/a><\/span>, lays out these phases in detail.<\/p>\n

Respond Phase: Prioritize Business Continuity <\/strong><\/h4>\n

The Respond Phase\u2014the first wave in response to the pandemic\u2014focused on mitigating challenges and ensuring business continuity. Organizations of all kinds had to \u201cflip the switch\u201d almost immediately, whether that meant moving every employee to a work-from-home environment, equipping teachers with tools for effective virtual learning, or enabling healthcare first responders to manage drastically increased call volumes. Bottom line, everything had to be done fast.<\/p>\n

In many cases, this led to hurried, makeshift home environments with a mix of employer-provided and personal technology, such as headsets and web cameras. These DIY approaches may have done the job at the time, but that quick fix proved to be inadequate long-term.<\/p>\n

Redesign Phase: Become Digital First<\/strong><\/h4>\n

As organizations stabilized basic operations, they moved into the second phase: Redesign. This phase\u2014where many companies are today\u2014is all about reimagining workspaces, business models, and ways of working. The end goal: Companies are working to future-proof their organization by becoming a digital-first company.<\/p>\n

This new path looks different industry by industry:<\/p>\n