April 22nd, 2024

By Sean Byrne

RETURN TO MAIN

NO MORE RESISTANCE: THE HYBRID WORKPLACE IS HERE TO STAY

Financial Services

Earlier this year, the Australian Financial Review reported that the Australian Enterprise sector is now in its final stage of acceptance of the hybrid workplace. Gartner’s Vice President of Research & Advisory, Aaron McEwan, was quoted saying that most technologies and industry trends go through four stages of evolution—an initial innovation, a peak of inflated expectations, a trough of disillusionment and a slope of enlightenment, before they arrive at the “plateau of productivity” or mainstream adoption. This is precisely where we are at, according to the Logitech team, who consult daily with the sector as they work on new strategies tailored to the current and future business needs. 

ENTERPRISE AND THE NEED FOR REFURBS

Sean Byrne, Head of Logitech ANZ, said that businesses are acting cautiously when changing the workplace structure and office fit-out. 

Pre-COVID, everyone was making really bold decisions regarding their operational strategies and buying everything in one hit. We’re now seeing businesses phasing these changes in. This allows them to be more mobile around the decision,” Byrne discusses. “What the pandemic taught the industry is that we need the ability to adapt at speed, which is crucial to keeping productivity at its peak no matter the situation.”  

Given technology’s ever-changing nature, this fluid approach to workplace ops is also important. Reacting to technological developments and advancements can be critical to a continual upturn in productivity, so factoring this evolution into future workplace structural planning and finance is number one. 

HOW LOGITECH CAN HELP

Being flexible takes a lot of preparation with the right people and brands. As for technology, if you commit to a brand that understands this process well, it can be an extremely beneficial investment over time. 

“At Logitech, we are a full-scale technology provider that is solution-based. We work with our clients on long-term roadmaps that allow for adaptability and resilience to be rolled out in phases, meeting the needs and financial expectations of the business,” stated Byrne. “This process focuses on the human element before the specs, always returning to how we can improve collaboration and optimise productivity within the workplace. When we put people first, the solution becomes obvious.”

As we enter the mainstream adoption phase of the hybrid workplace, quiet confidence is emerging from the business sector regarding planning their future office space requirements and remote workspace fit-outs. What emerges will be a far more considered, technologically advanced, connected workplace where people can operate with ease, comfort, pleasure, and speed. It’s now a fascinating time of evolution in the workforce. 

THREE PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Below are Sean Byrne’s top three tech consideration tips when entering the office refurb planning phase:  

  1. Start with the design team: Ensure that all tech is factored into the initial design phase, as this will often determine essential parts of the build. For example, where the video conferencing equipment is located will directly impact furniture decisions, room layouts and the infrastructure required. 
  1. Don’t forget the huddle rooms: The smaller meeting rooms are often ignored and left without practical tech considerations or fit-outs. However, with a hybrid workplace, these could be the most utilised meeting rooms in the office, so good conferencing equipment is essential. 
  1. The Home Office: How will you make office-to-home collaboration seamless? Planning should incorporate how your employees are set up at home for the most productive output, like a good monitor, webcam, keyboard, and mouse. This will keep productivity at the same level as in the office. 

Logitech is ready to get involved in this process from the moment the idea is sparked. Contact our team today and let us find a custom solution for your business.

Head of B2B ANZ at Logitech

Sean is responsible for the Logitech business into B2B across ANZ, both sales and marketing. He engages with C-Suite leaders to understand what their workplace and personal needs looks like, their strategic direction and business continuity plans. This allows him to ensure Logitech ANZ are effective in helping them reach those goals.

With 25 years of industry experience across multiple roles, he is a sought-after speaker and a well-respected leader renowned for building a caring culture. Sean is a true advocate for using video collaboration to break down barriers. He believes that no matter how people participate or where they are - they deserve to be heard. Using Logitech solutions gives people that opportunity.

We help businesses transform the way
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Our organisations have built a solid relationship over many years and found Logitech’s unified communication range of products fit for purpose and quality in design & build. Their plug and play methodology across the technology range works seamlessly with Zoom Video Conferencing - With consistent new and exciting development and innovation across the business.

JEFF ANDERSON
Manager, Meeting Room Experience
Enterprise Technology | National Australia Bank Limited

The Australian Red Cross are an organisation focused on humanitarian values. Everything is about face-to-face relationships and that’s very difficult to do when you have 120 sites across the country. Now, with everyone able to communicate and collaborate face-to-face, it’s changing the way we work.

MARTIN CONNOLY
Head of ICT Operations
The Australian Red Cross

We tried upwards of 10 different manufacturers and devices... Once we found a solution that worked, we put it in every single room so the user experience got a lot better.

ANDREW STOTT
Manager, Service Delivery
Hall & Wilcox

We share a lot of learnings and knowledge with local Tasmanian organisations – they’re looking at the Universities meeting rooms and Video Conferencing solutions to guide the design process of their own spaces.

BRADLEY BORON
Manager, Unified Communications IT Services
University of Tasmania

Our previous video conferencing service was proving inadequate, which was deterring employees from using it. We decided to switch to Logitech. The new solutions have been a real hit with our employees, delivering excellent performance and seamless integration with our existing work collaboration applications. Being able to manage the technology in house also means we can now be proactive in our incident response, meaning less downtime for users.

CARL THOMPSON
Senior Product Manager for Unified Communications
Department for Work and Pensions, British Government

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