Real estate resumes hybrid working as WFH guidance ends

Most professionals at the major real estate agencies are set to return to the office from today, after the government scrapped its work-from-home guidance last week. Alistair Elliott, senior partner and group chairman at Knight Frank, described the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions in England as “a relief”. “We’ve really got to assume that this is now the point of no return and we can gear up to getting our cities back to life, which is much-needed,” he added. “I look forward to seeing our people return to the office and for us to restart our dynamic working journey, which was in train prior to the pandemic. This will see our people empowered to work from wherever they can achieve the best results for our customers and clients, while also embracing the all-important connectivity and sense of community that our offices promote.” Richard Rees, managing director of Savills UK, said that office working is “very much encouraged” across the firm’s offices in England, as its staff “benefit from working together in person to support each other and provide an excellent service to clients”. Rees added that Savills will maintain precautions including wearing face masks on public transport, recommending lateral flow testing before attending offices and adhering to self-isolation rules in line with guidance for Covid symptoms, close contacts and positive cases. “We will also provide support for those who are cautious about returning to our offices as we put back into practice hybrid ways of working,” he said. “Fundamental importance” of offices Similarly, Jason Sibthorpe, principal and president UK at Avison Young, said the business is “encouraging a return to the office, even if it’s not five days a week”. “We believe in the fundamental importance of our offices – being together in our spaces is good for teams, particularly helpful for new starters and graduates, and provides a shared experience that supports our culture,” said Sibthorpe. He added that he wanted to “empower” people to “find a healthy balance that works for them”. Elsewhere, Cushman & Wakefield is among the minority that are officially shifting back to office-working at a slightly later date. The agent confirmed it will officially revert to standard working patterns from next week (31 January), with staff expected to spend most of their working week with colleagues and clients either at its offices or on-site, depending on their roles. In the meantime it will retain precautionary control measures across its offices, including upgraded ventilation, flexible start and finish times to avoid peak travel, daily health “check-ins” via app, masks encouraged in public areas, daily desk booking and enhanced cleaning. Hybrid strategies In all cases, firms are using a hybrid working model as staff return to the workplace. Etienne Prongué, chief executive of BNP Paribas Real Estate, said: “Throughout Plan B the majority of our offices have remained open for those who have needed them. However, from Monday, in England we will begin our transition back to the hybrid working arrangements which were in place previously.” BNP PRE said staff using hybrid working at its headquarters and commercial offices will be asked to spend at least two to three days a week in the office, with flexibility subject to discussion with line managers. “In our larger offices we will provide dedicated areas with increased social distancing measures to support employee needs,” said Prongué. “We will also continue with our Covid safety measures, which include wearing masks in public areas and increased cleaning protocols.” A spokesman for CBRE said: “Following the government guidance announced last week, we are looking forward to welcoming all of our people back to our workplaces [from today], with employees implementing our hybrid working strategy introduced last year.” Also encouraging flexibility during the return is JLL, where a spokesman said: “JLL’s approach has always been in line with government Covid guidance, and so following the lifting of restrictions our offices in England are open to use. We encourage our people to work flexibly and find the best way of working to suit them, as we adapt to this next phase coming out of the pandemic.” “Full capacity” At Gerald Eve, employees can work from home two days a week under guidelines published last year. The firm will also ask staff to test for Covid-19 regularly. Helen Foley, HR director at Gerald Eve, said: “Our hybrid working policy offers flexibility to our employees, who can work around core hours, which can be used to help maintain a work-life balance as well as to avoid rush hour on public transport when travelling to the office.” Some firms have already seen a robust return to the office, with Colliers noting that some of its office floors are “back to full capacity”. A spokesman for the firm added: “We continue to work within our agile working framework, which sees our people in the office for the majority of the week, with the rest of the time a mix of client meetings, site visits and remote working.” “Point of no return” At Allsop, employees will return to working practices put in place last summer before Plan B, in which the majority of staff worked in offices and followed a social distancing protocol, with Perspex desk divider screens and other measures in place. Scott Tyler, senior partner at Allsop, said: “Being a people-oriented business, we look forward to welcoming more of our team members into the office following the recent changes to government guidance on office working.” Meanwhile, Montagu Evans has pledged to “continue to evolve” its approach to hybrid working as staff return to its offices in London and Manchester. “It is key that we get this right for our people and for our clients, who all benefit from coming together in a space where they can collaborate and be creative,” said HR director Victoria Thompson. “When it comes to the complex challenges we’re dealing with, it is critical that our people get the opportunity to exchange views and insight in person. You simply can’t join the dots as well on a Teams call as you can face-to-face, so as well as it has been working for the past 20 months, we’re looking forward to being back.” To send feedback, e-mail pui-guan.man@eg.co.uk or tweet @PuiGuanM or @EGPropertyNews Image © George Cracknell Wright/LNP/Shutterstock