Office Life in 2025 and Beyond

Recent real time experiences have shown how the workplace culture has changed & developed over the last few years. Discussing with both business owners & industry professionals, we explore what changes have impacted the traditional business model & which trends show where the workplace is heading next.

Pre-2020: A Buoyant Market

Over the past six years, it is accepted that the UK workplace landscape has undergone a dramatic transformation. Employers have taken unprecedented steps to adapt their operations, ensuring resilience in the face of many shifting global challenges, from economic instability and geopolitical uncertainty taking experience from the COVID 19 pandemic.

Prior to 2020, the commercial office sector was thriving, accommodation levels were buoyant & occupancy rates were high. Workplace design & implementation was centred around collaboration, creativity & team synergy.  Central focus was on team-based work zones & flexible breakout areas, which could adapt to drop in workspaces. Quiet working zones, alongside wellness areas were all considered to boost staff morale & productivity. These design principles encouraged innovation & communication. At the same time, trends such as hot desking, hotelling were increasingly being introduced to maximise accommodation occupancy levels. Businesses ensured that their net lettable office space was fulfilled to its maximum. The workplace landscape had become a busy, dynamic & stimulating environment.

 The Catalyst

The spreading of Covid19 from January 2020 brought uncertainty to how the pandemic would affect all business across the UK.

Within the space of 3 months office occupancy was minimal, all previous implementation ideas of collaboration, group communications, team bonding all became redundant. Separation, social distancing all made its mark. Organisations had to rapidly adapt—from how they managed office space to how they supported their workforce remotely.  Remote working technology, social distancing protocols, desk screens, one-way systems, hand sanitiser stations all had become the norm. As time progressed staff quickly adjusted to new working technologies & embraced the new flexible working arrangements.

As leases expired, considerations focused on smaller, more flexible office spaces. The office was shifting from a permanent base to a flexible drop in environment designed for flexibility & adaptability. Hybrid working became essential with organisations starting to review & assess their property strategies.

Remote working is it the future?

As hybrid working emerged as the new normal, while not without its challenges, it will be here to stay. Typically, most of us have embraced this in one form or another. Our experiences show that a high proportion of employees still enjoy the freedom of remote working. However, workplace interaction & the day-to-day social aspects of office life is also missed.

Employers also responded that a workforce that thrives on personal interaction, problem solving, and working collaboratively are a part of an organisation that will boost productivity & staff wellbeing.

When workplaces are thoughtfully designed, they offer something remote work cannot: It can foster & promote human connection, sparks creativity, and strengthens team dynamics. The social fabric of the office—those spontaneous interactions & on the hoof problem solving, shared ideas—is difficult to replicate on a video call.

Findings: What are we seeing now?

Through workplace studies, a clear trend has emerged. Businesses are encouraging a return to the office, in recognising tangible benefits, to staff productivity, communication & team interaction.

Cautiously, organisations are also assessing their property portfolio, exploring how spaces can be optimised, not only to satisfy business need, but also to better support a changing flexible workforce.

Businesses are responding to these changes, becoming increasingly flexible on core employment hours, & times of remote working. We are seeing that core office core office hours are slowly becoming a thing of the past, with both employers & employees accepting that work & personal time will slowly merge into a flexible working regime. These issues must be considered in a new workplace to ensure a productive content workforce. We have also seen working practises become more diverse & dynamic as the workplace is a measurable component as well staff employment benefits.

Looking ahead: The workplace in the next 5 years

The workplace is not redundant, its evolving, it’s always evolved. History demonstrates from the 18th Century Industrial Revolution where there was need to accommodate clerical work, through to mid 20th Century, with the introduction of cellular spaces for privacy moving into open plan areas, offices needed to respond to changes in technologies & work culture. Organisations will always adapt to meet the need of modern business. Over time the 9-5 traditional office model will undoubtedly fade, but in its place, we will see dynamic hybrid spaces where work & social aspects morph, reshaping how people communicate, collaborate & connect all for the benefit of organisations & employee own self being.

This is where the future of the workplace lies. Its ability to be to promote a quality working environment to enrich, engage, and inspire everyone who works within it. It should be a place where people want to be. It should serve as an organisational recruitable asset. To be a proud reflection of its customs & values & where people can be proud of the organisation they represent & promote with others who have the opportunity who engage with it.

Steve Thompson

Design Director at Sequel Consulting Ltd