We’re slowly getting back to the office. Here’s why.

While no official policy has been imposed by Qubiz, many of my colleagues, myself included, are regularly paying the office a visit. And I’m not referring to the hardcore handful who worked from the office the whole pandemic, but about a more recent trend.

After the soft-opening of our new office building in Oradea (Atelieru’) and our newly renovated and extended office in Cluj, an increasing number of colleagues choose to work from the office – at least a couple of days per week.

Why, one might ask? After all, remote working, more specifically working from the comfort of the home has a number of benefits. For instance, you spend zero time commuting to work. You can wake up at 8:30 and at 9:00 you’re already working – in your pajamas if you so choose. For calls in which you need to show your face, you can pick a shirt from the laundry basket and nobody will notice or care. But joke aside, people often report a higher level of productivity on the one hand, and a better work-life balance on the other. And if you factor in the savings one can make (on gas, lunch, taxi, nice-looking clothes), working from home looks like a no-brainer choice.

And still, people are drawn to the office.

One reason would be the human connection. Even the most introverted of us sometimes enjoy chit chatting ”by the watercooler”. And it’s not only about smalltalk. Live meetings are less awkward, teamwork feels more real, and miscommunication is less likely to happen. I for one really miss workshops with visiting clients and business trips, but that’s another story!

Another aspect is the sneaky aspect of productivity. As I mentioned above, some colleagues say they feel more productive at home – well, for some the exact opposite is true. Being away from the distractions at home (i.e. family) and having a more structured schedule helps them be more focused. Furthermore, for many of my colleagues, especially the newer ones, being in person at the office makes them feel like they belong and that their work matters. To me, the time spent at the office feels more purposeful – I know I have to finish something right there and then.

Finally, quite a few are attracted by the office building itself.

Will this trend continue? It’s very likely that it will, but I don’t think things will get back to pre-pandemic status, but rather we’ll embrace a mixed model with remote working and in-office working being equally accepted.

P.S. Earlier I mentioned the absence of commuting as one of the benefits of working from home. And it’s quite a compelling one! However, I found my walks to and from work to be very therapeutic. They help me get up to speed in the morning and unwind in the afternoon. And it’s good exercise too. Also, kudos to those who bike to work!

Read more articles

Shielding patient data: Top strategies for data privacy in health tech

Published on:
March 21, 2024
Read article

What are the most important Cyber Security trends in 2024?

Published on:
February 22, 2024
Read article

Qubiz at the AHK New Year's Reception 2024

Published on:
February 6, 2024
Read article

Qubiz Internships: From Software Development intern to team member

Published on:
January 9, 2024
Read article

6 Major differences between Enterprise UX and Consumer UX

Published on:
December 14, 2023
Read article

Is your logistics company ready to adopt IoT?

Published on:
December 5, 2023
Read article