The phrase “modern problems require modern solutions” has been prevalent on the internet recently. While its memetic use provides a quick laugh for many, it’s hard not to see why that phrase seems so applicable to our current lives. Many of us were presented with unprecedented problems to navigate over the last two years and have had to innovate in the face of peril. As we crafted our solutions, we used digital tools to maintain and enhance our homes, social lives, and perhaps the most interesting of all, our workplaces.

With the massive changes that the workplace and workforce have undergone due to the pandemic, many businesses have found themselves needing to digitize their workplace quickly. The modern workplace is here – and if your company hasn’t yet adapted to these changes, it likely will need to do so soon. Let’s learn how to prepare for work to happen virtually, in-person, or in some combination of the two by digitally transforming your office using intuitive workflows, integrations, and technology.

Space Management

Though it may sound counterintuitive to talk about space management in the digital workplace, organizations will still need to efficiently use the space they have on hand both for the hybrid workforce and their physical assets.

With hybrid workers, businesses can use hot-desking and hoteling to digitally ensure that each person who physically comes into the office has a space to work when they need it. These tools also allow employees or teams to reserve temporary workspaces, desks, or rooms for allotted periods, while also ensuring a comprehensive and interactive floor plan that lets managers easily identify the current location of each employee or team.

But space management isn’t just about people; it is also about the physical assets stored on-site, such as computers, phones, other technology, and more. Intra offers a simple solution for efficiently managing space by organizing and tracking assets. The Asset Logistics workflow simplifies and expedites the management of physical assets, keeping tabs on where they are when they need to be disposed of/recycled and replaced.

IoT Devices

As the pandemic unfolded, questions of how to maintain facility safety and business continuity came to the forefront. These two ideals can be seemingly at odds with each other, especially in this current moment. Thankfully, advanced technology allows us to integrate the two seamlessly. IoT devices, powered by the Internet of Things, enable devices to engage and communicate with very little human assistance. Workplaces have fully optimized these devices to make a series of decisions that allow the workplace to be more efficient and cost-effective. The devices can make suggestions ranging from the optimal temperature conditions for your space to the most cost-effective restocking strategies and sustainable office amenity usage, which is more critical now that offices may have fewer people present within buildings.

One of the more interesting applications for IoT devices involves sensors that monitor and track the location of each employee and their proximity to one another. These smart sensors have been vital for social distancing in the office and have allowed facility managers to monitor the real-time movement of people in their office space. A technology like this allows for an enhanced experience that ensures the safety of everyone present.

Request Management

Though workplaces have adopted different models for virtual, hybrid, and in-person work over the past year, they still all have one thing in common: the need to manage workplace requests. This task has become significantly more difficult for offices that have some degree of virtual work, which is why digitizing this process is a must to future-proof against other events that may send the workforce home. SCLogic’s Workplace Request Management tool provides a platform to streamline and prioritize requests, dispatch service workers, confirm request completions, and manage productivity – all through digital and web-based means. Rather than having a mountain of requests in various places, this workflow centralizes them into one online hub that can be managed from home or office. Workplace Request Management provides a streamlined and transparent process with automatic notifications and assignments, making each step visible to everyone involved – from initial request to fulfillment.

Visitor Management

While some organizations may have the luxury of keeping their workforce fully remote, others have needed to remain or resume in-person hours due to the nature of their work. Among that group, some have had to craft rigorous visitor policies to ensure that on-site employees and guests remain safe. Now more than ever, offices must keep track of visitors to ensure that distance standards are maintained, and contact tracing can occur should there be COVID exposure. The Intra Visitor Tracking Workflow digitizes this tracking by giving users access to configurable visitor request forms, ID badges, and reports detailing visitor duration, location, and past visit history. Furthermore, the system centralizes all requests and visits (across multiple sites) into a single, searchable database.

Real-Time Analytics

The last piece of your digital transformation should be the usage of real-time analytics. While it may be convenient to use everyday knowledge and experience to make decisions about your workplace, smart facilities staff know they must lead with data. More times than not, facilities use several software applications and platforms to perform daily tasks within their space. Thus a dearth of information is being generated; you must harvest that data and analyze it. Facility management software allows you to collect data and analyze it in a single user interface. Integrations with other software like your ERP system, Space Management, and SSO allow you to take things a step further to ensure that all of your data is accessible. All of these tools will enable you to make informed decisions as you evaluate the value of your operation, assess department performance, and identify where changes need to be made.

How has your team digitized your workplace? Let us know. Email us at [email protected].