Hybrid trends inspire office workers post-pandemic: experts

The latest post-pandemic workplace trends are taking clearer shape worldwide with the way people are working changing towards a purpose-driven future, and Vietnam needs to keep up in order to remain competitive, experts said at a conference on Wednesday.

“Lots of people around the world have complained about working from home after the pandemic and would prefer to work from the office,” said Simon Raper, head of workplace consulting, Asia-Pacific cross-border tenant advisory at Savills Singapore, during the event in Ho Chi Minh City, which was themed "redefining the office of the future".

He noted that a study by Savills Singapore, to be published soon, found one of the key emerging trends in today’s Asia-Pacific workplace is a shift from individual space to collaborative and social space.

Another finding was a bolder focus on distinctive employee experience and wellness to boost culture and creativity.

“We’ve seen that people’s complaints about working from home include shaky Wi-Fi, connections, and a lack of meetings, collaboration or space, along with indoor air quality,” Raper said. “People love talking, joking, laughing, sharing some food, and the like, to be creative.”

Tran Thu Hang, human resources director at the Canadian-backed life insurer Sun Life Vietnam, said her company’s head office in HCMC’s District 3 has already completed an overall facelift to become a hybrid office with a futuristic design.

“We aim to unlock the potential of our staff at work. They have become very creative,” she said. “Our new office has become a place for togetherness and happiness. Not just for work, our staff can bring their families to the workplace for special occasions enjoy sharing with friends.”

Nicolo Zanelli, CEO of headhunting firm Michael Page Vietnam, said his company and Keppel Land Vietnam co-held the event to help businesses in the country catch up with new designs for today’s working offices.

“Vietnam’s workplaces of today are characterized by a growing emphasis on flexibility, collaboration, and technology,” he said.

The head hunter noted that after the work-from-home period, employees are seeking different remote work options, flexible schedules, and a work-life balance that enables them to pursue personal and professional goals at the same time.

“Companies that can offer these benefits are more likely to attract and retain top talent.”

Zanelli also stressed that collaboration has become a critical element of workplace culture in Vietnam, and the ability to work in teams and share ideas effectively is highly valued.

Property developer Keppel Land Vietnam, part of Singaporean conglomerate Keppel Corporation, said its Saigon Centre building in HCMC’s District 1 has been catering to its tenants’ changing needs post-pandemic.

“We have deployed WhatPod, an on-demand private workspace facility at convenient locations across the city to support the growing needs of today’s urbanites,” Saigon Centre general director Richard Tay told the event.

He joked: “This facility offers privacy enough for an urbanite and his girlfriend to quarrel with each other.”

In the next phase at the Saigon Centre, which is phase three, the firm will add another 102,000 square meters of space including office, retail, and hotel components to provide a wider array of offerings for our tenants.

The third phase is still waiting for regulatory approval, Tay said. To date, the Saigon Centre has two Grade A office towers with 195 units of Sedona Suites serviced apartments and a retail podium offering more than 400 international and Vietnamese brands, including the leading Japanese department store, Takashimaya.