“Picking how and where you’re going to work is going to be as easy as ordering groceries on Amazon.”
Corinne Murray, Director of Workplace Strategy at RXR Realty
The pandemic has brought an urgent importance to workplace technology as companies struggle to re-examine their space needs. In line with this timely topic, our Senior VP of Workplace Technology Simon Davis moderated a webinar on the “Bold Predictions for Workplace Technology in 2021 and Beyond.”
Our panel discussion included the following experts in the real estate space:
- Corinne Murray from RXR Realty
- Steve Weikal from the MIT Center for Real Estate
- James Dearsley from Unissu
In today’s pandemic world where remote and hybrid work are more prevalent, the role of workplace technology is now becoming more essential than ever before. Instead of just being viewed as a nice-to-haves, technology such as tenant engagement apps and elevator booking tools are now increasingly considered as workplace essentials.
James Dearsley observes how before the pandemic, venture capitalists usually determined where the real estate industry should go, but now commercial real estate must now be marketed to consumers as well who have more options. As Corinne Murray describes, “Picking how and where you’re going to work is going to be as easy as ordering groceries on Amazon.” She notes how the future of work could involve choosing between a home office, coworking space and even an AR/VR reality where we can design our own workstations.
With this increase in working choices, Steve Weikal imagines new data sources being added in the future, which will need to analyzed in different ways. As he remarks, “Qualitative data is useful, but quantitative data is crucial.” For now, workplaces are deciding whether to add more space, keep the same space or downsize which will depend on many factors such as the industry, employee size, culture and geography of the workplace.
Thanks to our wonderful speakers for their insight. And shout-out to RE: Connect at Unissu for hosting this event!
Note: You can make a free Unissu account to view the full event recording here: https://events.unissu.com/reconnect-march-2021/session/1058/bold-predictions-for-workplace-technology-in-2021-and-beyond
