The long-awaited return to the offices

A question that has often been imposed in business circles and is more relevant nowadays than ever in the previous year is when we do return to the offices and whether a return to the established and accepted corporate culture is possible. Despite all the predictions and expectations, the real estate market has recovered in most segments and recorded the increase from mid-2020, therefore the last year was marked by the increased construction activities in Belgrade when the construction of 10 office buildings was completed which resulted in an additional offer of nearly 100,000 sq m of office space.

This year and changes at the global level have brought a completely new perspective in work organization of international and local companies in our market. Although in the previous period many companies, at least for a limited time, in process of adapting to current situation partially or dominantly transitioning to alternative work from home, today the return of employees to offices almost becomes as an imperative. The challenges that companies faced were above all in finding innovative ways for managing remote work and achieving goals within new framework. Redefining work organization, optimal use and rearrangement of office space to meet the needs of future business represent the backbone in making strategic decisions that companies have to make when considering return of employees to the offices. According to Cushman & Wakefield survey conducted with its team in all offices in the EMEA region even 71% of all employees find it easier to focus on work while working from office, whereas a lack of personal contact and a possibility of connection to others are perceived as the main negative factors while working from home. Even 47% of employees who do the work in which creativity is dominant said that their creative process is diminished while working from home. Also, there is a significant cause-effect link between return to the office and return to normal life. While at first work from home seemed as an optimal solution under the given circumstances, today many companies are considering coming back to the offices in full capacity or through implementation of structural and organizational changes within the existing office space adapted to new working conditions. For that very reason there are many requests for office spaces that offer more flexible solutions, new design of work stations strictly ensuring a safety of employees as well as more requirements for even bigger office space for specific industries compared to the period before the pandemic.

– Due to the market changes initiated by global pandemic, and due to a significantly larger offer of office space in Belgrade, the company CBS International provides full brokerage support in renegotiation of the current lease agreements, as well as identification of new options in the market that are better suited to tailored needs of the clients’ new business organization. Also, CBS project management team during 2020 was additionally engaged in finding the most adequate interior design solutions due to changed clients’ needs and in improvement of existing solutions as well as in adaptation of current capacities in accordance with safety measures of social distance, ensuring a healthy workplace which supports the comeback of the employees to the offices – said Goran Zivkovic, Managing Director of CBS International.

An inspiring environment, interaction between employees, increased productivity, informal learning processes and creativity that teamwork brings are still the key factors which cannot be neglected when return to the office is being considered.

CBS International Beograd

Cushman&Wakefield Forton international d.o.o. Beograd

CBS International

Cushman and Wakefield

Goran Živković

office space

work from home

office space lease

office space adaptation