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The pandemic changed work as we know it. While most employees were used to their daily pre-pandemic commute into the office and working side-by-side with their colleagues, much of that has changed. Before the pandemic, only 17% of U.S. employees worked from home five days a week—a number that increased to 44% during the pandemic. 

Meetings became video calls and in-person chats were replaced with Slack conversations. But now that the number of COVID-19 cases is declining and the percentage of vaccinated people is increasing, many remote workers are reevaluating when and how to have their employees return to work in a post-pandemic world. 

One-fifth of employees report already returning to the workplace at least some of the time, and nearly 40% never stopped working on-site at all. As more and more people go back to the office, employees’ number one concern is having clear safety measures in place. 

One thing has become abundantly clear: flexibility is pivotal to successfully bringing employees back to the office. While some companies are using a single entrance and taking temperatures at the door, others are adopting a hybrid model that allows employees to continue working remotely a few days per week. 

No matter their approach, it will be critical to provide office building staff, tenants, and visitors with seamless, contactless building entry and visitor management. That way, people can move quickly through common areas that aren’t overcrowded.

To help make this easier, Latch announced Latch Visitor Express earlier this year. By making guest check-in fast and simple, this visitor management solution will help eliminate congestion in previously crowded lobbies, minimize long and over-crowded lines, and help to quell overcrowding at turnstiles. As a result, guests, visitors, and staff can more effectively social distance for a safer and more streamlined return to office experience.

Beyond visitor entry, technology solutions like Latch for commercial offices will play a critical role in helping companies and manage these new, flexible needs and make it easier to manage access for the whole building. By enabling in-person, hybrid, and remote organizations to effectively collaborate and use office spaces in new ways, Latch is creating a more flexible and better experience for everyone who lives, works, and visits a building. 

To learn more about Latch’s commercial office solutions, contact our Sales Team.