The changing shape of the NZ workplace

​The events of 2020 have triggered many transformation conversations – including what we believe our workplaces should look like in the future.

Of top of mind right now is where we want our teams to be physically located each day. Although most of the country has returned to the office, the need for a more mobile workforce will likely be big component of the new normal. With the right technology and planning, we’re seeing plenty of organisations use these new arrangements to their advantage.

Collaboration is in - hot desks are out

With a third of all employees in NZ already enjoying some form of flexible work-from-home arrangement as recently as 2019, we can expect even more of our workforce to be working remotely in the future. The good news is, while everyone adjusts at different speeds, your workforce will grow to thrive in these environments.

This year has put business continuity plans to the test and there will logically be questions about the need to rely on only physical workplaces. Particularly when we’ve seen our teams take to online collaboration and actually improve their productivity.

Many of our clients have adopted Teams and Microsoft Whiteboard, allowing users to collaborate on shared whiteboards using devices including the HP EliteBook x360, powered by the 10th Gen Intel Core i5 and the HP Elite X2, powered by 8th Gen quad-core Intel® Core™ processor.

The move from hot desking and flexible seating arrangements to work from home has been welcomed by many users. Through the course of this year, reports have emerged that organisations in New Zealand are abandoning activity-based workspaces in favour of fixed seating to help reduce the potential for unchecked community spread. Likewise, fashionable co-working desks, booths and huddle spaces have been supplanted by team members’ own sofas as they switch to virtual collaboration spaces – which for many has been a boon for productivity.

From a technology perspective, there are variety of considerations, including:

• How do we keep an increasingly mobile and remote workforce secure and productive?
• How do we ensure that each employee has the tools and technology to perform their role proficiently in any location?
• Are employees able to seamlessly connect between different workstations at their desk at home or back in the office?
• How do you manage all these services seamlessly without creating new costs and complexity for your IT teams?

Accessibility benefits everyone 

We see many organisations creating programs to extend opportunities for people with disabilities to join their team. With things like workplace desks becoming less and less essential, we can access the best and brightest minds regardless of where they live or their physical abilities.

In 2020, The Laptop Company has been assisting organisations throughout NZ to achieve flexible workplace transformations that prepare them for the workforce demands of the future. We offer a range of transformation services, including:

• switching teams from desktop workstations to laptops
• replicating work desk setups at home and work
• deploying new applications including Teams and Zoom

We’ve also been making it easier for employers to equip and manage users and their devices with services including

• Remote management services for user devices including software and operating systems
• Web portals for staff members to order work-from-home gear with home delivery
• Active management of HP Security to protect information and privacy when outside workplace and to detect potential threats
• Device health monitoring and remote deactivation capability
• Cloud migration services to allow secure anywhere-access

Are you ready to transform your workplace?

Through our partnership with HP and The Laptop Company’s remote management tools, we help organisations to transform for the future with powerful and secure HP devices powered by Intel® processors. Get in touch with us today to begin optimising your device fleet with HP and The Laptop Company. A complete solution that combines hardware, support, proactive management, and services for every stage of your users’ device lifecycles.

Browse our HP devices