As Americans slowly return to the office, there is one thing many employees would rather not see return to normal: the 9-to-5 office schedule and the daily commute that comes with it. They have come to enjoy workplace flexibility, and their resounding demand for flexible workspaces has employers re-examining the traditional office model.

For enterprise organizations with a large real estate footprint, hybrid strategies such as hub-and-spoke, which combines a conventional headquarters office with a network of distributed, flexible offices, are catching on.

Schneider Electric, a multinational company providing energy and automation digital solutions, was already trending toward offering more modern offices. According to the company's head of real estate, Karen McClellan, the coronavirus pandemic threw this shift into high gear, prompting a complete rethink of the company's satellite or "spoke" offices, among other changes.

"We have sales people all across the country," McClellan said in a recent interview. "We had over 100 small offices, and we just said, 'That’s a lot of leases and paperwork and landlords and operating expenses.' We realized that just doesn’t make sense at all: 'Let’s go for a Class-A space on a shorter-term lease that is very flexible.'"

In a webinar June 24 at 11:30 a.m. ET, McClellan and Colliers International Vice President of Account Management Scott Moore will join Upflex Senior Vice President of Enterprise Workplace Solutions Liassine Talbi to share intel on Schneider's new model and to discuss 2021's workspace trends for enterprise companies at large.

The trio will explore Schneider's partnership with technology platform and flex space marketplace Upflex, offering some of Schneider's more than 10,000 U.S. employees access to a network of thousands of coworking spaces, all managed in one monthly invoice and via one booking platform. Panelists will also zoom out for a conversation on the challenges and solutions in enterprise workspace globally, exploring flex space trends from the perspectives of employee happiness, sustainability and productivity.

“As companies plot their return to the office, hybrid and flex workspace strategies are taking root as the new normal and, suddenly, this ability to work remotely isn’t just a perk for talent anymore — it’s an expectation,” said Mike LaRosa, a flex space expert and the founder of Coworkaholic, who will moderate the panel. “This ‘future of work’ we’ve been talking about is now, and enterprise companies, along with real estate services firms, are already planning for what’s next.”

Panelists will discuss:

• How enterprise organizations are developing and rolling out hybrid work policies with a focus on operations and employee productivity.

• How emerging real estate technology is rising to meet companies' workspace challenges in a hybrid workspace era and what lies ahead.

• How Schneider Electric is leveraging Upflex's flexible workspace platform and network to meet sustainability goals.

• The partnership among Schneider Electric, Colliers and Upflex and plans for the future.

To learn how enterprise companies are leveraging Upflex's hub-and-spoke and other hybrid solutions, register for the webinar here.

This article was produced in collaboration between Upflex and Studio B. Bisnow news staff was not involved in the production of this content.

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