Nationwide Building Society makes the switch to flexible working
By: Lorna, redwigwam
An announcement from Nationwide Building Society to it's 13,000 UK staff this week:
"Our offices will become hubs where teams can meet for creativity, social connection and collaboration."
Wow! What a switch to flexible working!
Under the plan, Nationwide is closing three offices in Swindon, with 3,000 staff either moving to the nearby HQ, working from home, or mixing the two.
Other UK staff may be able to work from their local High Street branch if they prefer, rather than travel to offices.
Download our report: Flexible Futures
We surveyed 300 business leaders and our flexible workforce.
80% of them agreed there is no going back and that the post-pandemic workplace has changed for good.
In a Nationwide survey of staff, 57% said they wanted to work from home full-time after lockdown ends. More than a third - 36% - said they preferred a mix of home and office-based work.
Joe Garner, chief executive of Nationwide, said: "The last year has taught many of us that 'how' we do our jobs is much more important than 'where' we do them from.
"We have listened and learned, and we are now deciding to move forward, not back.
"We are putting our employees in control of where they work from, inviting them to 'locate for their day' depending on what they need to achieve."
This is now typical of big employers everywhere.
Welcome news for all?
What will happen to all those emptying HQs?
