Workplace: IWFM webinar discusses transforming the future of work with Nationwide

News

Episode 59 of our Navigating turbulent times webinar series looked at Nationwide Building Society’s shift to flexible working, which was launched in March 2021. In conversation with two key members of Nationwide’s Property Services Team - Andrew Tuck, Head of Workplace Services, and Patrick O’Farrell, Head of Transition/Transformation - the webinar examined what drove the change, how it was carried out and the challenges faced in enabling most of Nationwide’s 18,000 staff to ‘work anywhere’.

The pandemic broke the working from home taboo, forcing organisations to embrace different, more flexible ways of working and to trust their people. That Nationwide - like many others - were able to adapt so quickly, keeping their services running with little impact on the customer experience, led to its Chief Executive, Joe Garner, stating: ‘How we do our jobs is much more important than where we do them from. We are putting our employees in control of where they work from, depending on what they need to achieve.’

Reflecting the clear message that work is an activity not a destination, the webinar looked at how Nationwide approached the challenge facing many organisations; that of ensuring that the workspace and the workspace experience offers employees genuine flexibility and choice to do their best possible work, wherever they work. Our panellists explained how their approach to the elements of workplace - culture, workspace and IT - in the new strategy sought to achieve the vision of choice that works for the organisation’s values and needs, as well as for its employees

Some of the key points discussed by the panel were:

• The role of FMs: key to the successful implementation of the strategy, Nationwide’s FM team are now seen throughout the organisation as an enabler and inextricably linked to the success of the business; this has led to FM having a role in investment and strategy decisions - and the team has proven that it can also work remotely
• The corporate workplace: this must now be different; more welcoming, reassuring, inclusive, comfortable and service driven, with more space for collaboration, connecting and socialising. Nationwide have introduced ‘workplace hosts’ to ensure building users have what they need to do their best work
• Measuring success: by creating an open environment based on trust, Nationwide encourages ongoing feedback from all colleagues, and carry out regular staff surveys
• Risk factors of flexible/remote working: not maintaining corporate values, cohesion and culture; not enabling learning, mentoring, training and career progression; not ensuring the workplace experience enables recruitment and retention of talent`
• Future challenges and opportunities: understanding the wellbeing of workers and their families, determining ideal space requirements, measuring productivity, continuing to meet and influence the needs of the business.

You can watch the recording of the webinar, Transforming the future of work: in conversation with Nationwide, by clicking here.