Published by Deloitte

Today’s Higher Ed Workplaces are at an Inflection Point

COVID-19 expedited changes in higher education that many predicted would happen over decades, forcing those seemingly distant changes to happen within weeks. Overnight, higher education institutions and their staff were forced to shift to remote work in addition to rethinking the deep-rooted orthodoxies about how and where learning – and the critical work that enables it - is done. Today, colleges and universities remain influenced by the sudden shift to predominantly remote work & remote learning brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The impacts of this transition on productivity, collaboration, and culture for faculty, staff, and students remain unclear, as does the path forward for institutions in terms of how to bring about a tailored adaptive approach and reimagine the campus in the “new normal”. Although initially challenging, COVID-19 has presented a unique opportunity for higher education leaders: an opportunity to assess what has worked in a remote environment (and what hasn’t) and make decisions to proactively shape the future. Many leaders are now looking beyond the impacts of COVID to evaluate how the work, workforce, and workplaces of their core operations can be optimized going forward while continuing to offer a best in-class learning experience and employee experience in a “hybrid campus.”

Alongside these considerations, institutions are evaluating which of their many capabilities and services need to be delivered in person, and when services or enabling functions are more convenient or effective if delivered through an adaptive workplace model that adapts to the changing needs of students, faculty, staff, and other stakeholders. The vision for what the workplace looks like next has moved beyond the traditional binary choice of onsite or telework. An adaptive workplace is a flexible workplace approach that enables faculty and staff to work where they are most productive, engaged, and effective in carrying out research, teaching, and service, depending on the task and the people who are needed to execute it. Institutions change the way the workplace looks by enabling its workforce to do their work wherever they feel most productive and engaged. This human-centered approach to the workplace promotes productivity, efficiency, effectiveness, workforce well-being and a positive workforce experience.

As vaccine developments put the end of the pandemic in sight, they also place institutions at a critical inflection point today. Recognizing the benefits of the adaptive workplace experience, higher education leaders are asking critical questions: How can our institution position itself to capitalize on the current forced virtual experience and become a leading adaptive workplaces employer? And how, at the same time, can it offer unwavering support for, the faculty, staff, and students who are impacted?

This shift will be built on key enablers that drive success in a hybrid environment: navigating virtual collaboration tools and telework platforms, implementing telework policies and procedures that maximize productivity and collaboration while minimizing data security risks, and adapting long-held in-person norms and culture. Institutions that are successful in making this shift will first assess their current landscape, then begin to address high-priority workplace components that impact faculty, staff, students, university finances, and operations.

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