Supporting a community of remote workers during COVID-19 is challenging, but as the office sector adapts to the new normal, some of Australia’s landlords are turning to technology for help.
Jon Lesquereux, Equiem’s regional head of Asia Pacific, says “the world is witnessing one of the most rapid and profound changes to the way commercial real estate is utilised in a generation”.
“Companies are being forced to adopt new ways of working and managing their staff. Individuals are battling the isolation, frustration and monotony of working from home. And landlords are having to completely rethink the service they provide for tenants,” Lesquereux says.
“While it’s impossible to predict what the next few months will look like, we do know both owners and occupiers will need stability and support.”
Established in Melbourne in 2011, Equiem now powers more than five million sqm of real estate globally with its market-leading commercial tenant experience technology. More than 175,000 people use Equiem’s app or desktop platform.
Lesquereux says his team has been “working around the clock” to respond to Covid-19, and has rolled out a new product, Remote, to help landlords keep their tenant communities connected and engaged.
Remote acts as a virtual bridge between owner and occupier during the Covid-19 shutdown, allowing for easy communication between both parties, access to work-from-home resources to support HR teams, and incentive programs to help retailers generate cash flow during this difficult time.
The platform also offers Remote’s offers a host of virtual amenities and digital services designed to keep occupiers connected, healthy and productive.
There are a host of live-streamed experiences – fitness classes, meditation sessions, cooking lessons and tutorials on new skills – as well as trivia contents, virtual happy hours and book clubs to “keep the elevator conversations going,” Lesquereux explains.
Remote’s first community bingo event was a huge hit with the 90-plus participants, while the virtual Easter egg hunt saw chocolate goodies home-delivered to lucky winners.
Remote’s e-commerce and marketing tools share deals, offers and promotions to support local retailers and service providers, while a content library is populated with ready-to-go articles on health and wellbeing, financial management, and staying productive while working at home.
The feedback from users has been overwhelmingly positive. “It definitely helps me to feel connected outside of my home and my laptop screen,” says one user.
Content templates help building owners and property managers produce essential communications on everything from cleaning policies to changes to building access. Polls, surveys and analytics help landlords track attitudes and understand pain points.
“We introduced Remote as a solution while people work from home, but it will also help owners and occupiers in the transition back to the office,” Lesquereux explains.
“The need for building owners to communicate with and support their customers has never been greater. It’s this communication and service now that will set the tone for the new normal afterwards.”
Learn more about how Equiem Remote can help you deliver virtual amenities, digital services and effective communication to your community, ensuring every member is connected, productive and healthy.