Mapping the blueprint for Hong Kong's office of the future

From remote work and virtual conferences to employee wellness efforts and workplace flexibility, the pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we do business

Business processes have gone through many changes since the beginning of the pandemic, and not everything will return to normal after it ends

BySCMP Events

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(L-R): Joanne Ho, Chief Operating Officer - Fung Academy, Fung Group; Hong Qiu, Managing Director & Chief Operating Officer, Lazard Greater China; Tom Gaffney, Regional Managing Director, CBRE Hong Kong; and Cynthia Chung, Partner, Deacons. Photo by: Alex Ma

Published: 3:04pm, 21 Jun 2021Updated: 5:46pm, 22 Jun 2021

From remote work and virtual conferences to employee wellness efforts and workplace flexibility, the pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we do business. With advanced digitalisation and the implementation of new processes, businesses are finding some of the changes that are actually beneficial, and the hybrid office model might be here to stay.

South China Morning Post’s China Conference: Hong Kong continues to highlight the successful aspects of the remote working model and to discuss what the office of the future will look like in Hong Kong. This panel is moderated by Denise Tsang, Hong Kong News Editor at South China Morning Post.

Generously sharing their insight in this discussion are panellists: Cynthia Chung, Partner at Deacons, Tom Gaffney, Regional Managing Director of CBRE Hong Kong, Joanne Ho, Chief Operating Officer at Fung Academy of Fung Group, and Hong Qiu, Managing Director & Chief Operating Officer of Lazard Greater China.

(L-R): Denise Tsang (moderator), Hong Kong News Editor, SCMP; Cynthia Chung, Partner, Deacons; Tom Gaffney, Regional Managing Director, CBRE Hong Kong; Joanne Ho, Chief Operating Officer - Fung Academy, Fung Group; and Hong Qiu, Managing Director & Chief Operating Officer, Lazard Greater China discussed Hong Kong’s office of the future.

Business processes have gone through many changes since the beginning of the pandemic, and not everything will return to normal after it ends. The panel comments on this topic and notes that while face-to-face meetings are a necessity for many of them in certain situations, maintaining the flexibility that comes with remote work is also on their list of priorities.

With the switch to remote work early on in the pandemic, technical systems and IT needed to be prioritised in order to enable staff to work from home. As Hong Qiu said about the need for functional and efficient technology, “the most important thing is to have very effective infrastructure support.” This increased focus on digitalisation has benefited companies in many ways, and will allow for a solid hybrid framework even after the pandemic has ended.