COMMENT
THE REAWAKENED WORKPLACE
Paul Smith, Director at Montfort Consultants says both caterers’ and clients’ mindsets will need to change to
meet long-term workplace catering needs
While at the time of writing there are a
plethora of news articles indicating
that sta will not be rushing back to o ices in
the immediate future, sooner or later more
organisations will be looking to ‘reawaken’ their
o ices and workplace environments. As such,
attention is turning to how these environments
will need to change in both the short and longer
term. Much has been written and applied in
relation to, what we all hope, will be the shortterm
COVID-19 requirements for workplace
catering, including delivered and grab and go
menu choices, increased health and safety,
shi based lunches, technologically enabled
operations etc. But what about the longer term
and ensuring the future workplace food and
beverage experience is agile, customer centric and
commercially sustainable?
From discussions with corporate clients and
colleagues across the industry there are some
common themes and considerations in relation to
their future workplace environments. Specifically,
o ice populations are unlikely to be at full occupancy
any time in the short to mid term. Of course, there
are exceptions with some o ice jobs that cannot
be undertaken remotely as well as a number
of organisations that have seen the benefits of
increased permanent remote working and are
looking at rationalising their o ice accommodation
and wider portfolio, not least to reduce operating
costs.
SO WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN FOR
WORKPLACE CATERING?
This radical change in how o ices may be utilised In
the future has a wide reaching impact on food and
drink in the workplace. Specifically, less workforce on
site means less opportunity for workplace catering.
To compound this the frequency that employees
and occupiers may be on site or within o ices may
well be less consistent, which will make predicting
catering demand more di icult. As such, for all onsite
catering facilities, and particularly larger ones,
increased catering costs would appear likely. But
does this really have to be the case?
Depending on whom you talk to there are a few
di erent opinions, and we have set out some of these
broader views below:
What is the future of workplace catering post
COVID-19?
» Organisations will want to invest more in their
employees’ wellbeing now and a quality workplace
foodservice provision is essential to this.
14 OCTOBER 2020
» The workplace catering environment is a much
more controlled environment than the food and drink
operations on the high street, and therefore, it will be
essential to maintain an in house catering provision for
the safety and wellbeing of employees.
» Ultimately, the new environmental conditions,
combined with potentially lower building occupancy
is going to cost more and sta catering subsidies will
need to increase.
» The old workplace contract catering model is
broken and will need replacing.
» A substantially increased cost base for the long term
is not a viable commercial proposition. Caterers will
need to be much more agile.
These are just a few views we have heard, and for
some organisations with workplace catering services
many of these views may be relevant. However, we
believe that the current conditions have presented
an opportunity for many organisations to review
not just their workplace catering provision but also
their overall workplace strategy and how the food
and drink experience is integrated within it. Due
consideration will also need to be given to who will
operate this remodelled environment along with
ensuring they have the relevant competencies,
appropriate infrastructure and importantly, the
correct cultural mind-set and attitude to agile
working.
INTEGRATED, AGILE WORK & SOCIAL SPACES
Our work over the years has strongly embraced the
introduction of more agile, integrated operating
concepts and management models able to flex to
changing daily demands while also reflecting wider
eating, drinking and social trends. Integrated, agile
work and social spaces enabling rapid connection
and collaboration with peers combined with an all
day food and drink experience, is becoming the
norm in a great many workplace environments. In
fact, the shi was well-established pre COVID-19
and will, in our opinion, become the new model for
many workplaces. These multipurpose coworking
locations provide a ‘win win’ for employers and real
estate owners by optimising space and costs as well
as providing employees and occupiers with a service
that mirrors how they live and spend their time out
of work. Although this is just one model…
CHOICE & FLEXIBILITY
A number of business parks have been at the
forefront of recognising the importance of
placemaking to enhance the occupier experience
with ‘hospitality’ a significant part of the DNA. While
the nature of many of these businesses’ permanent
on-site food & beverage o ers is changing so is the
overall ‘foodservice’ strategy, with revolving street
food trucks now a carefully orchestrated, regular
feature at business parks up and down the country.
For those locations with smaller populations this
type of o er may be su icient on its own, while for
larger business parks it is part of the broader strategy
to provide choice and experience.
DELIVERED SERVICES
A number of companies already provided a delivered
in catering o er, pre COVID-19, however, the
pandemic has resulted in some contract caterers
re-examining their models and introducing quality
delivered in catering as an alternative to the main
sta dining o er. High street operators are also
now looking to get a bigger piece of the workplace
action partnering with delivery companies to o er a
delivered in service.
AUTOMATION
Fully automated self-help and self-pay micro-markets
provide further flexibility for those workplace
locations not just with low or inconsistent footfall or
as an out of hours provision but can also form part of a
wider food and beverage strategy, providing increased
choice for locations with higher populations.
THE FUTURE?
While it is appreciated that some organisations
may be prepared to pay higher costs and subsidies
it is unlikely to be palatable or sustainable for
many others. The future is about a lot more than
‘foodservice’, it has been for a long time. Now
really is a good opportunity for organisations to
re-evaluate and redefine how the workplace eating
and drinking experience is integrated into their wider
workplace strategy and occupier experience.
ADVICE & OPINION