Death of the office? A time for change.

written by Gianpiero Furfaro FRI

Managing Broker at Sotheby’s International Realty Canada

Originally published on May 17, 2020 by The Economist: https://www.1843magazine.com/features/death-of-the-office

This interesting article just captured my attention. In addition to questioning the need for offices, there is a lot of chatter about how our world will change. When the dust settles, will this perception be a colossal exaggeration? One of the most difficult aspects of change is reversion elasticity. The stronger the threat, the more drastic the change but the quicker we revert once that threat is gone; change needs time.

Remember the challenges Apple had with the US government to bring manufacturing back to the states? Short answer: It wasn’t economical and human equity is a non-issue overseas than it was in the States. This wasn’t novel in any respect to the Majority World. Most economic ideologies fall under this template. Has this reality changed? It is sexy to say we need to diversify and re-balance our global supply chains. I have always felt this was a good policy. I prefer a globally balanced outlook where human value is shared across nations and not warped by greed.

Now we have an excellent article voicing an idea of change in the workplace. Remote employment is a fantastic idea provided that the goal isn’t to have total remote employment. The threat of the pandemic will subside and the cost and effort to move to an alternative work lifestyle is more of a dream because economic stakeholders need profits to bounce back and prevent the further erosion of our economy. This is normal and under the circumstances makes sense. The cost to implement alternative change immediately after the financial wipe down we are experiencing is too high at the moment but with time it is manageable.

The proof of change will be a full remapping of not only our economic, professional, and civic structures but a realignment of our philosophical and ideological values as well. I have had some conversation with government about decentralizing municipalities and government offices. Specifically for municipalities to work in tandem to the mutual benefit of the province by spreading our economic resources and talent. I was told verbatim that Government needed to be central and that vertical high density dwellings is sustainable and required to ensure economic growth. Not true but sadly well believed.

Imagine a world where its population and government are decentralized, working quasi-remotely, promoting a diverse economy fueled in a culture based on sharing ideas, resources, balancing human equity, and protecting the environment? I am basically suggesting the possibility of a global network of Countries working towards the next step in human evolution. Science fiction right? The world can’t change, if we don’t change.

Maybe the first step is the creation of a remote workforce and then start working with nations on a collaborative global emergency response initiative to protect us from ourselves. Through study, we will gauge the effectiveness of each Country’s response to and net effect of the pandemic. Canada is certainly one of the proactive Countries to study. Our citizens and government have stepped up to confront this pandemic humanly and collaboratively at all levels. I am proud to be Canadian now more than ever.

The truth is I am very excited to see how our future will unfold!

Gianpiero Furfaro FRI

About

Gianpiero Furfaro FRI has been licensed since 1994 and has obtained extensive experience in sales and management in both Ontario and British Columbia. He actively participates in organized real estate through various Board Government Relations related committees and task

Managing Broker at Sotheby’s International Realty Canada