The modern workplace was undergoing rapid change long before the pandemic accelerated the process and home working quickly became the norm for many employees that had previously been purely office-based. Award-winning design and build company, Thirdway, has been leading the way as to what the future of working life looks like for us all thanks to their innovative approach and therefore have been ideally placed to help clients adapt to the dramatic change in circumstances.
“Covid-19 presented businesses with challenges that we were able to provide the right solutions to,” explains Ben Gillam, CEO. “We’ve always been huge advocates of collaboration and ensuring that we provide the right platform to increase engagement amongst our team. There’s no one-size-fits all solution for businesses returning to the office, but having the right engagement platform has proven essential and has been something we’ve been helping our clients to create.”
Utilising all its experience and know-how, Thirdway has been able to provide its clients with a wide variety of solutions to meet unique requirements at a time when there was a huge amount of uncertainty across so many different sectors.
“The key to any successful workplace project is fully understanding the client’s needs and what the fundamental changes to their business will be,” adds Mr Gillam. “We can then offer a comprehensive solution to create an environment that will deliver the outcome that our clients need.
“Prior to Covid, many of the changes were already taking place but the pace was gradual, whereas the pandemic forced companies to fast explore new ways of working and help to redefine what the office now means to them as a result. The businesses that have hibernated for the past two years and are expecting things to return to normal will find it difficult, as their client base won’t have the same mentality as they had before the pandemic as priorities have shifted and needs have changed.”
While some companies have been reluctant to move with the times, this is definitely not an accusation that could be levelled at Thirdway. Further highlighting its forward-thinking credentials, it has also been particularly proactive with its approach to sustainability, as Mr Gillam outlines: “We’ve been working closely with landlords to lock into their own ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) requirements for the long term whilst internally, we’re continually striving to improve our processes whether that be through responsible construction, environmental management or our charity and community endeavours through the Thirdway Trust. We’ve also encouraged landlords to build stronger relationships with their tenants to create spaces with shorter leases to appeal to the increasingly flexible market – offering more amenities, are cost effective and can be OPEX driven for the occupier rather than being CAPEX heavy upfront. Landlords have become lighter footed and are increasingly proactive rather than reactive in terms of how they engage with their clients and provide solutions to meet an ever-evolving market.”
As a company that practices what it preaches, Thirdway has also strived to tackle its own Covid challenges head-on, whilst staying true to the ethos it has developed since its creation 12 years ago. “On the face of it, we are still a very similar business internally and remain well-known for our award-winning design output. We are also known for attracting and retaining talent and having an exceptional management team that have all been promoted through the ranks. Our employees are always fully immersed in our culture and are well looked after with our extensive health and wellbeing benefits.
“Thanks to our first-hand experience of the subject, we know that if we can create more engagement for the companies we work with, we can make them more productive as a business and therefore more profitable. An important element has been the office’s transformation from being a task-based environment into a place of innovation, culture and collaboration.”
With the office clearly having changed for good, Thirdway is now looking to utilise its technical expertise to keep assisting its clients in traversing the new working landscape that all businesses are having to contend with.
“We want to make the most of this unique chance to redefine the workplace in a way that has not been possible for 50 or 60 years,” says Mr Gillam. “Our entire business is locked into achieving this objective, as we are determined to not waste this opportunity. We want to help our clients develop a working culture that allows their employees to collaborate better and become more productive. This is what we’re fully focused on moving forward.
“Our second over-riding goal is focused on the technical aspects of running a business. We’ve had a period where people have been in and out of the office and it’s been a time where projects have been significantly delayed. It is therefore really important that in the next 12 months we return to standard business practices and reinstate normal timescales, particularly in terms of forward delivery programmes and ensuring strong supply chains.”
While Thirdway’s client base has traditionally been drawn from London and the South-East, the challenges of the pandemic and the increase in home working has seen an ever-wider range of companies requiring its knowledge. “Although we see ourselves very much as a southern-orientated business, around 20% of our revenue is generated in the north of the UK. We are currently working on a contract in Newcastle and we have other projects in Leeds, Manchester and Belfast. We are therefore open to operating anywhere nationally, although many of these projects are typically with clients that have a London connection. That’s one of the key aspects of the pandemic: the changes that have come through are applicable to the entire nation. In fact, regional businesses with smaller operations may actually be better positioned to respond than offices in London with headcounts of 2,000 or 3,000 people.
“In the same way that Clerkenwell and Shoreditch captured the imagination of the office world around ten years ago, and Soho did 20 years before that, I believe that Manchester and Leeds are doing the same now with the great start-ups that have emerged there. These businesses are demonstrating what a modern office can be and showing how it can function to generate greater employee engagement. It is certainly something we are keeping our eye on and are very excited to be part of.
“At the other end of the spectrum, there have been some great examples of corporate clients that have fully embraced the opportunity for change and have given us a broader and more flexible brief than ever before.
“Ultimately Covid has allowed us to lock into the Thirdway perspective that we were offering already, which has allowed us to become a market leader able to attract a certain type of client that is geared towards innovation and growth. We genuinely see this as an opportunity to redefine what the office is and to move away from the idea of it being a room or a series of rooms with desks and chairs to become more of a space where individuals of an organisation come together to collaborate, innovate and meet the business’s needs and aspirations.”
The pandemic may have been challenging for many companies but for its part, Thirdway has been quick to make the most of the opportunities that have become available, as it strives to assist its clients as much as it can. At the same it remains committed to building further on the vibrant culture that has served the company so well.
(Images: Peter Ghobrial)