Until recently, the thought of working from bucket-list travel destinations seemed near impossible. Many offices had clear bum-in-chair policies: commute into the office Monday-Friday and reserve holiday time for any non-business travel. Rarely was there a job which allowed for a blend of the two that is, until the pandemic hit.
Overnight, a global workforce successfully proved that remote working—and later, hybrid working can not only be achieved but with great results for employers and employees alike. In fact, those working from home with a combination of office- or hub-based work and travel reported the highest job-and-life satisfaction rates, with over 94% being either satisfied or very satisfied with their lives, according to a recent survey.
Today, the idea of remote work has expanded to achieve another kind of work-life balance one that doesn’t force us to choose between work and pleasure. One that, in fact, encourages us to mix work and pleasure. Not only does this impact the employee’s quality of life but it also benefits employers and provides myriad opportunities for the hotel and hospitality industries at large.
There are several key ingredients which make up the alphabet soup of post-Covid work and travel. Below, we’ll explore each of these and how you might benefit from the first one, in particular. Now, let’s get cooking, shall we?
Workspitality
A new kind of workspace has emerged by blending the tried-and-true features of hospitality with the features of modern co-working spaces. The result? A hot desk with hotel benefits such as room—er, desk—service and access to the hotel’s pool, spa, or gym, all with secure storage for laptops and other personal items.
Remote Work
Remote workers are typically employed by a company but, rather than commuting into the company’s office, they work somewhere outside of the office. While most remote working is done from home, it could be accomplished from anywhere with Wi-Fi, power outlets, and more.
Blended Travel
Put simply, blended travel is an umbrella term that describes any kind of travel that mixes work with leisure time. In addition to video-conferencing fatigue, lockdowns and travel restrictions left an entire workforce feeling cooped up, and blended travel solves for that. Through blended travel, one can plan a leisure trip abroad to meet a prospective client or add a few leisure days before or after a business trip.
Bleisure
As its name suggests, bleisure combines business with leisure. Specifically, you’ve booked a bleisure trip if you’ve tacked on a few extra days onto an existing business trip. While bleisure is a far cry from a paid holiday, many employees see this as a travel hack, as the employer covers the costs of any business-related flights and accommodation.
Workation (Coworkation)
Workations, or coworkations, take work and vacation and make them one and the same. Whereas bleisure is more opportunistic and relies on making the most out of existing business travel plans, a coworkation is often centred on travel first, business second. Whether you choose to look at it as working while on vacation or vacationing while working, it allows employees to continue business from anywhere outside of the office—all while exploring a new part of the world.
Digital Nomads
Perhaps one of the most well-known and flexible of these terms is the digital nomad. Often, digital nomads aren’t employed by any one company and may find online work independently through freelancing and more. In true nomad fashion, digital nomads are always on the move; the world is their office, and travel is typically their driving force.
Benefits of Workspitality
For employees:
Workspitality locations allow workers to turn business trips into bleisure trips. Digital nomads, for example, can visit a new city with accommodation and workspace all conveniently sorted, giving WFH a new meaning: work from hotel. For local remote workers, workspitality provides an all-in-one gym membership and co-working space while also giving those working from home an opportunity to network and get a change of scenery, away from the distractions of home.
Benefits for employers:
Research shows that flexible schedules breed productive employees. What’s more, employers can include blended travel opportunities as a part of their employee benefits packages. Further, bleisure is a carrot to dangle in front of disinterested employees when met with the need for business travel.
Benefits for hoteliers:
Most bleisure travellers stay in the same accommodation for both work and leisure parts of their trips; therefore, workspitality offers an opportunity to turn this cohort into loyal guests. Similarly, workspitality provides the opportunity to offer long-term discounts and packages to encourage business travellers to stay longer and avail of hotels’ workspitality features. What’s more, remote work is typically carried out during daytime hours when many hotel guests are not availing of hotel services, creating more sales opportunities.
Learn more ways workspitality can serve employees, employers, and hoteliers.