Webinar roundup: Head into the new year with these workplace insights

In 2021, our webinar series focused on the needs and challenges of organizations returning to the workplace. We brought leaders together across a variety of industries to talk about security, technology, and evolving to a new era of hybrid work. Speakers from Zynga, Uber, Sauce Labs, Okta, Culture Amp, Zoom, Slack, PennyMac, and other companies shared their first-hand experiences responding to the realities of a global pandemic and returning to the workplace. Get caught up before you head into the new year. Here are some highlights from this year’s webinars.

Smart security is the key to hybrid work

In January, leaders from Uber, Molina Healthcare, and athenahealth took part in a discussion focused on hybrid work security. This webinar is particularly valuable for understanding how security needs are evolving to support on-site and remote workers. In response to the question of the biggest security challenge related to the transition to hybrid, Brian Reed noted that Uber took advantage of the time to improve systems. “We had accumulated a lot of technical debt over the years. One of the things we did was to go through our locations and pay down some of that technical debt. This included some system upgrades, starting a preventative maintenance program, and reducing a lot of the noise that our global security center has taken in.”Watch recording

A connected workplace improves collaboration and promotes efficiency

In April, Zynga’s Global Manager of Physical Security, Brian Schmidt, talked with Envoy's Peter Mullen. They discussed how security needs have evolved during the pandemic and how his team prepared to welcome employees back into the office. Brian shared how Zynga plans to take a long-term approach to hybrid work. “We’re moving to a connected workplace. It’s not going to be for a year or two.”Watch recording

Empower your teams to reinvent how they work

Planning your return to office strategy? You won’t want to miss our recent webinar with leaders from Slack, Samsara, Zoom, and PennyMac discussing how plans to return to the office compared to reality. The panel also detailed how their vision of the new workplace normal evolved over the pandemic. Nicole Persaud from Samsara admitted how challenging the shift to hybrid can be. “One of our biggest changes is moving to a hybrid work environment. We’ve given people the option to provide input about where they see themselves. Whether they’re looking to come in certain days a week or work remotely. Because, as we know, so many people have taken the opportunity to reinvent what work means for them.”Watch recording

Optimize the workplace for your people

In September, the webinar “Open for business” brought together Dustin Hutton-Alcorn, an HR manager for Sauce Labs; Matt Carlson, a VP at Colliers, and Amber Kingsnorth, founder of interior design firm, Māk Designs to explore the fundamentals of building a people-centric workplace. Led by HOK's Kay Sargent, the panelists noted that people expect flexible work options, robust safety protocols, and more adaptive spaces. Asked how companies are looking to evolve their spaces, Amber replied “Clients are looking to create hubs to bring people together for collaboration and socializing.” Watch recordingTaking a break to unplug and recharge at the end of the year? You can catch up by watching these and other webinar recordings. Explore the full list of on-demand webinars here.