Isolation to Inspiration We can thank the pandemic for dropping WFH into the vernacular. But Lisa Perkovic discovers that “work from home” could also mean “work from here”. And here can be a hotel.
BACK at the start of the pandemic,
Shangri-La
we all thought the work-from-home
Director of Rooms Karn Kapur confirms
directive would last no more than a few
the
months.
combining holiday time with business
The
hotel
is
Marina,
seeing
more
Cairns guests
hours in the capital of Tropical North Overnight
bricks-and-mortar
emptied,
with
staff
offices
setting
Queensland.
up
temporary workspaces on the dining
“Bleisure is one of the post-pandemic
room table or an old desk in the
trends, with guests adopting their own
bedroom, and we set about learning to
hybrid approach to work while staying
navigate the Q of working remotely.
with us,” he says.
But as we faced the challenges of
“That might be plugging in from their
the
Delta
variants,
rooms using the high-speed internet,
and
lock-down
lasting
working from our Business Centre,
work-from-home
sitting beside the pool with the laptop
and
Omicron looked
indefinitely,
our
arrangements
were
became
like
perfected
and
on their knees, or settling into one of
with
WFH
the quiet spaces around the property.
permanent
deposited into daily conversations. “In the Business Centre there are Statistics show staff have adapted to
computer
this “new normal”, with research firm
for video conferencing and access to
Ivanti’s 2022
secretarial support including printing,
Everywhere
Workplace
Report disclosing an astounding 87 per
stations,
private
spaces
photocopying and courier services.
cent of respondents are now opposed to returning to the office full time.
“Horizon Club guests, and those staying in our suites, can tackle morning emails
Even more telling, 71 per cent of those
with a coffee and pastry in the private
that took part in the study would
lounge or reserve the Horizon Club
pick working from anywhere before
Boardroom for in-person or virtual
accepting
meetings with space featuring the
a
promotion,
with
the
benefits listed as saving money and
technology to video conference.
improving the work-life balance. “And our rooms all feature a spacious Then
gently
desk with those famous Trinity Inlet,
morphed into “work from here” with
“work
from
home”
Coral Sea, garden, city or mountain
those able to hit the road unplugging
views framed when guests look up
and packing to take laptops away.
from their work.”
