Teleworking widely used in the financial sector: “In an ideal world, Teams does not exist between colleagues”

Three days a week teleworking

The health crisis has been there. With the consequence that some people no longer want to set foot in the office while others, on the contrary, just want to return there to find a dulled or even lost emulation during the Covid years.

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Employers in the financial sector are therefore faced with the major challenge of establishing an organization that restores cohesion and motivation to its staff. Are they getting there? In their response everything suggests that they are doing everything for it. And their modus operandi is quite similar. In most cases, they impose 2 days per week or even 50% of face-to-face working time, while leaving everyone the choice to come to the office full-time.

For bank branch employees, the rules vary. At KBC, for example, an employee can telework up to 20% of their working time, or one day per week for a full-time job.

“Our employees can telework a maximum of 3 days a week, which does not prevent them from coming every day if they wish. This rule, stable since 2022, works well. We do not wish to change it”explains Julien Balistreri, human resources manager and member of the management committee at Ethias. Who adds that they have no cases of people refusing to return to the office. “We see rather the opposite phenomenon.”

Same positive observation from the union side. “There is a big demand to maintain teleworking. People are happy”underlines Philippe Samek, CNE delegate.

Team meetings

More than bringing people back to the office, it is about creating emulation which seems to be the priority for employers. This is why most institutions impose team days, which are days when the whole team is present. AG Insurance therefore requires that one of the minimum 2 face-to-face days be a team day. “The goal is to promote team spirit, connection, and the corporate culture that we call #WeAreAG”explains Laurence Gijs, spokesperson for the insurance company.

At BNP Paribas Fortis, we want to avoid giving the impression that these team meetings become a constraint. “Of course, this framework is intended to be flexible. Each employee organizes their week in order to have this private-professional life balance. A digital tool for presence and reservation of workspaces is thus made available to them”explains the press service.

The offices have been redesigned to encourage meetings between colleagues, by reducing the proportion of individual places in favor of collaborative spaces. Example at Ethias where the ratio of 0.8 offices for one FTE (Full-time Equivalent) increased to 0.7 in the new building still under construction. The goal is clear: when people come to the office, it is to talk to each other. Which makes Julien Balistreri say that “in an ideal world, Teams does not exist between colleagues”.

Surface areas on the decline

Teleworking also gave the financial sector the opportunity to reduce its surface area. Enough to save money. At the time of the energy crisis, some institutions like Ethias even decided to close their offices one day a week. This also made it possible to reduce CO2 emissions (-7.1%). The insurer will return to opening 5 days a week when it is installed in its new energy neutral buildings. What will make Monday a busy day? To see… Because, returning to a world without teleworking is unimaginable. “Can we still retain young people without offering teleworking? I don’t think so”believes Julien Balistieri.