When will media companies and agencies re-open their offices?

The pandemic has changed how we live and work. Virtual meetings have become the norm and could permanently change how ad professionals work. The current work environment is business on top and pajamas on the bottom. But when will media companies and agencies re-open their offices? Marketing Keys has been working remotely since mid March. Other media such as online/digital companies, radio stations, tv stations, out of home companies etc have also been working remotely. Here’s how other agency giants are navigating these new challenges.

Will media companies and agencies re-open their offices?

Publicis Groupe Chairman-CEO Arthur Sadoun assured employees that no one is expected to return until a vaccine is found. He also said that even then remote work will become a part of their daily culture. “What is certain is that Publicis will not be a Zoom company. Nor will Publicis be a 100% in-office company. Once there is a vaccine, and not before, the office will be the primary place of work,” Sadoun said.Likewise, WPP will take a hybrid approach. CEO Mark Read wants to get people back in the office but doesn’t expect employees to be there all the time. According to an internal survey, only 2% of WPP employees want to be back in the office five days a week. “We’re never going to go back to the way we were before COVID, and it looks like by the time we get through this we will have forgotten what life was like before COVID. There’s going to need to be a reason to come into work,” said Read.Similarly, Google employees want to return to the office, but not every day, according to a survey conducted by Google. Just 8% of employees said they would need to come in every day. Google CEO Sundar Pichai said the company is looking into hybrid working models.

What about financial institutions?

On the banking side at JPMorgan Chase, employees will continue to work remotely until next year, according to Bloomberg. This applies to most U.S.-based employees in the consumer unit with the exception of branch workers and some in operations.Carolina Macedo, the author, is Project Coordinator of Marketing Keys. Carolina has been working remotely since mid March.