COVID – 19 sweeps 8 Lakh Sqft in IT parks vacant

Covid-19 pandemic has hit hard on the IT parks in Chennai. In the past 2 months due to Work from home (WFH) and cost cutting, companies vacated nearly 8 lakh square foot of office space. A few other companies have also shifted their office to a more convenient location.
IT fields are experiencing the greatest change in the past months.

Vacated companies in Chennai :

• Unimoni Global Business Services (Manapakkam)
• Auto parts maker Wabco (Taramani)
• Online matchmaker Bharatmatrimony (Adyar and MRC Nagar)

Plans made by companies :

• The companies have made plans to move into a hybrid model of office with a remote setup in a few quarters where it is safe to work.
• Decisions regarding the models which may suit good for a safe and convenient working need to be taken soon.
• For now, many companies have moved to Work from Home (WFH) mode and a number of companies have relocated to other offices.

Impact of IT parks being swept off :

Warehousing, data centers and e-commerce companies have increased their interest in taking up more space in the forthcoming years.

Loss :

• Real estate sector will be affected badly.
• Residential and commercial complex projects will be modified.

COVID – 19 pandemic opened new possibilities :

• Working from anywhere is being achieved and everyone is adapting to work from their own place.
• Opportunities for companies to hire people from any part of the country/globe without the need to shift to Chennai or the work place has crept in.
• Travel hours for the employees have been cut down currently which increases productivity. This also reduces the traffic congestion.

View of employees :

• Employees feel WFH mode is better as it reduces the cost of living.
• Companies stated that they have started to reinvest savings in talent for the growth of the company.

Office Space is not really required after the success of working remotely with social distancing and safety for the employees.

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