The global technology services provider has signed a deal that will see 300,000 employees using IWG’s global network of flexspaces.

As businesses around the world consider how they’ll operate, post-pandemic, many are embracing hybrid working for the long term. As Covid-19 has accelerated the shift to hybrid working – highlighting its advantages in terms of people, profits and the planet – models such as hub and spoke have seized the imaginations of executives at firms as diverse as EY and Google. 

As with other major corporates, including Standard Chartered bank and Avaya, international technology firm NTT has recently inked a deal with IWG as part of a new strategy to increase flexibility for employees as well as embed benefits for the business.

The groundbreaking deal gives 300,000 NTT staff access to more than 3,400 IWG workspaces worldwide, providing them with the option to work from convenient locations close to home but with all the benefits of a professional office environment. 

The right partner 

Speaking from a Regus centre in Texas, Arvind Kumar, Global Vice President of NTT Global Sourcing, commented that while Covid-19 appears to be coming under control in many countries, its effect on how people want to work is likely to be permanent. 

“We need a new solution, a new way of working,” he says. “People are going to work at home, at the office and at a third location – a partner location. We decided to partner with IWG.”

As a diverse organisation with employees all around the world, NTT had to find a partner that could accommodate its varied needs. NTT was attracted to IWG’s “brand, size and global scale”, says Kumar – as well as its 30 years of experience in the sector, and its position as the world’s leading provider of flexible workspace. IWG is unique, according to Kumar, in its ability to offer “the right culture” for NTT and its people. 

A bespoke solution 

Kumar is keen to stress the importance of ensuring that NTT’s approach to flexible workspace is effective for all employees. He explains: “What we were looking for, that IWG could give us, was a solution that’s flexible – accommodating the executive team, the consultant and the back office person who wants to come in and hold an important meeting.” IWG had the ability to create “custom solutions” for NTT, which will enable the firm to cater for its wide variety of workers. 

Fatima Koning, Group Chief Sales Officer at IWG, has worked closely with NTT to define what Kumar calls “the perfect solution for tomorrow”. “Fatima and her team have done a fantastic job globally to make this journey happen for all of us,” he says.

Support for the journey 

Change management is often complicated, and Kumar is aware that NTT’s adoption of the hybrid model may involve occasional challenges. However, he’s confident that IWG can support the firm in overcoming whatever hitches might arise. 

NTT is “on a journey” that it is “developing together” with IWG, he says. In the long term, that journey is about helping “operating companies manage their costs, manage their real estate portfolios, save money, add value and create experience.” 

Mark Dixon, IWG Founder and CEO, says: “Hybrid working is delivering spectacular benefits for employers and employees alike. Team members gain better mental health and reduced costs through not having to travel into city centres, and it gives companies the financial flexibility to invest in their staff and in growing the business, instead of in the buildings from which they operate.”

Dixon predicts that, for many firms, there’ll be no going back to the traditional 9-to-5, Monday-Friday week – even after all Covid-19 restrictions are lifted. “I believe we will see more and more companies make the property choices that the likes of NTT have recently made,” he says. “The future of work is already with us, and it’s only going to improve.” 

Kumar agrees. “In the world of tomorrow at NTT, we’ll never have one offer that fits all,” he says. “We’re going to have a hybrid environment that needs to work for a host of different people and purposes. What’s exciting is that we’ve found the right partner.”

IWG has been helping businesses like yours with corporate flexspace solutions for the last 30 years. Find out how we can support you today.