🔒Bordonaro: Hartford’s comeback depends on a return of office workers

Over the past year, Hartford Business Journal has spent a lot of resources reporting on the future of work, particularly in a post-pandemic world.

That coverage culminated in this week’s issue with a special return-to-work feature that included data from a recent four-week poll conducted by the Hartford Business Journal in partnership with accounting and consulting firm PwC.

The survey covered various topics ranging from COVID-19’s impact on people’s living situation to what workers would be comfortable with in terms of steps employers take to keep the workplace virus free.

I’m not going to rehash the results here, but what piqued my interest most was how employers and workers plan and want to conduct business in the future: in person, remotely or in a hybrid model?

At this point I think it’s clear that a hybrid work environment — where employees spend some time in the office and some at home — is the way of the future, at least for the next few years. I believe companies that go too far in one direction or the other will have a harder time recruiting and keeping talent in the post-pandemic world.

Workplace flexibility was an increasingly important perk before COVID-19 hit the U.S.; the pandemic likely cemented its place in a company’s talent-recruitment toolbox.

At the same time I think offices and in-person interaction spur important innovation and efficiencies that can’t fully be replicated remotely.

As employers finalize their return-to-work decisions in the weeks and months ahead they’ll have plenty of constituents to think about. One that should remain top of mind is the communities in which they are based.

Cities of all sizes have taken a beating over the past year and Hartford, particularly downtown, is no exception. Cities are in desperate need of workers to head back to the office so that restaurants and other small merchants can get customers back in their doors.

But beyond helping the local merchant, I think there’s a much more significant issue at stake. The longer it takes to get people back downtown the slower the city’s recovery will be.

And Greater Hartford will need a strong and vibrant Capital City in the years ahead to attract top talent and employers.

A lot has been written about the death of American cities in the wake of the pandemic, but I think many of those predictions are overblown.

Yes, companies will shrink their office footprints, and Connecticut’s suburbs have become more attractive to those seeking more space and a private backyard.

But cities will eventually regain their luster, even if it takes years to do so.

The reality is young people and others will always crave the live, work and play offerings of a vibrant urban center.

Humans also have short memories. It won’t take long for most people to regain their pre-pandemic lives and mindsets once the virus is more fully in the rearview mirror.

Our country has been through pandemics before and cities have endured.

So what’s all this mean?

I think it’s incumbent on Hartford-based business leaders to try to get their vaccinated workers back to the office sooner rather than later. I’m not saying bring back everyone at once.

Employees’ health and safety must remain a top priority, and some flexibility still must be offered to those facing child care and other pandemic-related issues, but where it’s feasible and safe to do so, workers should be encouraged to get back to the office, even if it’s a day or two a week.

Others agree with this sentiment.

For example, a few days after HBJ published a story last month detailing how many major city employers aren’t planning to bring workers back until September, Gov. Ned Lamont and other city leaders held a press conference urging companies and workers to get back to the office.

I don’t think the timing of their pleas was a coincidence.

Attracting top talent will remain a challenge and priority for Hartford area employers for years to come. Having a strong and vibrant Capital City will be key to that effort.

Hartford had upward momentum before coronavirus dealt it a serious blow. Getting the city back on its feet will require more people to actually be in it.

Employers and their workers are a key part of making that happen. Let’s start moving that dial this summer, rather than waiting for the fall.