There are a few notable exceptions - including those in the states worst hit by COVID-19 such as New York and New Jersey where the average reopening timing is expected at two to four months.
AEC’s survey on office reopening plans garnered responses from 344 business leaders from the North American industry representing some $108bn in annual revenues.
The majority of firms (c60%) are planning for only 25%-50% of their employees to initially return to the office. However, large firms are shown to have a more cautious approach, expecting to open their offices again more slowly and allowing a smaller initial proportion of the workforce to return.
Only 3% of firms are currently conducting antibody/virus testing, probably due to lack of testing equipment, but 36% of firms expect to do so in the near future.
Other headline findings include that there is significant concern around state and local funding coming through for new projects, particularly on the West Coast, and to a lesser extent in the East Coast states. AEC Advisors questions whether firms are in fact counting on federal government support for the states.
European industry COVID-19 impacts survey & webinar
AEC Advisors, in partnership with Environment Analyst and BST Global, is currently running a European focused COVID-19 industry impacts survey, which takes around 5-10 minutes to complete. We invite all European consulting business leaders with to take part:
Fill in the confidential survey here
The results will be emailed to all participants within a week and discussed at our panel-based CEO Forum webinar on 28 May (13:00 BST | 14:00 CET | 08.00 EST), which we also invite you to join:
Register for the free webinar here
Panelists
- Keryn James, CEO of ERM
- Jens-Peter Saul, CEO of Ramboll Group
- Karin Sluis, Managing Direct of Witteveen+Bos
- Nicolas Jachiet, CEO of Egis
- Javier Baldor, EVP of BST
Moderators
- Andrej Avelini, President of AEC Advisors
- Liz Trew, Co-Founder & Editorial Director of Environment Analyst
Topics to be discussed
- Updated 2020 & 2021 Outlook
- Which European markets are being impacted more / less? Outlook for growth and profit margins in 2020 & 2021?
- Cash Flow Management
- What changes are being made to billing and collections, headcount and M&A plans? Impact of government loans and tax relief in different markets?
- Re-Opening Plans
- Plans for re-opening offices and allowing (some) employees to return. Company-wide plan? Geographic specific? How do we do it?
- New Normal
- Less non-essential travel; more work from home; increased digital community and less in-person meetings? Other implications?
- "Silver Linings"
- What have you learned about your firm, your people, your clients, and the way you do business and how might it impact your firm’s strategies?
