Tink is implementing its voluntary return-to-office plan

Tuesday, September 7, 2021 marked the beginning of Tink's voluntary return-to-office plan. "After a year and a half of the pandemic, it's a big relief to have the opportunity to return to work at the agency offices, voluntarily and in compliance with all the measures recommended by Public Health," explains Jessie Carpenter, Director of Human Resources at Tink, who has been leading the return plan since the beginning of the summer.

A transition in preparation

Back in March 2020: within a few days, the entire province of Quebec finds itself confined in the face of the rapidly progressing Covid-19 pandemic. At Tink, to comply with government guidelines, employees are asked to work from home, for a few days, a few weeks at most, it was thought at the time.

It is finally 18 months later that it becomes possible to return to the office, after a very particular year and a half that has greatly changed the approach to the world of work. The return to in-person work is therefore an event that had to be anticipated. The approach was clear from the start for the management: "We chose to consult all of our employees," confirms Jessie, in order to have the clearest vision of what each person envisioned for this return to the office, and to act accordingly.

A direct consultation that shaped the return-to-office plan

In late June 2021, an anonymous questionnaire was sent to all Tinkers, addressing many questions and opinions about remote work and returning to in-person work. Jessie summarizes the results for us: "For our employees, the main advantage of remote work is time savings, while isolation represents its main disadvantage. 71% of Tinkers want to be in the office at least 2 days a week, and their main concern is the adaptation of offices to new safety standards (work areas, social spaces, new way of organizing meetings)."

With these results in hand, it became easier to define the framework for the return to the office, keeping two main principles in mind: flexibility and safety.

"Flexibility means that there is no minimum or maximum number of corporate presence days: each employee determines these points with their manager based on individual needs and circumstances. We also allow employees who borrowed telecommuting equipment during the pandemic to keep it, while arranging office spaces with the necessary screens, keyboards, and mice. Safety involves a set of measures aimed at maximizing the protection of our employees: dedicated spaces, plexiglass dividers between desks, numerous hand sanitizer stations, clear signage on the number of people allowed in a meeting room, etc. We thus adhere to the measures recommended by Public Health."

Special attention has been given to employees who joined Tink during the pandemic and never had the opportunity to come to the office.

"In general, the well-being and balance of all have been at the forefront of Tink's concerns for this return to the office."

-Jessie Carpenter, Director of Human Resources

Tink warmly thanks the team that worked on and implemented the measures of this return-to-office plan!