Where can I find a very traditional office environment?

[FloorWipes]

I used to love my job but I’m about to lose it with our hybrid flexible system and everyone doing their own thing and some people taking the p. Fine for them, live your best life, whatever, but absolutely not working for me on any level and I am so so over it. I want a traditional 9 to 5 where we all come in and everyone has their own desk. What industry is my best bet for that in 2023?

High Street solicitors.

I love it 😊

I work in a small law firm of about 20 staff and we all work from the office. No hybrid working unless you absolutely have to.

Much prefer seeing my colleagues and being in an office tbh

Estate agents, GP surgery

Anything that has a security or data classification aspect ie you actually can't take your work off-site

I think a lot of sales jobs require office time.

I can't probably say exactly what I do. It involves admin and quite a lot of writing as well. I've got a couple of bachelors degrees and I would like to think a lot of transferable skills. I'm in Scotland if that helps.

Thank you for clarifying the roles that actually aren't office based though one might think they are!

Some good suggestions. Appreciate them!

Construction you'd generally have to move office location (and employer possibly) when the project was delivered

Moving office location infrequently sounds manageable.

Where I work in the nhs is like that, although I know some departments do hybrid working

Education, NHS, tourist office, hotel chain are ones I can think of.

A lot of council roles are hybrid and even though there will be a rota around covering phones , reception desk etc most LA roles have flexi time to some extent .

Secure servers ?

Certain critical functions eg Treasury have to be in the office 5 days per week.

Try an office manager role or admin / finance for a small business - consultants, accountants, solicitors, surveyors, architects, etc. They often have some staff out meeting clients / on site through the day but need core office staff on regular hours in the office.

Or would you prefer somewhere with a constant full-time team around you?

Hospitality? Admin in a hotel or similar? Estate agents always seem to be in the office.

Some parts of Whitehall (but others very much not).

Re the food manufacturer, my sister works in Finance in one well known brand and they never went back to work in the office since Covid. She just goes in the odd day.

Check job adds - some specifically say 100% office based. Or with recruitment agencies- they will be the roles no one wants to work!

I also worked from home as an Office Manager...it's a hybrid role now.

I feel you op, people are very defensive about any negative comment about wfh but I agree there's no office culture/camaderie, it's boring and isolating. Try some of the more front facing nhs/a&e admin type roles. Ask to have a visit maybe if you apply? Good luck!

Almost all Council jobs are hybrid now unless required to be 'on site' such as leisure centre receptionist, parks maintenence etc.

We also have flexible hours so not a traditional 9-5.

Yes, or MoD/defence/security/nuclear type sector.

My friend is an architect for a huge firm and they are expected in 5 days a week.

I’m looking for work at the moment and lots of local companies want some one in the office 5 days, even for admin roles which could be done from home and they are quite clear about this in the advert.

I’m intrigued by the secure servers type ideas!

It helps to know from a couple of people that I’m not entirely alone in feeling this way.

In my current job I am generally in the office 5 days as it’s up to me, and I’m responsible for various aspects of the physical office like stock and such. Usually I’m not alone when I’m in. So that might seem to be an ok set up.

But actually the erratic nature of other people’s working patterns just doesn’t work for me. It’s too discombobulating. Moreover we don’t get to do the kind of collaborative information sharing we used to and I can’t comment on other people’s work but I’m sure mine suffers for this. A lot of information sharing now falls to me alone as I am the link between all the people whose paths never cross. Also things need to be much more carefully planned because people are working odd days and hours, and that planning takes up all this extra time which I can’t seem to conjure from anywhere. We then have meetings that are a pure waste of time as they don’t compensate for lost ongoing communication. And too many emails. It’s all in all a nightmare for me.

Sounds like you need better systems in place - for communicating, planning etc. Shared calendars for scheduling meetings, groups for sharing information, some set team meeting times etc. It shouldn't be on one person to verbally pass on the same information to a large number of people, that is so time consuming and inefficient.

Most council office functions seem to be working from home even now so probably won't offer what you are after. Public sector are probably the most resistant to returning to the office.

Think it's quite variable in Highet Education.

I'm in finance in large London university and a lot of the admin departments worked mostly from home until very recently. There is now a drive to get everyone hybrid with at least 3 days per week in the office. However they also need to free up more office space so the only options available are desk sharing or hot desking. No one has their own desk any more.