By 2022, our world had adjusted to new ways of working—hybrid work, at least for tech talent, is the new normal.
80% of companies now operate in a hybrid work setting, according to Gartner data. It is predicted that by 2025, fewer than 5% of desk workers will prefer to work from a corporate workplace full-time.
“Hybrid work has changed the nature of our workplaces more than anything else since the invention of the internet,” Ryan Wong, CEO of Vancouver-based tech unicorn Visier, posited last year.
This has opened up many avenues. For example, the concept of a “workation” becomes viable. And fully remote work empowers Canadians to migrate to smaller metros.
“For an increasing number of workers, hybrid working offers the opportunity to work wherever we will be the most productive,” says International Workplace Group founder Mark Dixon. “And thanks to cloud technology, that can be anywhere in the world, provided there’s a high-quality internet connection available”—including while away on vacation.
Operate Remote founder Shauna Moran said that for the hybrid work model to succeed, however, it will “require some changes and effort from both management and employees.”
Others agree.
“As industry leaders consider adding workplace experience technology as part of their increased technology investment, they’ll have to make sure that they’re choosing the right technology to meet their business needs, especially in today’s challenging economic climate,” stated HqO CEO Chase Garbarino “The State of the Workplace.”
Experts like Garbarino expect to see strong investments in workplace technology continue.
But what might that look like in a hybrid or remote environment, where a ping-pong table—or even wellness-focused perks like a healthy cafeteria and gym—may have little to no impact on a significant portion of staff?
Remote Wellness for Teams
Founded by a mosaic of technologists and health experts in 2021, Maka Health champions an all-encompassing, digital-forward approach to wellness.
Cofounder Michelle Martin describes her company as “connecting the dots between wellbeing, performance, and frontier technology.”
“A new world of health data is at the core of Maka,” the company states online. “We empower you with better management of your health data, practitioners with tools for better decision support with their members, while new knowledge is both shared and created around holistic healing, lifestyle medicine, and functional wellness.”
The combination of longevity research, artificial intelligence, lab tests, and wearables “allow us to understand the body in ways never before possible,” Maka states. “These advances enable us to not only detect susceptibilities that predict poor performance and disease but, more importantly, provide actionable recommendations for life-changing health outcomes you can use to mitigate these risks through simple changes and habit-building.”
The company’s three-step approach to wellness begins with an intake comprised of a deep-dive into health history, lifestyle habits, and genetic predispositions. Subsequent steps involve iterative reassessments, strategic modifications based on lab results, genetic data, and wearable tech inputs. All of this converges on optimizing vitality and longevity through a personalized roadmap.
Martin, who serves as chief executive, says she is “obsessed with building best-in-class systems,” one of which Maka aspires to be. And most companies want their workforces to be best-in-class systems, but what happens when many components of the machine become distributed across a province, country, or globe?
Maka offers companies the ability to integrate wellness tech for staff alongside traditional perks, allowing workers to optimize their personal health and performance whether they are in the office always, sometimes, or never.
It’s also a benefit that extends beyond work time—and even your work years.
The company says its platform can “help shift your team’s mindset and productivity through a more connected culture of engaged employees.”
It’s one possible perk among a new wave of considerations for companies competing for tech talent in Canada.
