A global panel of pundits recently discussed how the pandemic has impacted commercial real estate and hospitality markets. During the hour and a half long discussion, this cross-section of experts and practitioners from multiple disciplines explored the pandemic's impact on the commercial real estate and hospitality markets.

1. L o o k i n g A h e a d : A c t i o n a b l e I n s i g h t s
f o r C o m m e r c i a l R e a l E s t a t e &
H o s p i t a l i t y M a r k e t s
D i s c o v e r . D e b a t e . D e b u n k
P A N E L D I S C U S S I O N

2. Background
A global panel of pundits recently discussed how the pandemic has impacted
commercial real estate and hospitality markets.
https://youtu.be/EEcqiN2QqlI
During the hour and half long discussion, this cross-section of experts and
practioners from multiple disciplines explored the pandemic's impact on the
commercial real estate and hospitalty markets. The following was discussed:
• How has the pandemic influenced consumer behaviors and expectations?
• What are the near-term and long-term implications for the larger real-estate and
hospitality eco-system?
• Are most predictions of gloom and doom warranted?
• What are some of the silver linings within these dark clouds?
• What insights have they gleaned from this experience, and how do they propose
to act on them?
• What transformative changes do they anticipate in their industry, and how would
those changes impact the business and their employees?

3. The impact of working from home (WFH)
on commercial real estate, particularly on
the co-working/flexible offices market
may not be as dire as predicted.
Several constraints may temper initial
reactions to shift workplaces to the
home. Chief among these concerns,
especially for larger corporates and the
customers they serve is cybersecurity.
Employee productivity and
performance concerns may also be
an issue over the longer term. These
concerns are also opportunities for
technology companies looking to
making working from home a reality.
Insight - 1

4. Insight - 2
There are also social, cultural, and regional
constraints that may also temper and moderate the
push to WFH. Issues like poor internet connectivity,
spotty mobile coverage, cramped living conditions,
dual-income families with both spouses working,
etc. will make WFH untenable. Strongly believe that
to get the right combination of collaboration,
productivity, and innovative thinking you need
to get people together in the same room.

5. Insight - 3
The desire to WFH, especially by knowledge workers, may also
be driven by factors like work-life balance, flexible hours, and
the desire to focus on "deep work" without the usual
distractions of a corporate office. This could also be a silver
lining of co-working spaces because they allow such workers
the option of working from home when required but also have
the option of enjoying the perks of corporate office space
when needed and desired.

6. Long commutes to commercial office
spaces (co-working or otherwise) located in
the CBD could also be at the heart of
employees' desire to WFH. Co-working
spaces may have to rethink their expansion
plans and provide co-working spaces closer
to where people live rather than rush to
create more options within the CBD.
With global companies and MNCs looking to
relocate operations from China, there could
be a potential windfall for the Indian
economy and consequently the Indian real
estate market with those companies
seeking or expanding their physical
presence in the country.
What would the future of work look like?
Would it entail the merging of work and
home in a community setting with
sustainability and technology at its core?
Insight - 4

7. write title here
New standards of hygiene, sanitization,
and safety will impact both commercial
workplaces and guest spaces. This is an
opportunity to not only establish a
standard for different workspaces and
guest spaces but also an opportunity to
set different standards for different
spaces within a particular space. For
example, different protocols and
procedures for high traffic lift/elevators,
reception areas/front-desks, restrooms,
and others for less congested and used
areas like rooms/offices.
Insight - 5

8. Changes in consumer behaviors and
expectations will require that the
hospitality sector make investments
in new and improved cleaning and
sanitization technologies and other
systems to ensure guest safety.
These could run the gamut from
room service robots, contactless
menus, automated tracing of food
ingredients, constant automated
thermal scanning in public areas,
contact tracing, etc.
Insight - 6
Hospitality providers will have to
create or modify their SOPs to
address the new reality. Evening or
turn-down service is most likely
dead. Buffet breakfast, a standard in
most hotels catering to business
travelers, is most likely dead. Hotel
gyms, spas, bars, and restaurants
SOPs will need to be revisited.

9. Once a vaccine or cure is found there will be a lot of pent-up demand for
travel. Initially, that travel will be mostly domestic and largely reached via
automobile, bus, or train. They will seek niche tourism, such as rural and
adventure tourism, and off-beat locations may become popular as travelers
prefer regions with a lower population density. Countries like Sri Lanka
could benefit greatly from such demand and from its proximity to India
which according to analysts will be the least impacted hospitality market in
the world in the longer term.
Insight - 7

10. Once a vaccine is out or a cure is found,
human memory being fairly frail most things
may revert to business as usual,
however, somethings will change as its fairly
certain that another pandemic or epidemic is
not too far away. Therefore as an industry, the
hospitality business needs to plan and adjust
accordingly. This might also involve re-
engineering/altering the physical
configuration of spaces.
Insight - 8
Hotels will have to learn to be less cost-intensive. They will
have to have fewer people working especially in Asia where
guest-to-staff ratios are higher. The hotels in the region will
have to rationalize hotel operations.

11. Both the hospitality and real estate have
been laggards in the adoption of
technology. We will see an unprecedented
rush to adopt in both these markets.
Managing large workforces and new guest
and tenant expectations will be the drivers
behind this growth.
The opening of the hospitality sector is
also largely contingent on the lifting of
travel restrictions and the response of
airlines (those that manage to survive the
downturn) to the pandemic. If there are
fewer flights operating and the cost of
fares is higher because middle seats have
been removed in economy class then the
number of visitors will be proportionately
reduced hampering recovery efforts.
Medical and liability insurance norms will
also have an impact on travel.
Insight - 8