As many businesses continue to utilize a hybrid office model throughout the pandemic, a new report asked 1,500 leaders and 1,500 full- or part-time employees about their preferred COVID-19 safety measures at work. The Entrust report, "Pulse Check on In-Office Security for Hybrid Work Models," surveyed employers and employees from 10 different countries in June 2021.

The importance of visitor management systems

The report asked respondents questions about visitor management systems and their potential benefits to an enterprise. When asked to label reasons why a visitor management system would be important, 84% of leaders and 83% of employees marked that the systems help avoid the risk of spreading COVID-19. Sixty-one percent of leaders and 62% of employees expressed that avoiding potential physical harm on employees was another benefit. When it came to the importance of protecting confidential company documents, leaders and employees had different opinions: 65% of leaders found this to be an important benefit of visitor management systems, compared to 55% of employees.

Requiring negative COVID-19 tests

When asked whether their company had considered or enforced requiring proof of a negative COVID-19 test as a visitor entry credential, results varied widely across the 10 countries represented in the report. Leaders from Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia reported the highest levels of having considered or enforced a negative test requirement (84%, 82% and 81%, respectively). This entry credential was considered the least often in Japan and Canada, where only 32% and 34% of leaders had either implemented or thought about implementing the requirement. Some of these results correlate with increases or decreases in COVID-19 cases in their respective countries: for example, Canada's rate of weekly COVID-19 cases decreased steadily over the month of June 2021, while Indonesia's weekly case rate increased dramatically. 

The report asked and employees whether or not they wanted their employer to require that visitors show proof of a negative COVID-19 test before entering the office. These results also varied by country, with respondents in the United States (49%) and Australia (53%) reporting the lowest rates of wanting visitors to produce a negative COVID-19 test upon entry. Over 90% of employees in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates supported the measure. The report notes large differences in opinion between leaders and employees regarding the issue. In Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom, employees reported wanting visitors to provide proof of a negative test 20% more than leaders in the same country. 

Visitor management solutions

When it came to currently implemented visitor management solutions, over half of companies in all countries except the U.K. used digital systems. The report suggested various visitor management technologies for consideration in the hybrid workplace, including identity proofing, public key infrastructure and more.

Find more results in the full report.