FEATURE
Digital infrastructure investments boost regional living While work previously was thought of as a place you go, it is increasingly a thing that you do – a part of life that is no longer bound to a specific location, thanks to incredible developments in digital infrastructure. After adjusting to the rapid changes brought on by COVID-19 last year, being able to get things done anywhere is becoming the new normal.
These digital developments create potential for much more flexibility and free-range working, and the possibility to create better work/life balance – whether that means spending time with the kids, exercising on your lunch break, being out in nature, or even just ticking off more mundane tasks like laundry in between work and meetings. Some people are also rethinking where they live, and if relocating to the beach or a new town is a possibility for some or all of their time. At Vodafone, we’re seeing more team members apply to work outside the traditional city hubs - be it Nelson, Mangawhai or Mt Maunganui - and commute to the office periodically, instead of daily. For teams based in big centres, we’re agreeing to ‘balanced working’ options, such as spending three days in the office to facilitate collaboration and connections, to complement the flexibility of getting work done from home. This trend is also showing up in many other organisations, as the upsides of remote and flexible working, enabled by digital infrastructure, come into focus to complement time spent in the office. With mobile phones and 24/7 connectivity, work doesn’t always start and finish at a set time or place. While we also need to ensure we prioritise work/life balance and switching off, there are lots of positives as more people can make choices about where and when they get their work done amidst their other priorities. Spending more time in regional New Zealand isn’t just about holidays anymore. It can be about lifestyle. For Vodafone NZ, a high priority for 2021 is to help close the geographical gaps between the digital haves and have nots, so that more of Aotearoa has access to next generation technology necessary to carry all this data – which given the regional housing boom, is increasingly important. The challenge is that someone
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The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand
Sharina Nisha, Head of Network Services, Vodafone NZ
visiting or relocating to somewhere like the Coromandel now expects to have the same digital connectivity as they have in the city – with growing expectations of having additional digital conveniences like Uber at their fingertips. To deliver on these rapidly changing consumer preferences, New Zealand is going to need significant additional digital infrastructure investment now, and into the future. At Vodafone, we’re investing heavily into urban and regional Aotearoa in 2021 and beyond. We are putting significant resources into improving regional networks, growing 5G availability both in cities and regional centres, expanding and strengthening 4G coverage, adding capacity in our core
