Photo: Rite Aid
Rite Aid yesterday officially opened its new “remote” headquarters building (AKA collaboration center) in Philadelphia’s Navy Yard district.
“This is not an office,” Heyward Donegan, president and CEO of Rite, said at the ribbon cutting, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports. “This is a collaboration center. There is no one that actually works here on a full-time basis. … We’re here to introduce the new modern way of working and the new modern Rite Aid.”
The retailer in a press release said that its new HQ building provides access to major modes of transportation so that its teams at Rite Aid, Bartell Drugs, Elixir and Health Dialog are able to meet and interact in person with the company’s professional stakeholders.
“We are not only transforming our business to better serve our customers, but we are embracing new ways of working that blends a remote-first corporate workforce with opportunities for in-person collaboration,” said Ms. Heyward in a statement.
The 23,000-square-foot Collaboration Center does not have personal offices. It features a variety of conference rooms equipped with digital Neat Boards for video conferencing, a digital/video studio, a Genius Bar for IT support, a business center, kitchens and a respite room for nursing mothers and others who need some alone time.
[caption id="attachment_148053" align="aligncenter" width="666"]
Photo: Rite Aid[/caption]
Rite Aid, which operates 2,350 stores across 17 states, gained the confidence to move ahead with its remote-first workforce plan as a result of its experience during the pandemic.
A 2021 internal survey of Rite Aid’s corporate staff found that a vast majority preferred working from home rather than commuting to the office. The staff said that working from home helped increase their personal productivity since it afforded them greater flexibility and a higher degree of control over how they managed their work and personal lives.
Jim Peters, Rite Aid’s former COO, last year said that a remote-first corporate staff is a competitive advantage.
“We can recruit the best talent regardless of their location, and we can give our corporate associates the freedom and flexibility that today’s workers crave,” he said.
“I think it’s especially meaningful that these changes were shaped by our associates, whose input we solicited along the way — this approach aligns with one of our core values: get there together,” he added.
Photo: Rite Aid[/caption]
Rite Aid, which operates 2,350 stores across 17 states, gained the confidence to move ahead with its remote-first workforce plan as a result of its experience during the pandemic.
A 2021 internal survey of Rite Aid’s corporate staff found that a vast majority preferred working from home rather than commuting to the office. The staff said that working from home helped increase their personal productivity since it afforded them greater flexibility and a higher degree of control over how they managed their work and personal lives.
Jim Peters, Rite Aid’s former COO, last year said that a remote-first corporate staff is a competitive advantage.
“We can recruit the best talent regardless of their location, and we can give our corporate associates the freedom and flexibility that today’s workers crave,” he said.
“I think it’s especially meaningful that these changes were shaped by our associates, whose input we solicited along the way — this approach aligns with one of our core values: get there together,” he added.