Office efficiency was traditionally seen in terms of putting bums on seats; getting the workforce to their desks on time every time for an eight-hour day.

Energy efficiency meant switching off the lights before going home.

Two recent events have proclaimed the end of this era and emphasised the need for new energy-efficient working patterns if business sustainability is to be improved.

The first was January's load-shedding and the public demonstration that our national electricity provider no longer has the reserve capacity to maintain its plant and keep the lights on at the same time.

The second was the successive massive fuel price increases we have been subjected to, which have greatly increased commuting costs.

Rationing electricity to the mines fixed our attention on potential energy savings in industry. Logistics became another focus area following the fuel price hikes.

But energy scrutiny won't end with miners and truck drivers. Energy-draining offices will also be targeted. This is already an action point in Eskom's DSM (demand-side management) strategy for keeping South Africa's lights on.

In any event, the prospect of a tripling of electricity prices within a decade will encourage voluntary DSM initiatives by business.

Reducing carbon footprints is certain to become a national imperative.

Afterall, high oil prices widen our trade account deficit and load-shedding means job-shedding as it cuts economic growth.

South Africa already sets national energy-efficiency targets. For some time it has been official policy to achieve a 12-percent cut in final energy demand by 2015.

Last year, our largest listed companies joined the Worldwide Carbon Disclosure Project.

This global initiative hopes to improve business sustainability by encouraging better corporate reporting of energy use and carbon emissions, while fostering efficient use of resources.

In view of such developments, office strategists will face increasing pressure to make a bigger contribution to energy efficiency.

What can they do?

A good first step is recognition of international trends toward more balanced office solutions.

Business today inhabits two parallel universes. On one side, there is the fixed physical presence and strict scheduling required by factories, laboratories and shops.

On the other hand there is the production of information supported by knowledge workers who could work equally well from New York or Newlands, day or night.

Strategists have to distinguish between the two spheres and meet the special needs of both.

For generations, major companies created economies of scale by assembling armies of 9-to-5 employees under one roof.

But modern communication technology renders this "centralisation" model all but obsolete.

Email, Internet, cellular telephony, video conferencing and other tools provide mobility and connectivity to virtually all office workers. Often, they have no need to sit down the hall from the manufacturing floor.

The new reality enables companies to re-evaluate real estate needs, improve business performance and pursue energy efficiency.

It's not just a matter of letting employees work from home.

Technology loosens the ties between employees and the office, but it takes more than laptops and broadband for companies to tap the full potential of a distributed workforce.

Anytime, anywhere working must be complemented by resource support and human interaction.

In future, the most successful companies will find a balance between mobility and the positive aspects of established corporate facilities.

Big cities remain important hubs, but regional and neighbourhood workplaces will become increasingly important along with mobility options and the more flexible use of time.

Aside from payroll, real estate represents the largest expense on the balance sheet of most large companies.

By mobilising workers whose physical location is largely irrelevant, business reduces the need for company-owned office space. Substantial savings can then be made.

Studies show that as much as 50-percent of corporate office space sits empty at any given time.

A distributed workforce strategy reduces such waste, and moves companies toward a pay-only-for-what-you-use model.

Streamlining the real estate portfolio makes business more agile.

As companies move from a fixed-cost structure to variable-cost models, they reduce capital requirements.

This can hasten their entry into new markets, and provide the flexibility to expand or contract as business needs dictate.

By cutting the cord to the corporate campus, knowledge workers are free to go where they're most needed without the expense of establishing and then uprooting an office with each move.

Smaller neighbourhood locations can reduce the daily commute, increase motivation and improve office productivity.

Sometimes the answer involves the ability to work from home for some of the week, and the use of flexi-scheduling to avoid gridlocked, energy-draining traffic.

South Africa's corporate leaders acknowledge we are entering a new era, and that new challenges have to be faced if sustainable business practice is to be enhanced.

New realities require new strategies - as do the new imperatives of carbon footprint containment and greater energy efficiency.

A review of office working patterns must logically and strategically form part of the reappraisal. The only question is when.

Joanne Bushell is chief executive officer of Regus Africa and Middle East, based in Regus Southern Africa, local subsidiary of the Regus Group, the world's largest provider of workplace solutions.

For more information, visit www.regus.co.za.