TMB Office Reopening
As we all know, the Coronavirus first impacted the US in January/February 2020 and TMB, along with our Navy customers, began widespread telework posture in March 2020 causing TMB to close our 100 M Street on 03/20/2020. With increased vaccination rates, TMB is working hard to reopen the office and welcome back our employees.
TMB will target Tuesday 09/07/2021 (day after Labor Day) as the date that we fully reopen the office to post-Pandemic operations. With local jurisdictions rapidly removing most/all business restrictions and NAVSEA currently moving towards 50% capacity in Washington Navy Yard (WNY), we believe this fall will be a safe and appropriate time to open the doors once again. We do recognize that the course of the Pandemic is evolving and difficult to predict and will remain flexible as conditions continue to fluctuate. TMB is also following the guidance relative to vaccination requirements as directed by the President and the Department of Defense for its employees and support contractors. We intend to fully comply with Government direction as it too evolves and matures.
The guidance for our Return to Office (RTO) will apply equally to TMB employees and subcontractor personnel working on our contracts. We will have set offices for our Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Operating Officer (COO), Chief Growth Officer (CGO) and a handful of other TMB personnel while everyone else will now “hot desk.” We are establishing an online reservation system for day(s) in the office in which an employee can reserve a cubicle. Below are some adjustments we are making over the summer in preparation for the opening.
- Design an office configuration based on maintaining the best lessons-learned from Pandemic operations and not an office configuration designed to keep people separated from each other.
- Configure the 8th floor for maximum occupancy. If we are designing an office not based on separation, this allows more capacity for flexing the workforce.
- Turning the four corner offices on the 8th floor into team workspaces.
- Empty the interior supply room and convert to secure conference room.
- Copier rooms and kitchens will be cleaned and will be fully opened.
For mask regulations in the office, please refer to the latest mask policy released by the TMB executives as policies are subject to change with minimal notice.
During our time away from the office there have been a number of changes to the Washington Navy Yard/Capitol Riverfront neighborhood. There are some new residential and office buildings as well as a hotel. Several new restaurants have opened in the neighborhood but unfortunately there were a few who had to close their doors over the past year. For the latest list of potential lunch places, go to the “eat and drink” section under “Things to Do” on the Capitol Riverfront website (https://www.capitolriverfront.org/).
~ Tom Dority
