Das New Work Dilemma – warum moderne Büros eine Infrastruktur für Übergaben brauchen

Hybrid working, desk sharing, flexible teams and digital collaboration tools have fundamentally changed the office. Projects are managed in the cloud, communication takes place via messaging tools and meetings often take place virtually.

But in the midst of this digital efficiency, a surprisingly analog problem arises:
What actually happens to the physical things in the company?

The new company cell phone for an employee.
A laptop from IT support.
An important contract that still has to be signed today.
Or simply the bicycle helmet, if jobs are no longer permanently assigned.

This highlights a structural problem of modern working environments – the New Work Dilemma:
Digital processes are flexible and asynchronous, but the physical infrastructure of many offices is not.

This results in media disruptions, unnecessary waiting times and security gaps.

When modern offices fail due to analog handovers

Many companies today are investing heavily in modern office space, collaboration tools and cloud software. At the same time, central processes relating to physical objects remain surprisingly traditionally organized.

Mail is placed on tables.
IT devices are handed over personally.
Keys wander through e-mails and telephone agreements.

As long as all employees are in the office at the same time, it still works reasonably well.

But in hybrid working models, this quickly leads to organizational friction losses.

Three typical dilemmas show where the problems lie.

1. the human-space dilemma

Flexible workplace concepts promote exchange and spontaneous collaboration. At the same time, employees lose their fixed personal location in the office.

The question suddenly becomes very practical:
Where to put your laptop bag, bike helmet or sportswear?

A lack of personal storage space means that things have to be carried around all the time or put away provisionally. This may seem trivial, but it is a noticeable source of frustration in many offices.

2. the process dilemma

Today, digital work processes are largely asynchronous.
However, as soon as a physical object has to be handed over, cooperation becomes synchronized again.

An example from IT support:
An employee needs a replacement device but is currently working from home.

Or another scenario:
There is a measuring device in the office of a colleague who is on a business trip.

Such situations lead to unnecessary coordination, waiting times and ticket loops.

This is precisely where new solutions such as the IT vending machine are emerging:
A smart locker system that can be used to issue and return devices around the clock.

3. the security dilemma

Hybrid working models are also changing security and compliance requirements.

Questions that used to be answered as a matter of course often remain unanswered today:

• Who last used a device?
• When was a document actually collected?
• Where are keys or special devices currently located?

Manual lists or Excel tables are not designed for this.
They create neither transparency nor traceability.

This can lead to compliance risks, especially in regulated industries.

The solution: Infrastructure for physical workflows

To solve the New Work dilemma, companies need an infrastructure that organizes physical handovers just as efficiently as digital processes.

Smart Locker systems take on precisely this role.

They combine electronic locker systems with intelligent software that documents handovers, controls authorizations and automates processes.

This creates a new type of infrastructure in the office – a bridge between digital workflow and physical reality.

Typical applications in the company

• IT vending machine / IT device issue
  Issue of laptops or smartphones
  Return of defective devices
• Mail and parcel logistics
  Secure internal mail distribution
  Notification of recipients
• Personal Lockers
  Personal lockers for employees in desk-sharing environments
• Key and device management
  Handover of vehicle keys
  Access to special tools or measuring devices

This makes all these processes transparent, traceable and independent of attendance times.

NetLocker: Software for physical handover processes

With NetLocker, Matoma has developed a specialized software platform that integrates smart locker systems into digital business processes.

The platform controls, among other things:

• User and role rights
• Notifications and workflows
• Handover and collection processes
• Integration into HR, ticket or ERP systems

Physical handovers thus become a measurable component of digital workflows.

Example:
An IT support ticket is automatically closed as soon as the employee removes the replacement device from the tray.

Why smart lockers are part of the infrastructure of modern working environments

Modern offices are not just about rooms and furniture.
They consist of processes – and of the many small handovers that take place every day.

If these handovers are organized inefficiently, hidden costs and frustration arise in day-to-day work.

Smart Locker systems create a new type of infrastructure:
They connect physical things with digital processes.

This makes them an invisible but crucial component of modern working environments.

FAQ – Smart Locker & handover processes