Getting back to business as unusual
For the past two months, we have all become at-home scientists, not just because we can suddenly teach the mechanism of viruses to our children or use phrases like "herd immunity" in casual conversation -- but because we have had a unique opportunity to experiment and observe new home and work arrangements. Work from home has given organizations an opportunity (albeit forced) to see if a different model could be managed and even offer greater efficiency. As many parts of the US are talking about how and when to reopen for business, many organizations are starting to bring their non-critical workforces back in office and in person, which poses an important question that you, as a leader, can now ask yourself: is this the most effective move?
Public health is critically important, but that’s not the only thing you need to weigh when deciding who to bring back into the office and when. You have been gifted with eight weeks worth of data that show how your team performs when working remotely. Evaluate that data and think critically about your company’s structure and culture. What did you observe? If it’s critical to the success of your team that they work together in an office, you should have seen decreased performance across the board. Did you? Did your team surprise you with just-as-swift response times and innovative ideas? Did some step into leadership roles as the company adjusted to the transition? Did you notice any changes in communication with and between your employees? As a leader, being aware of and questioning your assumptions with concrete data is a hard but necessary skill to lead your organization into the future with success. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lean into those potential paradigm shifts and make decisions that will define the trajectory of your company for years to come.
Understandably, the idea of making permanent changes to the way your team works might feel like a lot to take on. People are anxious to get back to the version of their lives that involves seeing others and leaving the house for reasons other than to walk the dog. For many, that means going back to the office. But just because we miss it doesn’t mean it’s necessary, or even beneficial, to return to an old way of doing things. Yes, it is the easier route, the known entity, the seemingly low-risk path. But is it the RIGHT path in this new competitive landscape we are about to face.
The question that you must ask and answer as a business leader is what does your business need in terms of maintaining a competitive advantage, and what do your people need in terms of productivity and morale? Who absolutely needs to be in the office full-time in order to do their job efficiently and well? Obviously if there is certain equipment that is only in the office, then productivity depends on that person being physically in the office. But is there an opportunity to create new efficiencies through flexibility--from others working either partially or completely remote? At the root of this decision is a question about what benefits are to be gained by restructuring your corporate culture to one that integrates the contemporary needs of workers and leans on the incredible power of technology.
A University of Chicago study showed that ⅓ of jobs can effectively be done from home. And yet, prior to the pandemic, only 4% of workers regularly worked remotely. Another survey found that 23% of it’s participants reported leaving a job because of an undesirable commute. A third source even reported on average that remote employees actually work 1.4 more days per month than those who worked in an office. Nationwide, there has been a growing need for greater work-life flexibility and though we possess the technology and have the research to show it may be beneficial, traditional workplace formats and expectations have barely changed across a number of industries. In the past, you too may have shied away from experimenting with teams working remotely because it was simply too unknown, but it is a mystery no more. Though the circumstances that brought us here are far from ideal, business evolution is a critical next step.
What does your team need to thrive? When considering bringing people back, the question is not just WHEN, but WHO truthfully cannot sustainably continue their job remotely, and then among those who can, who prefers or does not prefer the remote setting. Some people need an office scenario to thrive while others may be significantly more productive remotely. Certain individuals may not work as efficiently when they are lacking interpersonal connection and may depend on the physical office space to allow them to focus more clearly. Others, however, may do their best writing and content production when they are free of any interruptions or when they feel they can adapt their work schedule to when they are most creative. Use this time to observe and assess the past eight weeks, and for those job functions that don’t physically need to be in the office, ask those individuals what they prefer. The answers may surprise you.
Perhaps you aren’t totally sold on rethinking your structure because the observations of the past two months clash with your logic. That’s okay. Ask yourself, instead, what is truly behind the desire to bring your team back to the office as quickly as possible? What motivates that impulse? Is it a fear of productivity loss? Are you bringing long-held beliefs to your management style that no longer serve the untapped potential of your team and company? Do you have a preconceived notion that productivity has to be in the office? Do your beliefs about productivity have to do with not trusting your team to work with autonomy and independence? If your team has been meeting regular goals and requirements during their remote time it’s likely that could be a predictor of future success. In fact, most flexible work-life cultures and remote structures have actually been shown to increase productivity in many cases. Remote workers have been 20% more likely to say they complete all their daily tasks every or most days citing lack of interruptions and an increased ability to structure their day in a way that works for them.
As we’ve discussed, the benefits for remote options and flexible work are researched and evident. You have an opportunity now to decrease or eliminate the commutes that waste an average of one hour each day and which reached an all-time high in 2018. Studies have also shown that long commutes lead to higher rates of absence and negative impacts on employee satisfaction. Another study found that 62% of people would leave a job due to inflexibility. And we all know the cost of turnover. So what is holding you, and our society as a whole, back?
Undoubtedly, this is an uncertain time and the uneasiness of making decisions in uncertain times inevitably drives us to find stability in “the way we’ve always done it.” I encourage you, though, to identify the gems of change that will positively change the way you do business. Your options do not live in the black and white: it’s not a choice of return-back-to-normal or lose out. Instead, this is an opportunity. We can now reflect on the many aspects of management, operations, and culture that we often do not have the ability or bandwidth to consider. Redefining your organizational culture, operationalizing safety and wellness, and identifying the individualized work needs that drive the highest productivity and least waste will be the key to your evolution.