Return to Office

It appears the trend to return to office continues, but I shake my head at the messages provided and the reasoning used by various organizations.  For the most part, the reason to return to office continues to be “because I said so.”

As an advocate for teamwork and the synergy created in having people meeting face to face, I’ve also realized how advantageous remote work can be for many employees and employers.  While I understand that many positions don’t have the ability to work remotely, we should not be lumping everyone in the same bucket.

Having concentrated time away from the office, uninterrupted, can be invaluable.  Forgoing commuting time and casual encounters both add hours to the day—and who can’t use more time?

In addition, many organizations utilize third parties for various roles; it’s mind-boggling that this is seen as working, but having loyal, committed staff work from home doesn’t?

I’ve always advocated a hybrid approach to remote work as I do believe that’s best overall, but we need to strategize that.  In-office time should focus on in-person meetings and brainstorming sessions.  Where possible, plan shared lunches or events on those days to bring people together in a productive manner.

Instead, what I hear, especially in larger organizations, is that employees come in, have to find a desk (as they’re no longer assigned), bring all their supplies in and out daily, just to sit at the desk they find, working on the phone or computer, still not interacting with their teams in person (interacting “remotely”, even while in office).  The irony of that seems to escape management.

It is not the employee’s fault that managers haven’t found ways to be comfortable with employees who are not sitting nearby.  There should still be accountability and productivity expectations, and we should be able to express those clearly.  Employees will produce or not, whether they’re face to face or away.

Providing opportunities for flexibility increases employee satisfaction and mental health, which continues to be a concern in today’s workforce.

Be strategic in bringing staff to the office.  The explosion of remote work during the pandemic forced us to look into the future of work.  Don’t move back to the past.

#remotework #management #hrconsultant #positivity #strategicthinking

Remote work allows for flexibility and can promote better mental health. Think through the need to return to office.