Can we ever return to working in offices?

 

Green Leafed Plants in an Empty Office | Mark Meuller | Pixabay

A survey was recently completed by Live Career, that asked people to share their experience with remote work. Over the course of that survey it became clear that people were now accustomed to remote work and many expected to remain remote permanently. If they were not able to remain remote permanently they expected a hybrid model where they would have the choice to remain remote, or be able to work in the office or remote several days a week. In some cases employees could even choose to quit instead of returning to work, which is OK.

When asked to return to work more than half of employees may see this as a net negative.  The survey asked whether or not the experience of working from home has been positive or negative. 65% of respondents stated that working from home has been a positive experience for their work life balance with a further 81% stating that they enjoyed working from home. 

The number one benefit that employees saw from working remote was that they had greater flexibility. 65% of employees reported that increased flexibility was a positive benefit of remote working. Having the flexibility to work from home, the office, a cottage on a lake, the coffee shop, or a beach in Mexico not only allows employees to continue to do their work without interruption there are positive benefits to the business as well. Employees who can work from anywhere may be willing to take a trip with family or friends where they still work during the day and enjoy a destination at night. Or they may be able to take care of children who are remote learning without having to arrange for an in-home sitter. This will have a net positive impact on the employees happiness and thus a direct impact on an improved quality at work.

Flexibility wasn't the only reported benefit of remote working. Besides flexibility respondents reported that they found they had an improved work life balance as at the end of the day they were able to immediately transition back into their personal life. Those that enjoyed the commute are able to use a virtual commute to help with that transition. Respondents also said they felt safer and most importantly for business managers employees saw increased productivity working from home. 

There have been some challenges to working remote, of course. Employees reported that the number one challenge they experienced after transitioning to a work from home environment was distractions, with more than half of all surveyed reporting feeling distracted. It is no big surprise that working from home could cause employees to feel more distracted. All of your favorite things you use to enjoy your time off of work are likely located at home. That means you may feel an urge to play video games, go outside, watch tv or any other multitude of activities. Having a great space to work from home can make all the difference in being able to work without distraction. 

It might be reasonable to assume that communication would have had a large negative impact when working remote. It seems that working in an office, together with your peers, would allow you to see your team face to face and encourage direct communication. The reality is, many studies, such as this one by The Royal Society B, have shown that working in offices, specifically open offices, reduces collaboration and communication. As employees are forced to work in more and more open offices, they find that they crave privacy and actually retreat into email, slack and other non verbal communication. So the reality is that while businesses were asking employees to work on site in an open office, their employees were really working remote from a desk at work.

When asked if communication had been impacted negatively, more than half of employees said there was no negative impact. 46% said that there was no change to communication with a further 31% saying communication improved. That's 77% of employees saying there was no change or actual improvement to communication between coworkers. 

When asked if people want to return to work after working full-time in the office becomes safe to do again, more than half of employees do not want to return to the office. 62% said that they would prefer to continue to work remotely and will use that as a deciding factor in where and who to work for. Most alarmingly for companies that plan a full return to office work, 29% of employees said that they would quit their jobs if they are forced to return to the office. That's scary for those employers, not only because they'll have to hire new employees immediately, but because some employees may quit while still showing up to the office. They'll be disengaged or actively disengaged and may actually drag down productivity for everyone. 

So what can employers do to return to work in a way that doesn't risk productivity and turnover? Based on the survey results it seems that employers should consider a hybrid work environment. Offices are available to employees who want to make the trip in, but for those that want to work remotely, they will have that option. Mandatory in-person meetings should be kept to a bare minimum. Employers should consider a hybrid schedule where most work is remote and employees only come in a day or two per week. Remember that a full return to office work may be a personal preference of the management and not reflect the actual reality of productivity. Don't force employees back into an office environment to make yourself feel better. 

Work has been changed forever by the sudden move to a remote environment. While many have a fond memory and desire to return to the office 5 days a week, the majority of people do not want to return to that lifestyle. In a hyper competitive talent environment, employees will now consider the ability to work from anywhere as a key consideration in where they work, or even if they'll continue to work with the same company. Those employers that realize this and use it as a benefit will attract better talent, have improved communication, increased productivity, happier employees and lower turnover. Those that do not embrace remote work will see exactly the opposite and find themselves uncompetitive on the  job market and be unable to attract the best talent.

Have you been impacted by remote work? Has your experience been positive or are you looking forward to returning to the office?  Tell me! Post below or use our contact form to reach out directly.