The days of getting up in the morning and physically driving to work, once as much a staple in America as apple pie, has shifted dramatically over the last couple of years. In our recent “Survey Thursday” we posted the following question on LinkedIn… “Would you prefer to be onsite, remote or hybrid for work right now?” We received 54 responses, not a huge sample, but the response received was quite interesting. Hybrid won out at 43% but the number that stood out to me was only 20% of respondents wanted to be full time on-site AT work. Pre-COVID most all of us worked full time onsite AT work and it was inconceivable to think we would ever do anything different. Now that the dust is settling on COVID and we are no longer in lockdown, there has been a definite shift from remote to hybrid and the burning question I have is will we EVER get back to full time on-site AT work again? Many of our clients are back at work and some type of hybrid seems to be the most popular mode these days and certainly makes more sense relative to at home only. Now, when you take into consideration what the lack of in-person contact has on people, teams and careers, the potential effects seem unattractive to most business owners and managers because of the possible disruption to productivity.
I don’t know the right answer to this dilemma, but I do know after working for lots of different client companies and interviewing thousands of people over the years, most people work best as a team when the team is together regularly. I did a little reading on this topic before I wrote this and decided to add a few articles below that might help us all wrap our arms around this new mode of work.
Best wishes out there and drop me a note if you have any thoughts around this topic. Would love to hear from you.
- “Young employees need mentors, guidance and direction. The synergy, according to Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan, is diminished when its people are disconnected from one another. Leading by example, Dimon and other senior-level executives have already returned to the office over the summer. “ https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2021/03/19/how-ceos-and-workers-feel-about-working-remotely-or-returning-to-the-office/?sh=7bcc698029d9
- “Being out of sight and out of mind could adversely impact a remote employee’s long-term career growth. Questions will arise over whether remote workers receive the same level of training, attention, mentorship and guidance compared to the folks in the office.” https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2021/03/19/how-ceos-and-workers-feel-about-working-remotely-or-returning-to-the-office/?sh=7bcc698029d9
- “Many of the executives leaving top jobs are fortunate enough to quit without having to worry about how to pay their bills, and they say their decisions aren’t driven by finances. Instead, they are propelled by a mix of needing a break, reassessing the role of work in their lives and wanting to pursue new ventures.” https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/16/business/executives-quitting.html
- “I’ve heard the same concerns about hybrid work come up frequently, and my MBA and undergraduate students who are thinking about their post-graduation employment options echo them. The most important concerns they’re raising fall under what I call the “5C challenges”: communication, coordination, connection, creativity, and culture.” https://hbr.org/2022/02/5-challenges-of-hybrid-work-and-how-to-overcome-them
