New Ways Of Working
It’s a reflection of how much has changed over the last 5 months that the routine of everyone getting up at a similar time and commuting to an office building for a regimented start, staring at a screen, attending some meetings, leaving at another prescribed time and reversing our commute 5 times a week now seems utterly crazy.
It has taken a global pandemic and the sustained grounding of the world’s office-based workforce close to home to finally see that physical, co-located presence is no longer essential to getting work done.
But just as a blanket “you must be in the office” edict was wrong so too is “everyone can work from home”.
Here are my 10 thoughts on moving to a blended approach.
(1) It’s Not Where You Are, But What You Are - COVID-19 and a sustained period of working from home has finally shattered the myth that you have to be in an office in order to be productive. Indeed many are now seeing it is quite the reverse (see no 2).
The key thing is focus and being in the right mindset for productivity. That can happen anywhere if the circumstances and environment suit your work style and the task at hand. For some the unique nature of the tasks they need to perform means that a more traditional office mode is unavoidable but for the vast majority that is just not the case.
This has been one massive ‘experiment’ - we have all ‘worked from home’ before but the sheer length of time we have had to do it has resulted in us refining our approach, mixing it up. Changing locations, buying a new chair, finding the sweet spot that makes us the most productive. We’ve also adapted our behaviours, worked hard to avoid blurring the lines between professional and personal.
More than anything we have had to be motivated and largely we have succeeded. We are not going to easily forget the experience nor be pushed back to the ways of old.
(2) 4 Hours At Home = 8 Hours In The Office - offices are full of distractions and also actively encourage the holding of meetings by people who need to fill their diary - ‘activity suggests a life fulfilled’ !
Several 1 hour meetings a day plus prep and follow-up and just the whole interruption to other work can easily chip away half the day. Meetings ARE important but let this enforced separation be a lesson on how essential they are. Also deduct the time you spend being interrupted by colleague ‘drive-bys’.
That’s not to say there are not distractions at home - but let’s assume some form of normality (schools back, child care, pets finally getting bored of us, different schedules for partners and roommates) means it has been possible (it’s essential) to carve out a conducive work environment.
This all means that focus is possible and so is our ability to work at times when we are at our most productive (see 3).
(3) Everyday Commuting Is Wasteful - we all make the best of our commute; read a book, the newspaper, listen to a podcast, wind-up, wind-down. We convince ourself that our home or our job makes the commute worthwhile. But it’s not. It’s deeply wasteful of our time and our energy. Imagine you leave the house at 0730 to get to the office for 0830, then you grab a coffee and catch-up with colleagues (not a bad thing see 7) - you’re settling down to start work just after 0900. 90 minutes gone plus the expense (PS I’m writing this ignoring the Government’s pleas for the need for us all to commute to ensure city centre sandwich outlets survive).
Split the difference of those 90 minutes - 45 for you and 45 for the business you are working on or in. It’s compelling. And repeat at the end of the day.
Less time and energy wasted, no frustrating experience and money saved.
(4) The Technology Works - our hardware, software and connectivity have worked perfectly. All of the protocols that hardworking IT teams put in place have paid off. We may have been unable to fly but our heads have never been out of the clouds - cloud based working has served us well.
Our digital presence has reassured our managers and clients. If anything the technology has worked a little ‘too well’. Just because you can easily have a Teams / Zoom / WhatsApp / FaceTime / Hangouts / Skype Meeting doesn’t mean you SHOULD have one every time !
Thankfully, after the frenzy of the first month or so, we’ve adjusted to some normality. And guess what, voice conferences work just as well.
(5) Transparency Is Vital - open communication and visibility are key to happy and productive teams and business relationships. This isn’t about ‘control’ but it is about mutual respect. I’ve witnessed some best in class, inclusive senior management team behaviours. The result the business concerned has never skipped a beat.
It’s about finding a balance between formal mechanisms to show presence and progress and informal ‘tells’ which managers seek and employees willingly give. They indicate all is well with me, the work is getting done.
All of this has turned the myth that people working from home ‘slack off’ on its head. Let’s be honest it is much easier to do nothing in an office, hiding amongst the activity of others.
(6) Creativity Needs To Thrive - but notwithstanding the first 5 points we need to be conscious of the limits of working physically apart from each other. There are no greater catalysts for creativity than physicality and serendipity. Often creativity cannot be timetabled, it arises out of chance and that requires interaction.
It means that when we do gather in the “office” it’s for creative sessions, problem solving, brainstorming - time when regular, more individual work is set aside. So perhaps you are working from home 3 days a week but 2 days have a different focus. Arguably this could result in more productive sessions, rather than shoehorning every activity into every day we allow ourselves the luxury of specialisation.
(7) Emojis And Elbows - being apart has meant we have had to work harder to maintain and build relationships. This is especially important with new starts and younger team members where their reserves of “social currency” are going to be much lower. It’s why things like ‘virtual drinks’ are important.
However nothing can replace face-to-face, without two layers of screen between them. That is what the “office” is for - scheduling regular sessions between individuals and teams, preventing a digital divide.
(8) Working Close To Home Not At Home - working 5 days a week or more in your home comes with drawbacks. I’m arguing that by mixing it up you’ll be in the office 1-2 days a week and the rest of the time at home. Or rather close to home. Finding non-domestic environments where we can work from is also useful and perhaps essential. Co-working spots can be perfect but there’s a cost attached. Companies need to look at how this is funded against what will be a reduction in their office provision. Floor plans will shrink but workers need to be supported where they are working. This is more long term but resourcing the ‘home’ or ‘close to home’ office is vital.
(9) Office As A Destination Not A Place - offices will shrink but thrive ! We will need less space but better spaces. No need for serried ranks of desks, cubicles or individual offices now, the emphasis can be on creating environments where people collaborate, learn, create. Potentially their hours of use are expanded and, for those people who have specialized requirements, their spaces are enhanced for those needs - not homogenised as at present.
(10) Communities Rebalanced - less daily commuting wipes out the prevalence of sterile suburbs and congested centers. It will take time but services and resources will “follow” the employee. Removing the requirement to be in an office 5 days a week also expands the labour pool. Roles that would be out of reach for talented people because of circumstances are in contention. And, for the employer dynamic salary can come into play basing reward on location.
Blended working represents an enormous challenge for us all but with huge rewards. Walking amongst a deserted office right now feels positively prehistoric - now is the time to rip up that floor plan and envisage new ways of working.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mark Izatt is a brand consultant living in London and founder of Mission Critical, a highly focused and curated weekly briefing for time poor and information hungry decision makers and THE FIRST, a monthly briefing containing 31 inspirational insights. Mission Critical is a digital product delivered via his Estonian Consultancy business.
You can email Mark here and read about his recently published book ‘Mission Critical - 101 tips to survive and thrive at work in the office, on the move and at home’.
