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You, like me, will have no-doubt heard the recent directive from some of our government MPs, that everyone should get back to the office, as soon as possible. Certain journalists have also suggested home-working is just a ‘remainer-cult’ (while writing the article WFH). So go figure. I have read Lord Sugar is also a fan of getting everyone back into their old workplaces too. That’s clearly from a bloke with a big office portfolio. That may be affecting his personal thinking, or it might be that he cannot connect his Amstrad at home to the interweb for downstreaming.
Of course not everyone has been lucky enough to be able to do their job from home from a computer screen, or have a suitable space there to efficiently perform to a similar level. Good connectivity of course is essential, plus reasonable ability to access and use the same systems and applications etc, that were used originally in the past. WFH potentially reduces car use, use of fuel, carbon footprint and reduction of pollution, if we can practically manage it.
I think the tech generally got introduced within the first two months (March & April 2020) of Covid19 lockdown, as there was no alternative to introducing Teams, Zoom etc for many, otherwise organisations could not operate at all. We all had to adapt quick to a new normal. Organisations on old versions of solutions, suddenly woke up to the problems these created for staff WFH.
Its hard to determine what the motivation is for the current rush back, is it that all those sandwich shops, cafes, train companies etc are feeling the pinch? Maybe it’s that we still have a problem in some quarters, seeing that work is something we do, not necessarily a place to go. Seeing employees nine to five in an office can feel reassuring, although that does not equate to knowing how much actual work staff are really doing.
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| JRM setting the standard for in-office productivity |
If managers cannot measure the work throughput and being completed, then that is poor management, if present in an office or working from home. There are many examples of MP’s being present in the House Of Commons, clearly not doing anything productive. Lounging around or watching porn on their smartphone or tablets.
So do people want to ‘get back to normal’ and have things all face to face again? I would guess not, although in some situations do work much better that way. One example is software demos, I would always want to meet the bidders in real life, particularly if spending hundreds of thousands of pounds. In the quite rare situations where I personally have been able to ‘do things the old way again’, its worked well. Even sitting in the odd motorway traffic jam has not really irritated me, as I am no longer doing it every single day.
If staff have worked from home for a couple of years, maybe they don’t see the point of hours stuck back on the journey in/back, sardine packed peak time trains, office gossip, meetings where disrespectful staff arrive late or leave early. Its crazy to rush back to presenteeism, rather than doing the best to complete the work needed. Its great at times to actually be together with colleagues IRL, to bounce ideas off them and collaborate. That is one particular thing we cannot lose.
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| Cartoonist Matt's take on it |
Not having staff workload monitored is the same problem for WFH as when present in the office. If workload is not being controlled at home, its not likely to change overnight when offices are filled again.
A lot of local and council services have degraded over the last two years. Some of this might be down to staff vacancies, cutbacks or perhaps working from home not properly managed. I was chatting to a friend last week, trying to obtain a death certificate from her city council. These are generally issued to a target of a week. Already 9 days on and unable to progress funeral, probate etc, this is being blamed on ‘Working From Home’ apparently.
Is WFH turning into a convenient scapegoat, maybe taking over from ‘Sorry, our computer system is not very good and that’s slowing everything down’ ?
Would you accept a cut in pay if we choose longer term working from home? How much might it be worth to you?
Another example last week was on an LBC piece on Passport issue delays. Nick Farrari hit out at the Director General of the Passport Office, saying “This woman is on the thick end of £200k pa, she doesn’t go into work and thousands of Brits are desperately waiting for their passports”. Does he think she might abandon her Peloton, slippers & jogging pants, go into the office and start knocking some of the nice new blue ones out herself personally? Does anyone actually have any evidence at all that she is unable to effectively do her job at home? That in fact is the only criteria that really matters for this.
Has your organisation got the ability to really monitor what work is being done, different types of interactions, whether that is one or more physical offices, at home or a hybrid of both? That is the key to where the right place physically, for each member of staff.
If we can help your organisation with any aspect of transformation
issues/procurement, please just get in touch, for a chat over a brew. I will bring the chocolate Hobnobs 😉
Related Post: Bring It Back - What will the New Normal look like?
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The Beatles – Get Back.
(c) Tony Smith, Acutance Consulting www.acutanceconsulting.co.uk 07854-655009
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