Work from home and remote working: The myth of the New Normal

We all have seen recently a couple of articles, usually well documented, and probably went through a couple of conversations where we hear opinions, usually pretty strong, on how Work from home and/or Remote work is the up and coming standard in the New Normal.

Most of the facts and figures are appealing and insist on some positives around the effects on productivity, flexibility, etc…

According to these voices, a new consensus has emerged and Work from home, which used to be a “nice to have”, a perk that some companies used to grant as a recognition or a reward, is becoming the norm in the new world of work.

It is true that most employees, in these troubled times, are calling for a drastic change in the way work is organized and even performed. And as Work from home was the only continuity solution during the lock down that has affected almost all countries in the world, it is legitimate to look at it as a potential solution, a quick answer to this need for change.

However, in my view there are no strong enough reasons to assertively conclude that Work from home/full remote is going to be the new normal and the lost heaven of an open space raised generation.

As often, we, as a society, are pretty quick and definitive when it comes to draw conclusions sustaining the excitement of a disruptive new way of working. But we should be a little bit more cautious when drawing those conclusions in the heat of the (almost) post-pandemic world.

Whilst Remote working has allowed business continuity in a period of crisis, it is important to look at it in details and dig deeper into the consequences of adopting it as a new standard. And when doing this, we realize it is not all black and white.

Here are some reasons why in my view this will not happen and, actually, should not happen:

We need a private life

Working from home blurs the lines between private and professional life. Me at work and me at home struggle to keep their own space and may even merge sometimes, making it somehow difficult to draw the line. Professional issues and personal challenges might melt in an unhealthy pot, bringing confusion and discomfort. And this can impact life with the family, carrying unnecessary challenges and unwanted struggles. All recent studies have shown the importance of a clear distinction between private life and professional life. Work life balance is a concept that most of us have actually started to clearly understand during the crisis.

The rise of the super employee: a guide to burn out

A positive effect on work is that most of companies have observed an increase in employees’ productivity during the work from home period. When well organized and limited, Work form home/Remote working can propel business efficiency. However, as all coins have two sides, the challenge here lies within the consequence of the absence of limitations between professional and personal, it is easy to get caught in the “never off” syndrome. Never offline, never off work. And this creates a set of challenges which could quickly turn the productivity improvement into a productivity disaster on the back of tired, overwhelmed and demotivated employees, creating all the conditions for a vicious circle of disengagement.

Not everybody lives in the Silicon Valley

This seems an obvious point, but one clear lesson from the crisis is that we are not all equal in the face of internet access and efficiency. This gap has several reasons but whether it is geographical location, access to resources or financial capability to equip oneself, it is now agreed that performance in the world of work should not be conditioned by private available means. Equally not all places in the world offer the convenience, the network security and sometimes the necessary confidentiality to be able to perform a task remotely.

The social animal in all of us

No breakthrough here, but if there was a need, the lock down period has revealed how much we crave for social interactions. Human beings need to communicate, not only virtually, but they need the physical interaction of face to face conversations. Interesting to observe the importance of non-verbal communication and how critical it is to actually experience it. More than ever we realized that people are at the heart of any business

With that in mind, the new normal should be a new model in which the workplace is plural, combining the experience of freedom and the constraints of a limited geographical space, the business requirements of physical presence and the personal requirements of choice and convenience.

In short, a hybrid model bringing together new aspirations for a more sensible, inclusive and collaborative workplace. A model where both in-office and out of office times leverage productivity.

The ability to work remotely, efficiently and securely from any place whilst retaining the framework of a structured workplace and work environment is to me the real learning of the pandemic.

However, reaching this new state of the world of work is not going to happen only because of the crisis. We, as leaders and organizations need to support the change and work hard to create the conditions to make this work.

Rethinking our approach to work

A real shift in mindset is needed here and this change will take some time. The way we look at work is generational, and it will probably take years before we completely shift our approach from control to responsibility, from presence to efficiency. The crisis has probably accelerated the move, making us take a shortcut, but the journey is not over yet.

Adjusting systems and organizations

We need to refine and sometimes re-create our systems, our reports, the way we measure performance and the way we define success. We need to focus on collective goals versus individual objectives, leveraging the power of networks. The way we assess employees surely need to be reworked with a particular attention on a possible “proximity bias” which could see managers favor employees who are physically close to them. On another point, organizations can become less real estate heavy and more remote savvy, adopting agility as a core principle. Finally, we need to provide employees with IT assets which offer the required level of security and efficiency to perform their work remotely in a professional way.

Redefining the economics of management

People management and our understanding of “good management” probably need to be refined. Empathy and authenticity will get out of the management books to finally become the true north for the wannabe “Manager of the year”. The ability to create environments in which trust and confidence foster collaboration and performance will be critical. Engagement will come from this authentic approach to human relationships and healthy balance of business discipline and individual care. The time of EQ has come and there will be a clear advantage for a human-centric approach to business and economy. A more responsible, inclusive and sustainable definition of performance need to be defined.

This crisis clearly underlined the importance of efficient networks, agile structures and the need for flexibility. The objective of every leader should now be to create resilient organizations and economies able to thrive and develop in a context where uncertainty is the New Normal.

When it comes to redefining the world of work, let's remind ourselves that in times of change, it’s tempting to burn statues and create new religions.

But no, work from home should not be the new standard. In a recent interaction with the New York Times, Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, warned that switching to entirely remote offices would be “replacing one dogma with another dogma”.

I can only concur.

In a world where connectivity and digitization are the proud children of the technological revolution of internet, smart working appears to be the new horizon.

We should always remind ourselves that finding the right balance goes a long way. And this balance is surely one of the key pillars that will help us succeed in making the future work for everyone.