Across the country, many states have rolled back lockdown restrictions. While it may mean back to work for many, it doesn’t necessarily mean all those people are back in the office. Will workers stay remote for summer and fall? Or is it here to stay for good?
For starters, most leaders are concerned about how working from home will affect productivity. We’ve always been strong advocates that if you need to stand over an employee’s shoulder for them to be productive, you hired the wrong person. That said, there’s plenty of research on the topic of remote working that gives valuable insight into what millions of Americans are doing from their couches right now.
First, it’s try; working from home is often less productive. However, there’s more to it. The productivity drop is largely focused on boring, repetitive tasks that simple distractions like checking LinkedIn or walking the dog are too easy to fall for. Additionally, the expectation that productivity will drop causes, well, productivity to drop. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy; because one team member thinks everyone else is likely to shirk their work, they tend to slack off a bit, too.
On the other hand, another study found that working on projects or tasks that demand creativity or fresh thinking can actually cause an increase in productivity. Things that excite, stimulate, and motivate individuals and teams tend to get more effort and more thought, with a healthy jump in productivity the direct result.
In the next six months, leaders can help keep employees healthy by using the office on a rotating basis, which is one of the many ways experts have advised for a safe reopening. What we may see take form is the bringing in specific teams for specific tasks. Knowing what we know about productivity, those tasks might be focused on mundane tasks like reports and progress meetings, while more creative endeavors are left for remote completion.
Even as more employers bring their teams back to the office, it may be necessary to rotate workers or encourage working from home for a year or more. In fact, businesses are already investing in remote working technology to better communicate, manage projects, and stay productive while reducing overhead. If fewer team members come in every day, it may allow for a smaller office space, reduced expenses, and the ability to invest that budget into efforts that generate innovation or revenue.
The keys to staying productive at home, regardless of task, rely heavily on empowering your people with the right infrastructure and flexibility. Give them the tools to track progress, communicate, and share their work quickly and conversationally. That means more than just non-stop Zoom meetings, too. Messaging platforms that allow for casual communication and file sharing help facilitate the fast responses that keep things moving forward.
Flexibility matters, too. Employees know how, where, and when they work best. Give them flexible work hours at home, the option to come into the office, or a hybrid schedule that lets them do what they do best on their own time. It may also be a process of learning what works best. Even after three months of remote work, the novelty has worn off for many and work preferences may have changed.
Finally, the key to productivity is to listen. If things aren’t going well for certain employees, ask why, ask often, and ask how you can help. Workers aren’t robots, and the times around us have been wearing. A firm’s all-star employee at the office may not have the same skills or motivation at home for any number of reasons. Ask how you can help and support them, bringing up productivity expectations only after you’ve checked in a few times. Often, simply hearing a leader cares is enough to see a renewed effort and sense of camaraderie.