Adam Czarkowski of Penacook is director of service delivery at CloudCall where he manages employees based in the U.S. and U.K.
On November 9, Elon Musk, the new owner of Twitter, emailed employees to inform them remote work would end and they would be expected to be in the office at least 40 hours a week. This policy is probably the second most foolish thing Elon Musk has done recently, the first being paying $44 billion for Twitter.
Forcing employees to return to the office 40 hours a week isn’t about culture and it isn’t about productivity — it is about control. Business leaders that want employees to return to the office five days a week are afraid of losing control and don’t trust their employees.
According to recruitment company Zippia, 74% of U.S. companies are using or are planning to use a hybrid work environment. A hybrid work schedule involves days worked in the office and days worked at home each week. A hybrid environment allows companies to utilize the best of both worlds.
On remote days employees save time by not having to commute, they can be more productive without the distractions that occur in the office and it promotes a healthy work/life balance. On in-office days employees can schedule face-to-face meetings and take advantage of the ad hoc conversations that happen in the office.
A lot has changed since the pandemic hit in 2020 to help managers supervise employees remotely. Software is available that allows managers to see when their team members are online and they can send instant messages to communicate. Video call technology has improved so video can be used when talking with coworkers.
Call recording and call tracking technology have improved so managers can review the quality and quantity of calls. Advances in home internet access bandwidth allow people to work from home with almost the same amount of bandwidth they would have on a commercial internet connection.
In 2022 and beyond, business leaders that cling to the outdated notion that you have to be in the office to be productive are going to lose their best talent. Right now, the advantage in the job market is with job seekers. It is difficult to find top talent regardless of your industry.
According to Zippia, 59% of employees are more likely to choose an employer that offers remote work opportunities. Business leaders that ignore the changes ushered in by the COVID pandemic around remote work do so at their own peril.