Where to Work Next Year?
Are we heading for a fully-remote, an in-office or a hybrid of the two as our workplace of the future?
Since the pandemic, I’ve been asked to speak, write and advise on this topic extensively. In fact, I’ve even been recognized by the thought leadership platform, Thinkers360 as a Top 10 Thinker on the subject of “The Future of Work.” That said, there’s definitely pros and cons on all three options.
Here are few key ones to consider:
Fully-remote work settings offer knowledge workers many benefits including: the option to live where they like, increased workday flexibility and no commute. Conversely, in-office work settings offer those same knowledge workers the prospects of better teamwork, improved mentoring and development as well as the ability to cultivate an enhanced social life through the development of enriched in-person friendships with colleagues. A hybrid work setting, the Goldilocks of the three, offers some flexibility, some mentoring and some social life benefits, too -- but, living nearby and some commuting is required.
Seeing that top leadership teams have landed all over the place on it, there appears to be no one, irrefutable “right” answer to the quandary.
Recently, correspondent David Pogue reported on CBS Sunday Morning Inc that leaders at Netflix, Goldman Sachs and Tesla have deemed in-office as the answer, while the leaders at Deloitte, Dropbox and Airbnb believe fully-remote is the best approach. Still other leadership teams, including Apple, Ford Motor Company and JPMorgan Chase & Co., see hybrid as the way to go.
What To Do?
To help you think through which approach is right for you, let me offer what I offer my clients. It’s what I call the “Workplace Acid Test™”.
It involves answering these three questions:
1. Which workplace option will most help your organization to become the products and services “of choice” within the markets that you serve?
2. Which workplace option will most help your organization to becoming the investment “of choice,” among its stakeholders, and;
3. Which workplace option will most help your organization to becoming the employer “of choice” among the best and brightest workers available?
I have found that by helping top leaders wrestle through these 3 questions will help to lead them to discovering the “right” answer for them.
To close, I hope that this helps you reflect on last year and determine how you may want to focus your energy, right now, to influence and impact the next year.
Call to discuss and to bounce around some ideas for helping your organization become "of choice!"