In recent years, leaders have been challenged to do things differently to meet the needs of a diverse and multi-generational workforce that values flexibility and autonomy in positions where they can make a difference. Just as challenging, the pandemic expanded the notion of where and how work is accomplished. Workers today expect organizations to offer work from home and hybrid options in addition to traditional full-time office work. Organizations that can accommodate these preferences and values will be rewarded with a workforce that is productive and highly engaged.
In a hybrid workplace, with some staff in the office and others remote, leaders need to make sure all staff feel part of the team no matter where they’re located. And if they want more people to return to the office at least a few days of the week, they should enhance the value of in-office days by organizing strong collaborative sessions and opportunities for networking. If in-office days amount to sitting at their desks and working by themselves, management and staff will question the value of coming into the office.
To increase the effectiveness of hybrid meetings and ensure all participants contribute, leaders need to dedicate more time to planning, developing and circulating workable agendas ahead of the session. Brushing up on their facilitation skills will also help ensure meetings are productive. Some leaders are finding AI tools can be useful in summarizing the meeting and capturing key actions.
Despite the evolving workforce preferences, some companies are reverting to their old ways. Dell Computers told employees if they chose to work remotely, they should realize they would not be promoted or allowed to change jobs internally. It’s rumored Dell’s decree is intended to reduce staffing levels without having to pay severance. But the strategy may backfire if the company loses key talent and has trouble recruiting.
Indeed, employees who have enjoyed the benefits of working from home at least a few days a week can be reluctant to give them up. If companies are meeting their business and people goals, it is hard to justify taking away the flexibility to work from home. One top candidate for a C-level job turned it down because the company required being in the office five days a week. In the candidate’s eyes, the job’s significant pay increase did not make up for the 45-minute daily commute, and the company’s lack of flexibility was a red flag.
One leader of a start-up decided not to offer employees a lot of perks because she wasn’t sure she could continue offering them as the company grew. She reasoned that employees would feel entitled to the perks and become angry if they were taken away, no matter how trivial they were. Hewlett Packard used to provide donuts every Friday, but when the company faced earnings shortfalls, management looked for ways to cut costs without having to lay off employees. Donut Fridays seemed like an obvious candidate for the chopping block, but the outcry was stunning. Most people didn’t even eat the donuts, but they clearly were unhappy to see the end of what had become part of HP culture.
Some managers prefer having staff in the office for impromptu assignments and meetings. Others are concerned that if people aren’t in the office, they won’t know if they are really working. But the reality is people are just as capable of wasting time in the office as they are working from home. A good manager recognizes that when a policy negatively affects engagement and productivity, it may be time to manage staff differently. If managers set clear expectations, performance metrics and consequences if staff meet them, it should not matter where or even when the work is done.
There is a small but growing segment of the workforce whose values differ from the mainstream. Those in the FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) movement are driven less by a desire to make a difference at work than by the goal of amassing enough money to quit working while still young. Because living frugally is part of the FIRE ethos, the flexibility to work remotely meets their needs, allowing them to save money in ways both small — by skipping the commute and ditching office attire — and large, such as relocating to areas with a much lower cost of living.
The idea that not everyone seeks fulfillment through work can be an alien notion for some leaders. But people with divergent values (such as FIRE adherents’ laser focus on money) can still have the same preferences as the general workforce. Leaders who can adapt to the various needs, values, and preferences of many different people will benefit by fostering an engaged workforce and having great choice in whom they hire.