5 Truths That Hold Up: An early warning I delivered in HBR 4 years ago this week

Dear Friends,

Four years ago this week?(two weeks before the U.S. declared a health emergency),?Harvard Business Review ?published my early warning to employers: what's your plan for the "possibility" that part or all of your workforce may have to work remotely should the global threat of the "coronavirus" grow?

It's noteworthy how the questions I posed then ring true today, perhaps even more so:

"Are organizations ready? Chances are probably not. But even for those open to rethinking how the work would get done, are they ready for the inevitable post-crisis question: 'Why don't we do this all the time?' How do you prepare your organization to not only flexibly respond to this potential disruption, but also to use it as an opportunity to reimagine work broadly?"?

Four years ago, a crisis forced "What's your company's emergency remote work plan?" Today, organizations get to choose "What's your company's flexible work strategy?"?

The five basic execution steps I outlined then still apply:

? "Gather a cross-functional team together now that includes business-line leaders, IT, HR, communications, and facilities to start to plan for different scenarios and optimize execution."

? "Note which roles and duties: 1) Can be done, even partially, without a physical presence in the workplace, 2) Cannot be done, even somewhat, outside of the physical office, and 3) Not sure."

? "Assess the comfort level with specific applications, such as video conferencing and other collaboration/communication platforms. Where you find gaps, provide training and opportunities for practice before people need to use them."?

? "(Set up a communications plan) that outlines: how to reach everybody (e.g., all contact information in one place, primary communication channels clarified — email, IM, Slack, etc.); how employees are expected to respond to customers; and how and when teams will coordinate and meet."

? "Identify ways to measure performance that could inform broader change."

Four years from now, it will be interesting to see how many organizations followed the steps that will allow them to perform at high levels, working flexibly across workplaces, spaces, and time...and how many still need to.?

Until next time, keep reimagining work and life,