Do you want to go back to the office, if so how often?

One week, 400 votes and here are the results:

Why do these stats matter? Firstly, it’s a blend of first jobbers to those that are retired, a blend of industries, and various job roles. This wasn’t a survey from your boss wondering whether they should terminate their lease contract - I’m calling this the ‘people’s vote’ with interpretations from me and my network.

The most popular vote - 51% want complete flexibility followed by 32% of us wanting 1-2 mandatory days in the office.

I am not shocked by these statistics. Lockdown has given us a new way of thinking about work. Now more than ever people are asking themselves, ‘what does work mean to me?’ Travelling to and from work, the occasional hour lunch break, being exhausted by the time you get home – generally having zero energy left for yourself or your loved ones. Remember those days? People are now in fact, sleeping more, reading more, eating three meals per day (sometimes more!) engaging in activities they enjoy, getting to know their kids better, their other halves better, even their dogs better. There are considerably fewer meetings for meetings' sake, less coffee for coffees' sake, and less unproductivity for productivity’s sake!

51% of people want control of their own lives, they do not want their lives to be restricted to the 9 - 5 pm routine of the office and the monotonous feeling this evokes.

‘I know what I need to do so I will get it done’ – we’re becoming more results-orientated – it’s not about how much time you spend seated at your desk. It’s not about how quickly we can be available – it’s what we’re doing when we aren’t available.

Ok, so why do we want a few ‘mandatory’ days in the office?

‘Working from home for 5 days is just too much’ – it seems the office serves more than just a place to work. We need it for social interaction, for our mental health, to thrash out ideas in a room and solve problems with our teammates.

Yes, we are asking ourselves what work means to us but interestingly, we’ve also been thinking about everything that comes with it. Work is more than just achieving your career goals and monthly KPIs – it’s about being part of something. We are social creatures - being around people is good for our souls (especially after a few beers on a Thursday night!). Meeting new people in the workplace, understanding the real flesh and bones of the company culture is much harder when done completely remotely.

One or two days is enough to build morale – only 5% want to go back to the office 5 days a week – the lowest vote of the four. Some people enjoy the routine, some people work better from the office, some people find their home environment challenging, for some people it’s a necessity, some it’s trust.

On the flip side, 12% don’t think they need an office at all. They believe they’re self-sufficient and the office environment doesn’t serve a purpose for them. Some have been working remotely, most of their working lives and the fact that we’ve been working successfully for the past few months is evidence that it can be done. I’m sure these are the ones who have a proper office set-up at home! Separately, I’ve also heard of ‘the fear’ of going back. It’s interesting how adaptable us humans are, but also how comfortable we get. Some of us want to stay in the bubbles we’ve created.

There you go, some thoughts on what we’re thinking around home and office working. One thing we do know is that people feel more empowered than ever to speak up about their preferences. Good luck to all the managers out there..! Thanks to everyone who has given me there time to discuss the topic.

What other thoughts have you had?