‘New Normal or Better Normal’

There is a lot of talk about the ‘New Normal’ but what we should be looking at is a ‘Better Normal’, what does that look like for many people? I have seen lots of post on LinkedIn about getting staff back into the office as fast as is humanly possible, because they want to go back to how it was or because it is just familiar. I think we can all agree that going back to what was normal is now simply not necessarily better. We should all be striving for the ‘Better Normal’.

What if we move away from the ‘Old Normal’ of a 9.00am – 5.00pm workday? If organisations focus on the employee outcomes not on the actual hours employees physically work or are in the office for and redefine what it means to be productive and how to measure that productivity and move to an ‘outcome based’ employee contract. What if the value of your work is not based on the amount of time you sit at your desk or are in the office but on the outcomes that you deliver?

A recent study by the U.S. Current Population Survey (figures not currently available in the UK) found that working mothers “reduced their work hours four to five times more than fathers, increasing the gender gap in work hours by 20% to 50%” during the Pandemic lockdown.

In other words, women are being edged out of the workforce and forced to choose between tending to their children’s educational needs or going to work. Prior to COVID-19, women accounted for over 50% of the U.S. workforce. However, data from the Bureau of Labour Statistics suggests a significant decline.

If we envision workplace alternatives that offer working women the opportunity to be caregivers and workers simultaneously, as in flexible hours, we would not need to be so concerned with getting children back to school before our society is ready for it. It would allow fathers to take and pick up their children and do other chores.

We all know the office can be a disruptive environment, often with constant interruptions. “It takes an average of 23 minutes and 15 seconds to get back to the task” after an unscheduled interruption. That is why so many people have been more productive during this extended forced period of time working from home (WFH).

With ongoing evidence and even recent studies indicate that ‘remote workers are more productive’ than their in-office counterparts as shown in this article in the ‘Harvard Business Review’.  But remote work is not enough, companies should also enable people to work flexible hours so that: Woman can participate more equally, improving gender equality for both working parents, especially if it is also outcome based even better. Many others have elderly parents that need similar care needs and it would also help with this as well.

Go a stage further and look at ‘Working from anywhere’ as long as you have a good and reliable internet connect and are able to deliver the outcomes needed. It simply does not matter if you are in the office, working from the dining room table, or sat on the beach, and who really cares. Some people have been doing this for decades, it has simply not been an opportunity for most of us, but it now could be in the ‘Better Normal’?

I accept that there are roles, jobs, or functions that need to be done in an office environment but so many roles, jobs, and functions could have a much greater level of flexibility than they currently have. The COVID-19 lockdown has shown us what is possible and generally the workforce has been far more productive WFM.

Moving into the ‘Better Normal’ we should be looking at all of this and finding a greater level of flexibility for everyone. Employers would also benefit by needing less office space and many people would work for less salary with this level of flexibility that it gains them. It would certainly be good for morale, happier employees and probably for retention of staff, keeping staff longer as they might not get the same level of consideration from a new employer. I am not saying give this flexibility to everyone or new starters, but it should be looked at for trusted long standing employees that have shown their worth over the last 6 months, COVID-19 period.

The future conclusion.

With the opportunity of creating a ‘Better Normal’ it opens out all sorts of new paradigms for managing the workforce that is WFH as well as onboarding of staff.

With the current travel restrictions that we have in place, along with quarantine restrictions and probably the new world of travel yet to be revealed, it may be worth looking at hiring locally more than previously thought possible or planned for. It would reduce travel costs, having people employed remotely in the territories that need customers looking after, instead of relying on people from say head office, who have to fly out all the time to service them.

We have an opportunity to create a new working environment, to look long and hard at the roles, jobs, or functions that need doing in the organisation. Those employers that look at all of this with an open mind and start to create something new for the ‘Better Normal’ will definitely be the winners. They will certainly attract the top and best talent and become a place and a company that people want to work in and for, this is certainly food for thought. What do you think?

 About the Author

Howard Longstaff has over 25 years of experience delivering people within the talent acquisition arena.

He has worked extensively across the UK, Europe, USA, Canada as well as in South America, Australia, and New Zealand.

Over the last 2 years he has specialised in two fundamental areas, although he often covers a wider remit due to his thirst and understanding of technology. The first area which he has a real passion for, building ‘Sales Teams’, pulling together the very best ‘A Players’ and creating something very special for his clients.

To do that, he needs to have a clear understanding of what his client wants, so establishing clear communication with the client is paramount, understanding the nuances of what they are looking for and documenting this. Understanding the technology, the opportunity, and the growth potential all help to find the ‘right fit, first time’. He is one of the few head-hunters that is willing to guarantee his work, offering 12 months free replacement.

The second area he loves getting involved in, is the leadership team, the C-Suite, helping to get the balance right, cover the gaps in knowledge, skills and experience, working on the assumption that ‘No one is perfect but a team can be’?

Howard is someone who thinks outside the box, has an eye for detail, but is perceptive, looking beyond the surface of just skills and experience. He wants to know and understand the candidate behaviour as well as the emotional intelligence, the motives that drive the candidates he interviews. He is looking for the best fit for his client but also looking to ensure it is a fit for the candidate as well.

In the last 25 years he has also built his own companies and opened offices in New Zealand, Los Angeles, New York and most recently several companies in London. Specialising in technology companies, he has delivered permanent resources across practically every department. This has predominantly been for technology start-ups (Enterprise Software Co’s) but also for many leading management consulting and enterprise clients.

Howard is someone that uses technology to enhance the hiring process, to save time, money and effort and take the pain out of the process, but to find those ‘Exceptional People, who are so hard to find’. He operates a ‘Private Client Video Portal’ keeping everything together, the video, as well as psychrometric behavioural assessments on candidates and interviewing on an emotional intelligence level.  He has repeatedly built teams across three continents, so has a good breadth of knowledge across the talent acquisition arena.