The Office Inside an Office

Before Covid19, it was unheard of for someone to say they are working from home. The school was in the lecture or classroom. Meetings were conducted in the boardroom. Graduations were done physically; people would travel thousands of kilometres for their graduation ceremony. But, everything changed overnight. We soon realized we were no longer safe at the office. The rate of infections plus the indefinite lockdowns forced businesses to replace the office with kitchen counters, lounge tables, study rooms or a corner in the house. Virtual offices became the new normal.

In a survey done in the UK, 50% of its workforce work from home at least twice a week. The survey further goes to reveal the new trend of people opting to work from home post covid19. Even in Zimbabwe, the stigma of working from home has gradually decreased. It then brings us to the following question; why develop skills for such an office?

1. No one knows when this pandemic will end. Some countries that have vaccinated a greater number of their population are reporting increased numbers of Covid19 infections. Brazil in this era of vaccination lost more than 2000 deaths in one day. With scientists projecting the 3rd?wave soon, it becomes apparent this new norm is normalized for everyone
2. In these recurring lockdowns, employers have a liability on their payroll. Leave liability keeps accruing when productivity is down.

Employers in the developing countries are now migrating to hiring virtual assistants who are a better fit for the following reasons

1. No fixed payroll expenses. Hire when needed
2. No office space or overhead costs
3. No costs for staff working equipment e.g. laptops, Wi-Fi etc.
4. Zero accumulation of leave days (no paid leave for sick, annual, compassionate and study leave)
5. Not affected by lockdowns
6. The benefit of getting best talent who in turn get International pay rates

There are fears that employers have with regards to staff working from home

1. Without supervision, how can staff perform/produce results?

It’s important to note that productivity is not in the workplace, an undisciplined worker can still underperform even under strict supervision. Do not blame the place, blame the hire

2. How do you quantify work done by someone at home?

Key performance indicators help manage the performance of an employee. It’s the embracing of putting targets on staff deliverables, thus location will cease to be of importance.

3. How can deadlines be met with the distractions from home?

It’s important to note working from home doesn’t mean an 8-5 job. The hours are spread in such a flexible way, best suited for the environment they are operating from. The issue isn’t on policing the hours but on the quality of work and meeting deadlines.

It’s about time employers realize it’s not always a productive time for staff working from the office. Some spend time on social media upon realizing the employer is interested in marking the register, not the value produced by the employees.

If anything, Covid19 has taught businesses that this pandemic is part of us for a while. To survive, choose the best team and operate successfully virtually.