Productivity isn’t everything….

CBRE recently conducted The Workforce Sentiment Survey that collected data on employees’ experiences and expectations working remotely. Of the 10,000 respondents representing the opinions of company leaders, managers, and employees alike, over 90% felt that productivity is the same, if not improved, working at home. Employees have sustained their productivity, and some have even thrived, resulting in an overall sentiment that remote work is productive. Yet, while productivity is essential to sustaining business, what about internal growth?

What has not been determined is the effect that remote working has had on the factors that directly impact the internal growth of a business: culture, collaboration, innovation, employee attraction, and employee retention.

The routines, social aspects, and traditions established by going to the office are now replaced with Zoom meetings and forced scheduled calls. The very fibers that naturally build office culture are stripped away. Information sharing, overheard conversations, and even mentorship coffee dates are indefinitely paused, further preventing the natural collaboration and idea generation from occurring between employees working together in an office. New entrants into the workforce are faced with learning the ropes behind their computer screens, meeting their teammates through video conference, and trying to network in new cities with major social limitations. And now, more than ever, employees can work anytime, from anywhere, which begs the question- what’s keeping them at their current job?

While I can’t predict the future, I can speak from my own experiences. I miss sitting around a table with my teammates to discuss projects, networking happy hours, and yes, even our ice-cold water fountain in my office’s kitchen. My newly hired peers are sitting in apartments in incredible cities, trying to make new friends through a computer screen. My peers in the job market can now live anywhere in the world and apply for a remote position. Likewise, my peers at their current job may no longer be forced to relocate cities for their dream job which opens opportunities they never knew they could have.

Ultimately, this crisis has exposed that remote working is possible and productive for most. Yet, the question remains whether businesses can achieve the same internal growth they achieved prior to the pandemic, now in a remote setting. This question leads me to think that these exact concerns are why 60% of the 10,000 respondents stated that they will return to the office once possible for community and collaboration.