'Remote work is not office work in a remote environment'
Alice J. Goffredo
Talent Acquisition ? Recruitment ? Career and Transition Coaching ? HR Consulting
I had the pleasure of watching a live video stream yesterday hosted by Johnny Campbell, the CEO and Co-founder of Social Talent. He was joined by Lars Schmidt, the founder of Amplify Talent. I encourage you all to watch it (especially those in HR and those focused on recruiting or even just those who will one day be going back to work outside the home – OK all of you!). You can view it at www.socialtalent.com/theshortlist
While I won’t go into a lot of detail on the video (please watch it!), there were a few points (well, more than a few) that I found particularly interesting. Please note that while some of the content below is gleaned from the webinar, much of it is interspersed with my thoughts and advice.
The first was that “Truly remote work is not ‘office work’ in a remote environment.” This struck such a chord with me since I hear people talk about the trials and tribulations of working from home during this pandemic. It is NOT the same as working from home on a casual basis pre-pandemic. It is NOT the same when your employees worked from home and had their children in school or in daycare and didn’t also have a spouse working from home. It is NOT the same as someone deciding to work remotely one day and camping out at their deck or patio or the local coffee shop to get work done.
First of all, there are many challenges facing people working from home these days. In addition to those with both spouses working from home and young children to tend to and no day care (or older children who need help with school work), there are the single parents who are doing it all on their own, there are those in 500 square foot condos competing for space to set up a home office, etc.
But perhaps the biggest challenge is the employer who is in the mindset of 9-5 hours or sticking to a process which worked in the office or pre-pandemic. Leaders really do need to get their heads around how their employees are working these days and think differently about how work is getting done. Expecting them to work a traditional workday is unrealistic – especially if they have children at home or elderly family members they are supporting. Maybe they are now relying on only one income where before they had two and have a mortgage to pay, car payments to make, expenses to pay for. And this doesn’t even take into account the stress and anxiety they may be feeling or those with pre-existing mental health issues. It should not be about when the work gets done or what the process is but more about what needs to be done, what the deadlines are and then trust them to deliver.
So much is written about Zoom fatigue and it’s a real problem. Keeping meetings to a minimum is important – especially when employees are trying to put their heads down and crank out a work product. Does everyone need to be on every meeting? Can someone take notes or record the video call so that some employees can catch up later? Employers need to be cognizant of the constraints on employees. I have a client who is working from home in a very demanding job with a spouse working from home in an equally demanding job. They are expected to be on video and phone calls throughout the day and still get their work done – all while juggling a two year old who doesn’t understand why mommy and daddy are home but can’t pay attention to him.
A great phrase on the webinar was ‘meet employees where they are” or “meet each person where they are.” It is important for leaders and managers to understand each employee’s circumstance and needs at this time and not to paint them all with one brush. In addition to everyone having different work styles – they all have different home situations.
Another topic discussed was weekly social on-line get togethers for staff. Often this is just another pressure put on employees to participate in a social get together when they are barely keeping their heads above water. We can all understand the employer’s good intentions – hey, let’s get together and keep up that camaraderie and ensure we are keeping our culture intact. Are they scheduled for 5:00 on a Friday? Maybe that’s when some of your employees are turning away from their laptops and preparing and having dinner with their families. Are you scheduling lunchtime get togethers? Maybe that’s the time of day when some of your employees try to get out for a walk or a bike ride or have lunch with their families. Maybe they are running out for essential food items. Maybe they are delivering food to elderly family and friends. Think before scheduling these social activities and ensure your employees are not expected to attend. Ensure they understand this.
On the reverse side of the equation, it’s important that employees feel comfortable communicating their feelings, concerns, issues with their leaders. Maybe over the short term some employees need to reduce their hours each day or take a day off a week. Be cognizant of their needs and accommodate them as you are able. And remember, all of that vacation time is piling up and, if we are fortunate to be able to travel this year, not everyone will be able to take their time at the same time. Think about taking some of it now....close down, shut down those laptops and spend time with your immediate family. And on that note, leaders.....if you have employees taking vacation time now (or as I call it staycation time), don't expect them to work. Let them have the time they need to recharge their batteries.
Stay safe all.
The webinar also touched on the World of Work and themes and trends for returning to work.
I encourage you all to watch it. Some other websites suggested include:
www.socialtalent.com/theshortlist