At a conference, I listened to a woman who said something in her presentation that I will never forget. Namely, she shared with the audience the information that she has been selecting employees the same way for decades. During a job interview, she tells candidates that she has complete confidence in them until they convince her otherwise – after which her approach towards them changes very quickly. Constantly burdening ourselves with thoughts that our employees will not perform well enough and that we have no control over them at the end of the day only harms us as their managers.
The results are again mixed. A New York Times study found that WFH increases employee productivity, but it can lead to isolation and stress as the line between work and home begins to blur. There are also concerns that employees’ lack of physical contact with their office colleagues could “stifle” their creativity and reduce team cohesion.
On the other hand, WFH provides numerous savings of our resources, of which saving time spent traveling to the workplace is one of the most significant. Namely, studies have shown that as little as 30 minutes of greece whatsapp data time spent traveling to work is associated with an increased level of stress and anxiety, and when that journey is 10 kilometers long, the risk of health problems, such as high cholesterol and blood sugar levels, increases, and depression.
Some people really appreciate being able to work from home, because they don't waste time (or money) on transportation, getting dressed, lunch, etc. Others can't wait to go to the office to get away from their family. Isolation can be difficult for some, especially extroverts, or those who like to spend their time in the company of others, communicating and sharing interesting information from their lives with them. Sometimes people just want closeness and contact with another person. There is no right or wrong solution here - everyone finds what suits them best.
Also, let's not forget about working hours. It often happens that when working from home, we "do a little bit of everything", and then 11 pm comes and we are still at our laptops. Okay, entrepreneurs are more prepared for this scenario due to the nature of their work, but not those who are used to working from 9 to 5. For some, WFH has erased the line between work hours and private life with an eraser. And this is definitely something to pay attention to, because in the long run it can be a stumbling block that we will often stumble over.
What about team communication? Yes, these times when work has been transferred remotely have presented a challenge to leaders and managers – not only how to maintain high employee productivity, but also communication and relationships between them. Of course, this job is easier when your employees are physically in the office – but that doesn't mean this is impossible. Just because they are not physically there doesn't mean you should lose contact with them. It is very important (now perhaps even much more important than before) to communicate regularly. That is, regular communication and coordination of work have always been of crucial importance, and especially now that this work has been transferred online .
Education? Again, we have advantages and disadvantages. The good side is that online seminars are easier to organize and cost less. On the other hand, as a lecturer, you are always separated from the participants by your laptop screen – which means that you still cannot fully convey your message, nor can you convey to them what you are talking about in the way that you would if you were teaching in person. It is okay if these are some technical knowledge trainings that you can easily follow on a computer, but trainings in any kind of soft skills – for their successful application, the prerequisite is that you have live people in front of you.
Conclusion? WFH has indeed become a new reality, and it looks like it will be with us for a while – whether we like it or not. It will require a little more effort and an “ out of the box” approach to existing business processes from managers and directors of companies (and de facto from everyone else) . And the one who is the most flexible and who best adapts to emerging trends could reap the rewards in the long run. Good luck!