Work in a Post-Pandemic World
An org development perspective on what happens next
An org development perspective on what happens next
Our entire workforce is in a state of flux right now. From our frontline healthcare professionals to essential service staff to office workers — we all want to know what work looks like after this shake-up. And we are gearing up for some long-overdue conversations about work, life, and inequality, but that is a topic for another day. Although office employees are only a small portion of the overall workforce, they will play a critical role in shaping the return to work.
Shifting Sands
Moments like this feel uncertain for employees and employers because power gets redistributed, and artificial barriers become apparent. Management who insisted work could not be done remotely is finding ways to maintain productivity and accountability with distributed teams. Meanwhile, employees squeezed into urban areas are realizing their jobs are not anchored to a location, making it feasible to take that high-paying job someplace with a lower cost of living.
“No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.” Albert Einstein
In defense of management, I maintain that it takes an event like this to revolutionize how we work. And as painful as it was to transition home, trying to accomplish that same thing in a piecemeal fashion would be too disruptive for most businesses. Companies previously had minimal incentive to attempt this kind of change.
But turmoil also creates fertile ground for new ideas and change. There is a period when people will be more open to different ways of thinking before things lock into a new way of being. We are seeing that right now as people rapidly adapt to a fully remote workforce.
Where to Next?
This pandemic has been an extreme case study for organizational behavior, and org development nerds like me are watching closely to see what happens. For now, here are my thoughts on where we go from here.
Expect to stay home for a while.
Were you putting off buying a desk because you thought this was temporary? You should probably get comfortable at home for several more months, depending on where you work. I wouldn’t be surprised if large organizations in densely populated areas keep workers remote through the spring of 2021. And let me explain why.
Workers have returned to offices in some countries, but history tells us that there will likely be another surge in illness. Do we know whether this will happen here? No, it’s impossible to know because we are fighting an invisible enemy, which creates uncertainty. For workers who can be remote, there is much more leverage to insist that we err on the side of caution and not endanger the workforce by recalling people to the office too soon. Until there is a valid way to test for immunity, it may be too big of a risk to ask employees to return.
Even if the spread of the illness subsides during the summer, it could be far more disruptive to bring the workforce back into the office, only to send them home a few months later. And the ability for many employees to physically return to the office is highly contingent on other functioning systems, such as childcare, public transportation, and schooling.
Employees demand more flexibility.
It took an event like this to think systemically about how an entirely remote workforce would look. Now that we have arrived — and quite abruptly, I might add — employees are molding life around their ability to work from home. The more enmeshed employees become in this new way of living, the more leverage they have to insist on more flexibility in how, when, and where they work.
Think about all of those highly paid workers in Silicon Valley currently confined to their micro-apartments. Many of them must be livid that they could be working from a sprawling ranch in Montana that costs less to own than their annual rent. Those are the people with the highest amount of leverage to push for different terms for how we engage with work.
Time is also a multiplier in this equation because the longer we remain a remote workforce, the more we adapt to this way of living. And the more we adjust to the new way of life, the more resistant people will be to returning to the old ways. Employees are repurposing commute times, saving money instead of eating out, and structuring their days to accommodate other demands of life outside of work, such as caring for children or elderly family.
Before anyone gets too carried away, making plans to move to Hawaii, be forewarned that new accommodations will most likely come with trade-offs. That could be in the form of reduced benefits, increased monitoring, or another solution we don’t know exists yet.
Orgs optimize for a flexible workforce.
The ambiguity of this event does not lend itself well to one-size-fits-all policies. Conventional practices and norms in many industries are being questioned. Meanwhile, employees are reevaluating their priorities and seeking stability. Organizations can and should take advantage of this moment to modernize their workforce and potentially reduce capital costs in the long-run.
For many companies, the first hurdle will be to adapt to leading and managing people remotely. Early reports show mixed results on remote employee productivity during the pandemic; however, it is reasonable to assume that most industries will adapt to the virtual environment. So if the employer can get the same quality of work without maintaining the expensive office buildings, it’s a win-win — though not all employees will be thrilled with a fully remote job.
We are headed into a period of economic uncertainty that will fundamentally alter the values and priorities of the employee population. Employees who can work remotely will likely experience increased financial strain: Young workers may be forced to move in with parents who have lost their jobs. Families may need to consolidate to conserve resources. As a result, companies will have to adapt to this new reality to maintain a high-performing workforce.
Many other systemic breakdowns prevent employers from snapping back to normal, including school closures and public transportation. Ultimately, employers will have the difficult task of balancing safety, productivity, and evolving employee expectations.
The Turning Point
In months and years from now, we will look back and realize this was a fundamental turning point for many companies. History can tell us some things about what to expect, but we have never dealt with an upheaval of this magnitude during the modern era of global business. There is a lot that will fall back into place as it was pre-pandemic. But there are even more opportunities for us to shape a better working future for employees and employers.