It goes without saying that COVID-19 has changed the nature of work as we know it, with 88% of organisations moving to a working-from-home (WFH) model during the height of the pandemic. The results of this changed work situation surprised almost everyone, with worker productivity increasing, along with employee wellbeing and engagement.
The acceleration of remote-first work culture has been the ‘silver lining’ of the pandemic for many employees. No longer are we tethered to a centralised office, and for some, this newfound flexibility has equated to more family time, being able to juggle meetings around school pickups, or perhaps escaping the city for a regional treechange.
A key question to ponder now that we are coming out the other side of the pandemic is how we take the learnings from this change and decide where to from here. What will flexible roles look like in 2022 and beyond? Dependent on organisational context, some companies are adopting a hybrid model of work, while others have embraced a fully flexible approach that adapts to individual circumstances. For most roles (with the exception of essential on-site operations), it is safe to say that a return to 2019 conditions where employees practically lived in the office is unreasonable.
The modern, flexible workplace
Now that we are out of pandemic survival mode, it is time to be open-minded about what flexibility means in different organisational contexts and to individual employees in different stages of life. An unexpected by-product of taking humans out of the office was, paradoxically, the humanisation of the workforce and recognition that org charts represent unique individuals (not all of whom want to work a traditional 40-plus-hour working week).
Agile working structures are at the forefront of the minds of business leaders. Many organisations are seeking the best of both worlds, with a combination of flexible work from home, while using communal office spaces as innovation hubs—places of creativity, social connection, and celebration. For CEOs like Telstra’s Andy Penn, there are no hard and fast rules to stipulate requirements for this new future of work. ‘It’s not a matter of thinking about three days here or two days there,’ remarked Penn, ‘I expect to work 100 per cent flexibly in that I will work from where I want when I want in a way that best supports what I need to do at the time, whether that’s from home, CBD office, regional hub or anywhere else.’
The WFH model in practice
Whatever approach your organisation adopts, it is important to consider all the pros and cons of embracing flexible roles and have company-wide strategies in place to support such arrangements.
Here’s the TL;DR on creating an inclusive, flexible workplace culture:
- Flexibility means different things for different people
- Focus on output rather than time-based metrics
- Harness digital apps to foster social connections (anyone for a Slack coffee date?)
- Ensure equitable project distribution
- Have strategies in place to avoid ‘proximity bias’
- Use mobile learning technologies for virtual professional development
- Ensure that at least some team meetings are virtual
- Provide a balance between digital and face-to-face collaboration
- Establish clear communication systems and processes
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