Rishi Sunak admits working from home is 'probably' here to stay
Rishi Sunak admits working from home is 'probably' here to stay
The Chancellor said that working from home was obviously the ‘big unknown’ to have emerged from Covid-19….
What does that mean for our clients and professionals in terms of workforce, hiring, onboarding, support and productivity; and what do we think will be happening when the restrictions are eased? This is what our technology clients and candidates are saying:
1) Productivity - some teams have taken to home working like ducks to water, where others have struggled due to their home environment, motivation, tech stack etc. People often comment they are not so much “working from home” but “living at work”. The challenge for Management is to keep up lines of productivity without the need for micro management, whilst not being able to see or hear the team vibe in the office and needing to place their trust in the staff.
2) Time pressures – the very informal corridor interactions, fleeting chats and water cooler updates are not happening. Everything is more prescribed, booked in and formal and its difficult to have very short conversations where someone just needs a nod from their manager, confirmation of an idea or a simple acknowledgment of something. The accumulative knock-on effects of communication can be limiting and leave tasks outstanding for longer.
3) The difficult conversations – conflict management is a skill in itself and we know that delicate conversations are necessary. These can be emotive, sensitive and can have unintended consequences. Reading body language is key to steer a conversation and this is not as easy when only a face or shoulders can be seen. The outward body signals are limited. Especially true for people who have yet to actually have met and built a relationship pre-Covid.
4) Recruitment process - On line interviewing has changed the dynamic. A hiring manager’s impression of a prospective candidate, and importantly vice versa, is more limited. The way humans assess each other is largely visual in the very first seconds of a meeting, professionally or socially. This sets the scene. The handshake, the eye contact, the physical presence, posture and appearance.
The Negatives - Each side is having to make as good as an impression as possible from a screen only and in a time of increased caution that extra piece of emotional connection can be the difference between a successful hire or not. Talent teams have told us that they do not have the same level of post-hiring engagement to ensure that the new joiner has settled.
The Positives - Interviews are easier to schedule and the volume of candidates seen can increase so decision making is potentially quicker and less intrusive on a candidate’s working day.
5) The future model – Management teams are thinking how best to manage their staff post-Covid. Despite some of the posturing by the larger global financial organisations, it seems the trend will be for a blend of office and remote working. Spotify have elected for fully remote but this business does not operate in highly regulated industries. The conundrum is how to provide a WFH policy that does not unfairly disadvantage anyone, nor does it force people to work from home if they don’t want to or if they are unable to do so productively. The “excuse” of its simply company policy to not allow WFH will no longer work and staff attrition will be directly impacted on how these policies are written and managed. TalentHawk’s research suggests that 25% of a company’s workforce will leave if employees are forced to return to the office five days a week.
Please share your comments and opinions, we’d love to hear what you’re thinking.
Keep an eye out here for further topical blogs from team Talenthawk on the future of work and the changing recruitment landscape.