This is something we were discussing over the last couple months. There was a question as to which way things would go but the outcome is starting to become clear.
The nature of work is changing rapidly. We are seeing this happen on many levels. Of course, those involved in cryptocurrency understand how things such as #Play2Earn are rewriting where people will derive an income.
That said, there are those in the workforce who saw a complete transition due to COVID-19.
In a recent article, it was discussed how the remote work situation is slowing the recovery in office occupany. This is already having a major impact upon commercial real estate.
Unfortunately, it is only going to get worse.
More Prolonged Office Closures
The Wall Street Journal is picking up on this idea. That means that we have a chicken or egg situation.
Either the WSJ is reporting on what it is being fed or it is starting to put the idea into the minds of business people. Either way, the result is the same: things are changing very quickly.
Office closures are potentially facing another extension of possibly up to two years. Since we are already about 18 months into the situation, executives realize this is going to create a dilemma in trying to get people back into the office.
With the latest wave of return-to-office delays from Covid-19, some companies are considering a new possibility: Offices may be closed for nearly two years.
That is raising concerns among executives that the longer people stay at home, the harder or more disruptive it could be to eventually bring them back.
Conditioning is something that people depend upon greatly. We simply tend to be ill-suited, in general, to change. Hence, what we are conditioned to do, well that is how we stay. Change is usually forced upon people.
Of course, once that happens, the change is now the conditioned behavior and the old requires another change. This is what is concerning those executives.
Many employees developed new routines during the pandemic, swapping commuting for exercise or blocking hours for uninterrupted work. Even staffers who once bristled at doing their jobs outside of an office have come to embrace the flexibility and productivity of at-home life over the past 18 months, many say. Surveys have shown that enthusiasm for remote work has only increased as the pandemic has stretched on.
In short, people are now accustomed to operating based upon a different routine. Disrupting that again is not going to be well received. In fact, many, if not most, employees prefer the new model.
There is still some speculation that this might still be a temporary event. The idea is that once all of this is passed, we will see a return to "normal".
It has not dawned on them that this is now the new normal. For most, there is no going back.
This is a point the CEO of Intel understands and a sentiment echoed.
“If you have a little blip, people go back to the old way. Well, this ain’t a blip,” said Pat Gelsinger, chief executive officer of Intel Corp. , whose company has benefited from the work-from-home boom. He predicts hybrid and remote work will remain the norm for months and years to come. “There is no going back.”
There Is No Going Back
The above quote sums it up.
Work changed forever. The idea that people are going to operate from a default of being in the office is not facing reality. Surveys and studies are showing that people prefer this model.
Hence, companies are going to have to adapt.
Of course, like people, companies are often slow to change. They are conditioned to operate a certain way. This means that it takes a major push to get them to alter their patterns. Is that push happening right now?
One thing that arose out of the lockdowns is people's loyalty to companies took another turn down. During the pandemic, the mantra was "we are all in this together". There was also a lot of talk about the "new normal". However, when things started to open back up, it appeared the "old normal" was desired.
This showed another area where companies were disingenuous with employees. It is also a move that is coming back to bite them.
We are seeing "a wave of quitters" arising. People simply are not standing for it anymore. They now see they have option and they are willing to embrace change since it was thrust upon them.
Companies are going to have to compete on a greater level for employees. As more people find they have option remotely, no longer are they relegated to just the local market. This is going to cause a lot of shuffling around over the next couple years.
By the same token, those companies that do embrace the remote work model will find they can draw from a greater pool of employees. Basically, they can hire from anywhere.
It will not be long before any company that requires employees in the office full-time will be looked upon as archaic.
How many will adjust?
This is something they will have to do because work changed forever.
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