Part 2: Solving the Return-to-Office Problem?

Effective and aligned return to office plans are vital because of the pending "Great Resignation." The concern for many companies is that now times are good, people will be looking for new jobs or even new careers. To put the idea into perspective, in 2020, 35% of employees were looking to change companies; in 2021, the number is now 52%.  So what can you do today to have a positive lasting impact on the employee experience? The first is to listen and hear your employees and create a new EVP that reflects their desires for arranging work.

Getting Started

The first step to solving the problem is open-mindedness to defining the problem correctly. Leaders looking to save money and planning on mandating 100% remote working arrangements have taken it to one extreme. Those who have said everyone back to the office all the time has gone to the opposite extreme. The truth is the problem being addressed today for the near term is not fully understood. Over the past 16 months, this hasn't been remote work. It has been working from home during a pandemic. Remote work options were limited, as were social interactions outside of work.

As well, don't let Zoom fatigue dictate a return to in-person work. Don't let the elimination of the two-hour commute also drive the answer. Don't decide and think you have to stop engaging with the rank-and-file employee once the 'return-to-office' is made. Over the next 18 to 24 months, people will adjust their work comfort zone, and leaders will begin to understand what truly works best for the outcomes the leadership desires. This process will need to be ongoing.

Focus on the Process, Not the Goal

While no one has a crystal ball to precisely predict the way people will act. What will happen to hour employees, without whom your company cannot successfully execute, if they feel their perspective is not incorporated into the solution? What would happen if 10% of your key people jumped ship? What are you doing today to mitigate the migration? Because people feel a growing and strong economy, they are open to considering job changes. With a strong economy, people feel confident to move to a new role, even a new career.

Before March of 2020, many companies successfully enabled their teams to work remotely. But, to do this, you need the right mindset that old ways of working are not always the right ways of working now.

To make any workforce successful, whether, in person or remote, you need to transform ways of transferring to people the company's values, culture, and purpose in meaningful ways. You need to provide the right support systems of communications to provide a feeling of belonging to something important for the employee. Not to mention you will find the need to address vital inclusion issues that arise from unbalanced levels of "face-time" with leadership.

Key Questions

Regardless of the balance that is right for your company, there is a key question you should be asking yourself. Are you building a stronger and more meaningful working arrangement that enables belonging, fulfillment of purpose and alignment to a common set of values? The result of this will ensure your people are always working within your company's code of ethics, regardless of where the employee locates physically. It will also mitigate you being negatively impacted by the pending resignation boom.

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About David Cohen

David’s insights and advice on organizational behaviour and how culture impacts each moment of the employee experience helps positively affect the execution of the strategy and the interactions with customers. His challenging and thoughtful questions help leaders and employees understand the power of behaviours in the workplace. In addition, David helps companies find their unique expression of the essential behaviours that differentiate their culture from other companies. David has helped leaders on five continents.

Recently the GlobalGurusTop30 recognized David as one of the top 30 thinkers on organizational culture. David is also a member of Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches.

Visit www.sagltd.com for more information.