I predict that we’re in a post “flexibility” world.
In practice, flexibility boils down to “come in a bit late”, “leave a bit early”, “work from home if the repair person is coming”.
Flexibility is necessary, but it is not sufficient.
The pandemic has shown that nearly everyone can work from anywhere at least some of the time.
Our practices probably need to change. “Zoom fatigue” is a symptom of lifting and shifting existing inefficient meeting-driven work practices to video conferencing. We’re not having more meetings, we’re just suddenly aware of how many meetings we have.
Regardless of our physical distance, we have an incredible moment to change our work practices for the better. We can encourage ways of working that are reflective, considered and asynchronous. Collaboration around shared artifacts that enhance shared understanding. Communication that embraces the asynchronous — written and recorded explanations and summaries that have a lifetime outside of the moment.
We can iterate and discover ways of working that make us more efficient and productive.
Over the next couple of years I suspect that technology companies that embrace new ways of working and move beyond flexibility will have an unfair advantage. Not just more productive, but more appealing to a broader distributed talent pool.
How your company responds is going to have a massive impact on attracting and retaining talent.
What are your thoughts?
