Due to the sudden disruption of lockdown in spring 2020, workers who were able to work from home did so, often for months. Now that lockdown restrictions are eased, people are beginning to wonder about the future. What will the office look like? How will the physical office and the dispersed, virtual office, whatever that may be, mesh together? Will we return to how things were? Perhaps it might be possible to move to something better, for our organisations, our people, and our world.
Perhaps the first thing is to acknowledge just how much we have achieved and how far things have shifted in just a few short months. Think back to December 2019. Imagine that your CEO had put in a request that the company move entirely to virtual working. No doubt, this huge programme of change would have taken months, if not years, of planning and implementation. Instead, it happened in days. Despite this disruption, employees have achieved remarkable things, working in often sub-optimal conditions. This unexpected and, frankly, unwanted experiment in working remotely has proved that it is possible to do much without being in the physical office. Perhaps this is the silver lining of the COVID pandemic: the emergence of a whole new way of working? People can see that it is not necessary to commute to an office each day, with the accompanying detrimental effects on our climate and on the work-life balance of individuals. Organisations can see the possibility of reducing their office space, potentially releasing cash for alternative uses.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Trust is a must
Trust a belief in the abilities, integrity, values, and character of any organisation is one of the most important management principles.
Listen To Your Customers
A good customer experience management strategy will not just help retain existing customers but also attract new ones.
The hand that feeds
Providing free meals to employees is an effective way to increase engagement and boost productivity.
Survival secrets
Thrive at the workplace with these simple adaptations.
Plan backwards
Pioneer in the venture capital and private equity fields and co-founder of four transformational private equity firms, Bryan C Cressey opines that we have been taught backwards in many important ways, people can work an entire career without seeing these roadblocks to their achievements, and if you recognise and bust these five myths, you will become far more successful.
For a sweet deal
Negotiation is a discovery process for both sides; better interactions will lead all parties to what they want.
Humanise. Optimise. Digitise
Engaging employees in critical to the survival of an organisation, since the future of business is (still) people.
Beyond the call of duty
A servant leadership model can serve the purpose best when dealing with a distributed workforce.
Workplace courage
Leaders need to build courage in order to enhance their self-reliance and contribution to the team.
Focused on reality
Are you a sales manager or a true sales leader? The difference, David Mattson, CEO, Sandler® and author, Scaling Sales Success: 16 Key Principles For Sales Leaders, maintains, comes down to whether you can see beyond five classic myths that we often tell ourselves about selling.
