Home-office – what can we learn from it

An increasing number of Czechs perceive the current coronavirus crisis as a long-term issue, with a first wave that just took place, and that is not the last. On the contrary, it is likely that the final victory over this pandemic will only be the vaccine that is currently being developed and in which we place our hopes. Companies need to learn more than ever. And one of the factors where many contingencies can be made more efficient concerns working from home.

Are we really as good at working from home as surveys show?

It is good to mention in the first place that such a vast and global transition to complete working from home has not happened in the history of humankind. We live in a period of massive transformation, and one of them concerns the workplace. It is a significant change in the context of Czech Republic, where the majority of companies are located on the 1st or 2nd level of the remote working scale (Image below). What is the situation like in our country then?

Data on work from home during Covid look very good and confirm previously observed trends. For example, 68% of employees say they are more satisfied at home than in the office and 52% rate their work as being more efficient. Yes, working from home brings several indisputable benefits. At home, we conduct calm and focused work faster, we are more comfortable, and we don't have to pay much attention to formal clothes. However, based on this data, can we confirm that companies have managed to make the perfect transition from offline to online? Probably not.

It is necessary to keep in mind that the current two months have definitely not been the standard. Only 35% of people stated that their work volume had either not changed or slightly increased. The rest of the country, on the other hand, confirmed a decline in their work volume. Therefore, it would be hasty to talk about the fact that the transition to home-working has been successful, and we can assume that the primary stress test will arrive in the coming months. And what will be the biggest challenge? First of all, in preserving, supporting and developing the cooperation of people within companies, and thus the management of their overall productivity, without people meeting physically.

The online environment must simulate reality.

Contact with other people, occasional conversations and sharing enthusiasm for work are essential elements for creative work and high team productivity. The problem is that many companies are still not fully exploiting the potential of new technologies, hampering their people's productivity. "You need people to have fun, to come up with ideas and discuss them. When video or audio is turned off, the delay is often so large that no one gets involved in the debate and efficiency decreases": these are the words of Matt Mullenweg, the founder of WordPress, which has around 1,200 employees worldwide. The basic rules of all meetings and conferences at WordPress include not turning off audio and video, thus promoting natural communication and cooperation between people. All you need is a high-quality headphone, microphone and a noise reduction software. The companies' goal should be to adapt the online environment to the offline one, because only in this way will people be able to perform at their best.x

The pressure will increase mainly on team leaders.

But we must not forget that the best technology itself will not guarantee teams' good functioning and productivity. For this reason too, it is astonishing, how little attention is drawn to change experienced by team leaders. At the same time, their work will morph significantly as a result of the transition to the online environment. They will no longer be able to rely on the fact that they know their subordinates' mood by a single look when entering the office, that they check their work with a quick conversation and many more. They will have to put far more emphasis on how their subordinates are doing at home, whether they need something, whether everything is clear to them or how team communication works. A number of new activities await team leaders who will have to master them quickly to ensure the best possible functioning of their teams.

We are social creatures. We need to be in touch with people, feel how they react to us, see their faces and observe their reactions when we tell them what we have in our hearts. Suppose we remain isolated, relying only on a work mail or an impersonal meeting in an increasingly anonymous environment. In that case, it will not only be a loss for companies and their work efficiency, but also for us and for our mental well-being.