A new survey from Salesforce reveals the dynamics of the future of work and strategies on how companies can prepare to bring back their employees.
In the wake of COVID-19, more than 16 millionOpens a new window U.S. knowledge workers shifted to work from home, giving rise to a new way of working characterised by distributed workforces and virtual workplaces.
Even though 77% of employees reportedOpens a new window being more productive working from home, a new global business survey by Salesforce Research revealedOpens a new window that 64% of respondents prefer a hybrid approach (split between home and work) and want to spend some of their working hours at the workplace. The survey was conducted worldwide among 3,500+ individuals, and the findings show a fresh perspective on the future of work and commutation post-COVID-19.
Even before COVID-19, the office work culture era was dying gradually. An earlier surveyOpens a new window reported that 74% of employees believed flexible working would be the new normal, and over the last 12 years (2005-2017), there has been a 159% growth in remote work. The phenomenal rise of remote workOpens a new window has induced improved productivity, talent retention, and lowered operational costs. Now, catalyzed by the pandemic, several tech titans such as Google, Twitter, Facebook, Microsoft have announced more formal remote work policies. Where Twitter announced permanent work from home for its employees, companies like Google and Facebook extended their work-from-home timelines to the end of the year or next year. In the IT context, a Xerox Holdings survey reportedOpens a new window that 82% of IT leaders expect their employees to return to work in 12-18 months.
When it comes to the complexities of reopening businesses, the study found that most companies lack a robust strategy, and only 43% of employees have been given clear communication on the reopening plan.
A New Workplace Culture Emerges
While commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield has proposed the “Six Feet Officeâ€Opens a new window initiative, which uses visual signals on office floors to ensure 6 feet of distance between employees, others such as angel investor Marty Ringlein says the 6 feet social distancing norm at work can hamper outcomes of all-hands meetings, team building or brainstorm exercises.
Without a vaccine, what’s the point in getting everyone back into the office if we’re keeping 6-feet-apart? You can’t get small groups into a conference room, you can’t gather everyone together for All-Hands. You can’t do typical in-person team building or brainstorm exercises.
— Marty Ringlein (@smarty) July 1, 2020Opens a new window
No matter which way companies tend to go, the one certainty is that the office work culture will never be the same post-COVID-19. Employees will demand better safety protocols in office as they prepare to return to work. Enhanced cleaning, daily wellness checks, and employee health monitoring are some of the top actions that employers must take to bring their employees safely to work. Backing this, another surveyOpens a new window by Qualtrics revealed that 74% of employees want their work facility to be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. In comparison, 64% of employees want to wear a mask, and 62% want strict policies on who can come into the workplace.
Tech News: Dev Channel Can Now Access The Windows 10 Insider Preview BuildOpens a new window
Since back to workOpens a new window is trending, another challenge that employees face is commuting to work. While it is predicted that there would be a drop in public transportation from 24% to 17%, driving alone might increase marginally from 60% to 61%. Also, it is interesting to note that there could be an increase in ride sharing, which is good news for carpool companies like Uber and Lyft. Even though ride sharing companies have rolled out new health safety policies in response to COVID-19, there are still travel apprehensions.
Additionally, the survey also reported that 70% of employees prefer an urban work environment over those in suburban areas. Leading the pack are Gen Z and millennials with 52%, followed by 43% of Gen X, and 30% of baby boomers.
What do you think the future of work is going to look like? Comment below or let us know on LinkedInOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , or FacebookOpens a new window . We’d love to hear from you!