I know there are a lot of "hot takes" on Malcolm Gladwell's views regarding working from home, and I am sure we don't need another one, but I will weigh in anyway.
To sum up, the author of Outliers opined that working from home prevents employees from feeling a part of something and is counterproductive to the overall goals of an organization.
Gladwell's views aren't original, many feel being in an office is the best, and often only way to achieve business success. I think this is more a reflection of managers wanting it to be true, rather than needing it to be so.
The best, and often, the rarest managers, understand they can trust their employees to get their work done with little interference. After all, these employees were presumably hired because they were deemed more than capable of handling the jobs they’ve been tasked to do. Yet, I have known more micro managers than hands-off managers, and micro managers like to “see” you working, and that means working in an office.
However, if you ask most white collar workers, I think you would find they will say they are more productive and more focused at home. I even know of many people whose employers became so used to the higher level of output during the pandemic, they had to accept that this would lessen once people returned to the office. Many managers conceded letting people work from home made sense.
Then, of course there is the cost savings and broader talent pool afforded by remote work policies. Companies can downsize or even eliminate the need for office space, and open their hiring up to people who live beyond their headquarters. For those who can’t afford to live in expensive business hubs, this is huge.
As someone who has not worked in an office in almost ten years — a situation not unique for mothers. I wonder what it will be like if, or when, I accept a job offer at a company that insists on staff coming to the office. I find myself reflecting on the office environment and how I was served by showing up every day.
I know my actual productivity level was no better than when I worked from home. Thanks to often impromptu chats with my desk neighbors, lunches out and the old cliched “water cooler” chats, I took longer to get to my actual work. However, these so-called “distractions,” were, in many ways, exactly what Gladwell is talking about in building a being a part of something bigger than ourselves.
Those organic moments of gathering that generate great ideas are hard to replicate on Zoom or Teams, and those who are remote are often left out of the loop.
Still, offices can be toxic, unfriendly and unequitable places, and simply telling people to come in won’t fix that. I also believe flexibility is crucial to building a place that attracts and retains the best talent.
But, people need to be together. They need to be in a room where ideas can flow freely and trust is established.
To me, the best companies will find a way to balance the need for remote work options with the importance of in-person connection. For some this could mean having staff come to the office once a week for a strategy meeting, or it could mean having a yearly corporate retreat, where employees from around the globe meet to share big picture ideas.
Either way, companies should be forthright with their expectations and intentions for how their offices’ operate and strive to make their work environment (remote or otherwise) best serve their employees.