Both remote working and office life have their benefits; but having too much of one can cause an imbalance in your company. We look at how to keep both sides even.
While there have been many studies looking at the boost in productivity remote workers get, there’s still much to be said for the benefits of working in an office environment, such as the social aspects and having colleagues on hand to run ideas past.
But getting the fine balance right between the number of people in the office and those working from elsewhere can be tricky.
The tipping point
A recent study suggests there is a tipping point. It happens when the number of people in the office falls below the point that makes coming in to work appealing.
We’ve all been there on days when a few holidays overlap, someone has called in sick and a handful of others are working from home. With just you and a couple of colleagues in the office, it can become soulless.
There are a number of reasons for this – people miss the social interaction, the back and forth of ideas or simply having others around to help with the day-to-day office work like taking calls or greeting visitors.
If this situation starts to become the norm, then more and more workers will request to work remotely, causing a vicious circle in which people don’t want to come in because there’s no one else in.
Getting back from this situation can be hard. Workers start to lose contact with each other and the thought of having to share office space with a colleague you’ve not spoken to for a number of weeks becomes less appealing.
What can you do?
First and foremost, you’ve got to give people a reason for coming in.
If you’ve got a large workforce asking to work remotely, create a timetable of when they can do so. This will make sure there are always a core number of people in the office.
You can also organise regular catch up meetings in the office. This not only gets everyone under one roof, so they can freely exchange ideas, but also means they can catch up socially.
Making your office more appealing is another way to get people in. This could include making it more like their home space with sofas, TVs and a kitchen.
Posted by the Secret Businessman