It's Not Really About the Office

It’s Not Really About the Office
 
We’re experiencing a behavioral shift which is changing one of the most pervasive social institutions of our time; namely, how, and where white-collar workers work.  Few societal constructs impact individuals, or society, as much as where and how we work.  The collective dialogue about this change, especially between employer and employee, has at times been challenging.  However, we’re now entering a more hopeful phase of the conversation, one which promises to finally move us to a new place, letting go of the idea that we must revert to pre-pandemic norms.
 
When the pandemic hit the US in March of 2020, many cities put in place measures which prevented office workers from going to the office.  By the summer of 2021, we had the hope of a vaccine.  By winter of 2021, the swift emergence of new COVID variants brought renewed concern about returning to the office.  By then, some 2 years in, the behavioral shift had already begun to change the concept of work from something which was temporarily upended by the pandemic (which would without question revert to its prior state once it was safe to do so) to an entirely new construct.  Throughout 2022 and into 2023, despite employees having made significant changes in how and where they live and work, many employers continued to push for a reversion to the pre-pandemic construct in which most employees were expected to work in an office.  The dialogue has been somewhat mind-numbing in its failure to delve into the issues at a deeper level, being relegated mostly to a figurative shouting match where flexibility is pitted against productivity.  This has mostly been driven by the employer being uncertain how to move forward with the hard business of defining its version of the workplace.
 
But as we approach the close of 2023, we’re finally seeing a (better) conversation emerge in which companies are qualifying and quantifying why they want (or don’t want) to have an office.  It’s a fact that a company can exist today without an office, with no office space whatsoever.  It’s a fact that employees have refined their views on where, when, and why they work.  It’s quite possible new employee habits yield less corporate productivity than their pre-pandemic equivalent.  It’s also possible, the enterprise is equally, or even more productive.  Productivity is extremely hard to measure.  The emerging dialogue is more sensitive to these facts, more centered and rationale.  It is based more on the honest and direct assessments of all parties.  Employers must take a stand.  They must decide how they feel about their workplace.  Do they want their employees in the office full time, sometime, or never.  Importantly, why?  Employers must clearly communicate the “why” behind their thinking.   Goldman Sachs has done a really good job (in our opinion) of making its case to employees.  Leadership talks about the importance of building professional networks in their offices which cannot be replicated in any other context.  They view these networks as the secret sauce to their success.  It’s that simple.  Some Goldman employees may disagree.  They’re entitled to their view, but they may need to find a new place to work.  This is a productive exchange between 2 parties that have thoughtfully formed their views and are willing to stand by them. 
 
To be sure, employees have a new degree of agency, a new space in which to exercise individual freedom of choice in how and where they work.  Technology has made this possible and it will continue to evolve.  Unless and until the new ways of working result in the destruction of corporations, meaning structural harm to the economy and a great loss of employment, workers will be disinclined to give back their new freedoms.  Sure, faced with a mandate to return to the office or lose their job, some will begrudgingly return, but they’re likely to begin searching for alternative work immediately.  Employees must thus also be clear headed in prioritizing what matters.  Are you willing to leave your company to maintain flexibility in how you work?  Willing to take a cut in pay?  To assume greater risk?
 
Work in the information economy has fundamentally changed.  There’s very little to suggest it will return to its pre-pandemic state.  Some companies will determine their best path to success is to work exactly as they did in 2019.  But many will forge a new path, leaning into hybrid or remote strategies.  At the same time, we’re on the precipice of big changes from AI, which stand to, yet again, transform how we work.  In the end, we must move away from the false narrative about the office toward a more productive dialogue about work.  As much as the office markets have suffered from diminished demand, this is no longer as simple as determining in or out.  It’s encouraging to see more companies doing the hard work to define their position, to take a stand.  These companies will create competitive advantage by creating a culture in which employer and employee are aligned.  Let’s continue to talk about work.