There is a good supplement, by Raconteur, in today’s Times newspaper. What does the future hold for new ways of working in a situation where a lot of us, who previously worked in an office environment, have now transitioned to a home working set up. Has it just accelerated a natural progression that was taking place anyway?
In the small survey conducted, 53% would like to WFH for two to three days per week following lockdown and 83% of businesses believed that their company’s business model could be made to work if everyone could WFH. Like everything in life there must be a balance, one in five said that it had affected their mental health and/or increased loneliness which is a worrying statistic given how aware we all are now about mental health.
Another interesting statistic was that in the consulting, finance, PR, marketing, communications and science and technology sectors people are working significantly more hours whilst WFH, although balanced slightly by the flexibility of working at different times during the day. Keeping engaged with everyone in your business life during the last three months has and will continue to be a challenge. The virtual meeting platforms we are all using are no replacement for the interaction we thrive on by being in the company of others and a huge part of work satisfaction is the diversity of people we meet and are in contact with on a regular basis.
At Westminster Consultants the culture has always been about the personal touch where trust is built up over many years of good communication and honest conversations. No matter what the workplace looks like in the months and years ahead there is no substitute for the face to face meeting, preferably over a long cold beer.