The Future of Work (One Year Later)
For better or worse, the pandemic has changed the way that we work. As the world continues to reopen, companies must have an answer for what “work” looks like going forward.
I have recently been added to the “Future of Work” committee at Lextant. As a fully remote employee, I am responsible for bringing the work-from-home perspective to the discussion. The committee’s goal is to create the ideal work environment for our team and determine what “new way of working” could make us more successful as a company in the next five years.
As a remote employee, my first reaction to this challenge is a hybrid-work model, but what exactly does that mean?
A coworker sent me this article from the Harvard Business Review, “What Great Hybrid Cultures Do Differently,” to help start our own conversation.
The article poses this belief:
In a successful hybrid-work model, all employees should be treated as remote employees.
In order to treat all employees as remote, the article outlines five key tasks:
1. Embracing asynchronous communication - This point addresses the issue of employees working in different time zones. It’s important that all communication be either written or recorded so that, regardless of what time of day they work, any employee always has access to this information.
2. Making communication boundaries clear - A team needs to set clear expectations with each other when it comes to communicating and getting work done. Doing things like keeping calendars up-to-date with availability and setting rules for communicating can help a team plan their work day better.
3. Championing documentation and artifacts - A company needs to ensure that all employees have access to all manner of documents and information. (I’m hoping this allows me to get a Digital Asset Manager off the ground at Lextant).
4. Broadcasting communication - Sharing regular company-wide goals and updates, as well as individual achievements, keeps everyone in the loop.
5. Providing the tooling to succeed - The public office has a lot of tools and resources for employees. A home office needs to offer comparable resources.
It’s going to take time to develop and implement a “Future of Work” plan, but I’m excited to be involved in making those policies.