[HN Gopher] The forced return to the office is the definition of...
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The forced return to the office is the definition of insanity
Author : Stratoscope
Score : 27 points
Date : 2023-06-27 21:52 UTC (1 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (fortune.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (fortune.com)
| PartiallyTyped wrote:
| > Instead of being a productivity wonderland, the office is more
| like a productivity black hole, where collaboration, socializing,
| mentoring, and on-the-job training thrive, but focused work gets
| sucked into oblivion. In fact, research shows that the office is
| detrimental to productivity.
|
| My experience corroborates this. My team is spread across 4 or 5
| cities, 2 countries, 2 continents, and 6h difference. I know none
| in the office, and yet I still have trouble getting work done
| because people can't respect others.
|
| I shouldn't need to wear headphones 8h a day just so I can have
| some silence when I can work remotely at a library, or in my
| apartment.
|
| I shouldn't need to wear a sweater or warm clothing in the middle
| of the summer because people need to have the AC as low as they
| do.
|
| Let's not forget the need to scramble to find a meeting room
| because the teams are as fragmented as they are.
|
| It's absolutely insane.
|
| All of these get worse because of forced RTO.
|
| I when attendance was sparser, I enjoyed it a lot more.
| nperez wrote:
| I really don't want to work for someone who reluctantly "allows"
| me to be in my home. Or someone who views it as a generous perk
| that might get taken away during tough times.
|
| So, I think people who want in-office work should embrace it and
| advertise it loud and clear. This makes it easier for me to move
| on and find the other companies who see value in me building out
| a home office fine-tuned for my own productivity at little-to-no
| additional cost to the company.
| PTOB wrote:
| Our CEO just announced, "You've probably heard that many
| businesses, including some of our competitors, are calling
| employees back to the office, significantly reducing or
| eliminating work-from-home options, and curtailing much of the
| flexibility they once allowed. Even the tech industry - among the
| first to send employees home in March 2020 - is calling staff
| back to the office. Some with perks, others with threats. Some of
| these companies are citing a loss of culture and others are
| seeing a drop in their profitability or revenue. It seems their
| solution to one, or all these problems, is to bring employees
| back under their roofs.
|
| Meanwhile, our flexible options seem to be working, creating a
| differentiator in the market. It's been a draw for new hires and
| a benefit that our employees have enthusiastically embraced. And,
| since 2020, we've had our three highest revenue years, and we
| remain on track to grow further this year..."
| slickrick216 wrote:
| This signals they are not personally invested in commercial
| real estate or friends with people who are. Good for them.
| MontyCarloHall wrote:
| >Meanwhile, our flexible options seem to be working, creating a
| differentiator in the market
|
| It will be interesting to see how the return to office/remote
| work debate will be settled by the competitive market. If
| remote work is such a big draw for top talent (and increases
| productivity), companies that offer remote flexibility will
| outperform companies that don't, since they will attract better
| employees who are also more productive. If, on the other hand,
| remote work leads to a decrease in productivity (as return to
| office proponents claim), it may be the case that the better
| talent wooed by companies offering remote positions will be
| offset by the drop in productivity from remote work.
|
| It may also be the case that remote flexibility simply isn't
| that big of a draw, and companies with remote options won't
| attract significantly better talent than companies without
| them.
| the_jesus_villa wrote:
| I'm so grateful to be a freelancer when I read stuff like this.
| Upwork has plenty to complain about but at least they don't
| dictate where I can live and work.
| fundad wrote:
| Productivity is revenue divided by count of employees. (Ad)
| Revenue is down because of interest rates.
|
| The problem with forced return is going from no minimum days to a
| minimum, this article differentiates hybrid vs 5 day. Requiring
| any minimum days in the office is dumb.
| PraetorianGourd wrote:
| The author of this piece, who seems to primarily write about
| Return to Office, runs a consulting firm on "the future of work".
| So no doubt his opinions are rooted in sound research and not a
| vested interest in selling books and consulting on the future of
| work.
|
| I don't think that this automatically disqualifies his opinion,
| but the onus is on him to avoid the perception of ulterior
| motives, which he didn't do.
| Clent wrote:
| Sounds to me like you're describing a subject matter expert.
| mcbuilder wrote:
| Right now I'm working fully remote, but probably will end up
| spending 4-5 working weeks annual total in the office. I fly in
| maybe once every other month for like 3-4 days.
|
| When I go to the office, my productivity really drops. I am
| reminded why I hate working full time in the office. Still, it's
| worth it for team dinners and other "team building" activities. I
| joke that the thing we get out of going to the office is to
| socialize.
|
| I like the setup, though. When I do go, I'm basically doing a
| working vacation. We whiteboard, work on things I wouldn't
| normally do, have fun, and usually get something accomplished
| once I settle in.
| Stratoscope wrote:
| Doesn't seem to be paywalled, but just in case:
|
| https://archive.is/0jdJa
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(page generated 2023-06-27 23:01 UTC)