There’s been a lot of news recently about leaders of large organisations in Australia forcing their teams to return to the traditional office full-time. But that’s a sure-fire way to limit both your talent pool and your competitive advantage. The future of work is no longer confined by geography or the traditional nine-to-five model.
If you’re a leader, what do you think your future team will look like?
I’ve seen a lot of headlines recently – and you might have seen them as well – from CEOs of large organisations around Australia insisting that all their people who were previously office-based must now come back to the office full-time.
They acknowledge that during the pandemic, office workers had to work from home, and now many organisations have hybrid work or other flexible arrangements. But for these leaders, the message is clear: Their best and only way to collaborate and build their team culture is to have everybody working full-time in the office, five days a week – the way it used to be.
This narrow way of thinking limits your future.
If you think the team of the future is going to look just like the team of the past, where the best employees happen to live within commuting distance of your office, you’re wrong! You’re limiting your talent pool, you’re less attractive to the best employees, and more progressive competitors will have a competitive edge.
Compare this to libraries. In the past, libraries were known for being quiet spaces – in fact, that was one of their key characteristics. And that made sense, because they were one of the few places where you had access to information, knowledge, and reference material. So it made sense to provide an environment to help people absorb that information.
But we now have many, many other ways to find, access, and absorb information. And, to their credit, libraries have evolved. My local library is now more of a community hub, catering for people talking on the phone, students working in groups, noisy community activities, and even loud young children. And if you still want that quiet space, they even provide free earplugs!
As a library member, I don’t even have to visit the library anymore. My membership gives me access to a large collection of e-books, streaming movie services, and more.
If you’re a leader, take a leaf out of their, err … book.
Two hundred years ago, the office WAS the best workplace for knowledge workers. But we no longer need offices to access files, use secretarial services, connect with others, and even use computers.
The team of the future is very different from the team of the past. And this applies to all workplaces, not just knowledge workers and offices.
This idea is one of the four pillars of the future of work. I’m running a free public online presentation soon about this, where I’ll share these four pillars and give you practical steps to take right now to support your team and your leadership journey. It’s free to register, and you’re welcome to invite other leaders in your team and network, too.