What happens when RTO replaces WFH?
A new report suggests 90% of organisations intend to have return-to-office (RTO) policies by the end of 2024. AUT Business School’s Rachel Morrison (Department of Management) says these organisations need to tread carefully or risk alienating current staff and missing out on new talent.
In a recent interview in Human Resources Director (NZ) magazine, Rachel explores the challenges and opportunities for organisations wrestling with RTO vs WFH. Changing attitudes in addressing the work/life balance mean that workers will potentially need a bit of convincing to return to their pre-pandemic work routine.
“There'll be some where it just isn't essential and that's where arbitrarily saying ‘I want everyone in the office 40 hours a week’ gets a bit risky,” says Rachel.
Not all professions are the same, of course, and some jobs, like law or architecture, have clear benefits from in-person collaborations.
“To become skilled in these roles involves learning on the job by working with senior people. Those types of jobs genuinely suffered during Covid when people weren’t sharing space and time.”
Employers need to be prepared to hear the needs of their staff and respond thoughtfully.
“I'd say employers definitely should be consulting but the questions need to be quite carefully worded,” says Rachel.
“For example, asking, ‘What benefits do you get from collaboration? How much of your work can be done independently?’ will be really useful. In contrast, simply asking, ‘Do you want to work from home?’ is not helpful.”
While it may be important in the long run to get people back to the office, how companies explain and roll out the process of reintegration is crucial.
“Now that people have had the experience of hybrid work, it would be incredibly difficult to take that away entirely from those who feel their job could be done well enough without it. When people understand the benefits of a situation though they’re more likely to be willing to participate.”