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ISSUE 1
Evolution/Revolution Rather than compulsory meetings and figurative clock-in times for their own sake, in-person time could be better used to nurture and grow team bonds, offer opportunities for training, explore career progression and participate in a meaningful dialogue about each individual’s contribution to the wider organisation. Attracting and retaining top talent is no longer solely a numbers game. Upcoming generations prioritise employee experience within companies that can demonstrate accountability to their workers, the community and the planet. They invest their loyalty in businesses prepared to reciprocate. Deloitte’s Gen Z and Millennial Survey found that 77 per cent of Gen Z employees and 75 per cent of millennials currently working in remote or hybrid roles would seek a new job if their employer imposed a full-time return to office mandate. It isn’t a lack of drive that prompts these sentiments, it is that revolution in the way people now perceive work. 49 per cent of Gen Z respondents and 62 per cent of millennials said their work was central to their identity but they also highlighted an ability to find a healthy work-life balance as a trait they admired in their peers.
returning to the old commute and pre-pandemic daily grind. Fears about job security and external pressures from leadership might temporarily increase employee attendance but it will take a more holistic approach and a dramatic overhaul of historic attitude towards work to make a meaningful change. Here we can turn to upcoming generations of professionals to set an example. Dynamic companies in industries such as tech, fashion, finance and media have an awareness of the value of social capital. People want to be present, to co-work and to collaborate because they have interpersonal bonds which they can draw upon to achieve results. Workers with a sense of personal investment in the projects they are a part of, prized relationships with colleagues and loyalty to their employer that they know goes both ways, choose to be in shared spaces because it benefits them. Legacy organisations would do well to learn from this. A former intern at Google told Business Insider that he was offered the option of remote or in-person work at the end of his internship and chose to attend in person. He described his office as a great place to build relationships with colleagues and said spending some time in the office was “the best way to go” for early-career professionals. He praised the unique employee perks that Google provided. However, he said he also appreciates flexibility and the option to work from home whenever circumstances demand.
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