Gone are the days where employees religiously followed the rigid rules of the corporate world. If you still believe in the 9 to 5 work hour schedule, you may be on the wrong side of the equation. Yes, you are now a minority.
Just this month, Microsoft released its 2022 work trend index – “Great Expectations: Making Hybrid Work Work”. According to Microsoft, “Employees’ ‘worth it’ equation — what people want from work and what they’re willing to give in return — has changed. The power dynamic is shifting, and perks like free food and a corner office are no longer what people value most.”
So, what makes a job ‘Worth it’ in today’s world?
According to the Microsoft survey, “The study of 31,000 people in 31 countries found that 53% of employees are more likely to prioritise health and wellbeing over work than before the pandemic, and that increasing numbers of Gen Z and Millennials are likely to consider changing employers in search of better work-life balance – the holy grail of a modern career. Similarly, research by IWG found that 72% of office workers would prefer long-term flexibility over where they are based to a 10 per cent pay rise.”
A big player in this category is the rise in prioritizing personal time. No longer can a two hour commute to work be justified as a reasonable sacrifice. Employees now know better and are choosing better. Pre-pandemic corporate policies are now collecting dust in the office, along with most employee desks. When it comes to whether a job is ‘worth it’, people are placing a high price on personal time management.
The old days and the old ways felt unevolved.
Exercising greater control on when and how people work is directly translating to higher productivity. 24% of surveyors place personal well-being and mental health as their top priority. This part of the equation is simple. What employees want to receive and what they give in its stead. A career-life balance is now more precious that a promotion or raise. When it comes to whether a job is ‘worth it’, people place a higher value on happy and content, rather than rich and miserable.
It is this mind-set that witnessed thousands of workers begin the world’s biggest trial of a four-day work week. Four days, instead of 5, for the same pay. Early findings suggest that there were no loss of earnings and no reduction in productivity. In a nutshell, employees can churn out the same amount of work in less time for the sake of mental well-being, healthier work environments and a better work-life balance.
Hybrid working is the “god-given” answer to address these new employee priorities.
Corporates are not shying away from fulfilling them either. Just recently, Nike announced a ‘surprise week off’ for all its staff, geared toward taking time to unwind, de-stress and holiday with family. We constantly hear of different MNCs now including unlimited holidays to avoid burn-outs. The minimum often stands at four weeks a year, or 2-3 days per quarter.
Are you noticing this shift from a ‘maximum’ leaves to minimum?
The bottom line is simple – health, happiness and convenience is a directly proportional to employee productivity. Humanising the workplace is directly proportional to hybrid working.
What we will now see is the rise of risk managing hybrid work.
Or, more simply, Managed Hybrid.
References:
https://www.zdnet.com/article/hybrid-work-from-personal-experience-to-global-trends/
