The global pandemic shifted employment as we know it: countless companies and corporations needed to adapt to the critical safety guidelines of the pandemic shutdown. To stay in business, companies restructured positions so their employees could work from home or remotely. Post-shutdown business leaders and their employees are forced to reevaluate if exclusively working in a conventional office is optimal for sustaining a successful business.

How Work Changed During the Pandemic

Stanford economist Nicolas Bloom and his colleagues conducted a national survey of employers and employees in May 2020 – more than half of the respondents who worked from home reported working more efficiently than in the office. The results are not far-fetched: fewer distractions exist at home because employees aren’t surrounded by other busy employees or called into constant office meetings (which aren’t always conducive to productivity). Post-shutdown, companies are pushing to reestablish the office as the primary and optimal working environment. However, if businesses want to stay afloat, they will need to adapt to the needs of their employees. More people have quit their jobs during the pandemic and report how they’re more willing to leave their positions than pre-pandemic when their needs aren’t being accommodated.

Flexible Work Environments Boost Productivity

Businesses cannot succeed without their staff: business leaders must consider the needs of their employees as they restructure their organizations, offices, and work environments. Companies should regularly assess the individual strengths, responsibilities, and challenges of their departments and staff to foster their greatest potential and work efficiency. Regardless of the increase in productivity observed in people in work-from-home or remote positions, teams with specific creative positions and responsibilities achieve higher levels of productivity when meeting in person and getting the collaborative input and support they need. Companies can accommodate them by holding meetings offsite or creating hybrid positions for specific departments. However, other employees, such as accountants, are best suited to a quiet environment to focus. Requiring an accountant to return to a busy office would distract them and reduce their efficiency. When employers provide flexibility in work opportunities, they earn the trust of their employees: this also fosters higher levels of productivity from their staff. Businesses need to adapt to stay competitive, and leaders should focus on creating solutions that will produce high-quality work, create greater team collaboration, and increase productivity. When staying competitive requires straying from tradition and the need to come up with inventive solutions, business leaders should consult qualified experts to help them organize and strategize their next moves. Do you need assistance in restructuring your business? Call 719-640-8226 or click here to book a consultation with me! To learn more about significant post-shutdown employment shifts and trends, click here to listen to the Soar Higher Podcast episode 13!