HP Innovation Issue 18: Summer 2021 | Page 58

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WORK / LIFE : CAREER MOBILITY

TODAY ’ S COMMUTE ?

WORKING FROM HOME THIS PAST YEAR , Kristin Boyd , communications director for the Reading School District in Pennsylvania , found herself searching for a quiet , well-lit space to focus . Some days she worked on the living room couch . At other times when she logged in to meetings , she sought refuge in a bathroom to mask her children ’ s chatter , virtual classes , or her husband ’ s work calls .
“ Everybody ’ s trying to find a space they feel most comfortable in , with the least distraction ,” says Boyd .
Boyd recently bought herself a desk . She ’ s also purchased earbuds , noise-canceling headphones , and a lamp to backlight online meetings , and she may invest in additional work-from-home tools if her district decides to give employees more flexibility to work remotely after they return to the office .
It ’ s a decision that many employers have already made — committing to a hybrid model going forward in which some employees work remotely all or part of the time . A survey by the Capgemini Research Institute shows that more than one-third of companies expect 70 % or more of their employees to work remotely in the coming years . In a recent PwC survey , more than 60 % of executives plan to increase spending on virtual

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