back to how it was before March 2020. The future of work is hybrid. Period.
There are many reasons for this procrastination, and I wrote about that back in August 2021. I believe there is one key reason, and that is the belief that it is just too hard. There is no doubt that moving to a hybrid operating model is complex, with many implications and many stakeholders impacted by the change. But this is not a time for fear and uncertainty to drive inaction, unless you want your organisation to cease to be relevant.
Conquer your procrastination by following the 5Rs.
THE 5Rs
Conquer your hybrid procrastination
REALISE
This is the wake-up call. The future is hybrid. Remote work has provided employees with unforeseen flexibility. The genie is out of the bottle and the bottle is broken. There is no going back.
This is the time for the bold and the brave, the experimenters and the innovators, the collaborators and the altruistic, the egalitarian and the autonomists, the true and adaptive leaders. This is the time to stop thinking about “what was” and start thinking “what if?”
Stop making excuses such as productivity decreases when people work remotely; it will impact our culture; if I can’t see them, I don’t know if they are working; we will lose connection; let’s just wait and see what everyone else does; and, we won’t be able to plan our real estate needs. All of those are complete lies and are just used as deceptions to avoid action. If you do not act, you will miss the boat and be left on the dock as you watch your employees sail off into the sunset.
In the words of Brazilian lyricist and novelist Paul Coelho:
“When there is no turning back, then we should concern ourselves only with the best way of going forward.”