How to overcome ‘productivity paranoia’ to enable remote working

When the pandemic struck in 2020, remote working was thrust into the limelight, and since then, business executives have struggled with the challenge of managing hybrid work, balancing employee needs and wishes with the best interests of the organisation from a financial, culture and operational perspective.

The remote or hybrid working debate has hit the headlines again in recent weeks following the high-profile story of Commonwealth Bank ordering its 49,000 staff back into the office – demanding they show up at least 50 per cent of their working time from mid-July – reportedly sparking a staff revolt. Commbank’s position has been echoed by Wesfarmers, NAB and ANZ, who have also previously told staff to come into the office at least two or three days a week and some up to five days a week.

Commbank stated the decision has been made after testing different working models over the past couple of years and is based on data analysis of the best outcome for the business, which is an approach we welcome. However, it seems many organisations are making decisions solely based on a level of paranoia among senior leaders about where their people are, and inferring if they are not in line of sight, then they must be skiving. This is what Microsoft’s Satya Nadella calls “productivity paranoia”.

In reality, the challenge with remote work is less likely to be around productivity and more around the impact on employee engagement and workplace culture. Businesses need to also consider the impact of where their employees work on their overall wellbeing. These issues should all factor into organisations’ decision-making process about hybrid working rather than focusing exclusively on productivity.

If businesses are asking employees to return to the office purely based on a perceived perception of lower productivity or “productivity paranoia”, then the decision making is misinformed. Leaders need to improve visibility into how each employee is performing and what working environment is best for them.

Trust the data

Scratch the surface and you will find a correlation between the absence of trusted operational data and the level of senior management concern. Organisations are seemingly jumping to impose arbitrary back-to-office mandates in the absence of data and processes around how they manage where people work. By contrast, those organisations with access to data have the information at hand to make better choices about what the right answer is for them. In other words, it doesn’t need to be a problem.

It is a classic example of when people feel out of control, they become insecure in their thinking. Whereas if organisations are confident about their systems and processes, and are on top of where the work is, then it is easier to be flexible about where people are working. For example, the data may tell you that a particular employee is not productive at home (for whatever reason), so being in the office is best for them. Others may be different. Being data-led to drive those decisions is key.

Strategy, not hope

There is a real dichotomy between those businesses that have cracked this and are in control and those that are making decisions based purely on emotion because they feel powerless and out of control – if their people aren’t in the office, then they tend to fear the worst.

But with the right data and the system of managing work properly, organisations then have all the visibility and levers they need to make informed decisions on where the right place is to work for their individual business.

If an organisation is not using data to inform policy on hybrid working, it is effectively a hope strategy like throwing darts at a dartboard in the dark. They assume people work better in the office and are therefore dismissive of hybrid working regardless.

Let data drive your decisions

There are potentially two key opportunities for organisations that are making data-driven management decisions around hybrid working. Firstly, they can configure their business better and potentially improve staff wellbeing because there won’t be the same battles around blanket back-to-office mandates that are based on C-suite paranoia. Secondly, it gives organisations a potential hiring advantage in the context of scarce resource availability – if rivals are forcing all employees back into the office, then data-driven organisations can offer a better work/life balance.

Using data, however, does not create a binary outcome. What it enables organisations to do is fine-tune processes because they have all the feedback loops and visibility on what impact hybrid working is having and, therefore, can adjust based on their individual circumstances.

Ultimately, business leaders must focus on having the data to be able to make the right decisions. By using data to underpin their management processes, organisations can create a flexible strategy that can be tweaked as the business evolves, improving decision making and ensuring working practices are always right for them.

This is a critical time for brands as they grapple with new ways of working that are driven by the pandemic. Organisations shouldn’t fall into the trap of productivity paranoia but rather focus on building a working environment that is right for your business and employees – one size doesn’t fit all.

By Jane Lambert, managing director APAC at ActiveOps