Click here for a full transcript of the episode.

We’ve been talking a lot about remote work in recent years. The pandemic led organizations to quickly switch to working from home in March of 2020. A growing number of people choosing to be contractors or freelancers has also increased the number of remote workers.

However, according to a Resume Builder survey of 1,000 company leaders, 90% of companies plan to implement return to office policies by the end of 2024. Nearly 30% of them say their company will threaten to fire employees who don’t comply with in-office requirements. Employees are concerned about returning to the office because of the commute time and extra money spent on gas, parking, and clothing.

Going fully remote shows around 10-20% lower productivity than working fully in-person, likely because of challenges in providing effective mentorship, building a strong team culture, and staying motivated. The hybrid work model seems to bring about modest improvements in productivity.

Before you choose to go back to the office, though, make sure the office time actually serves a meaningful purpose. People being required to go back to the office full- or part-time report that they spend their days on Zoom with people who aren’t in the office or that they go to the office only to find it a ghost town because everyone else chose to work from home that day. Many feel that the return to office is due to “old-school leadership” assuming that if they can’t see you, you’re not working.

Since collaboration seems to be one of the primary concerns with remote work, we discuss some tools that can help. If you’re working remotely, you may want to consider tools that help with things like communication, project management, document collaboration, file sharing, and more. Make sure you’re setting clear expectations around work hours, availability, and deadlines. And remember that it’s not just about the tools; it’s also about building a culture of trust, communication, and accountability within the team.

In this episode’s listener question, we’re asked how to leverage HR-adjacent experience and a new SHRM certification to find an HR role that’s not entry-level. In the news, only one in three US workers say their job has a positive impact on their mental health.

Mentioned in this episode:

• Purple Ink
• Susan Tinder White Consulting
• ”90% of companies say they’ll return to the office by the end of 2024—but the 5-day commute is ‘dead,’ experts say”
• ”Companies Want Employees Back In The Office Post-Pandemic—But Do Employees Want To Return?”
• Zoom
• Microsoft Teams
• Google Meet
• Slack
• Trello
• Asana
• Jira
• Clickup
• ScribeHow
• Google Workspace
• Microsoft 365
• Google Drive
• Dropbox
• OneDrive
• Miro
• Mural
• Zapier
• Make (formerly Integromat)
• Confluence
• Notion
• BarometerXP
• ”SHRM Research: Work Is Negatively Impacting Employees’ Mental Health”
• JoyPowered® on Facebook
• JoyPowered® on LinkedIn
• JoyPowered® on Instagram
• Email JoyPowered®

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