Linked: Some workers can’t afford to RTO
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Linked: Some workers can’t afford to RTO

ByMike McBride Reading Time: 1 minute

As someone who has worked remotely since mid-2019, I have appreciated the number of ways my life is less expensive for a while.

That was before the recent bout of inflation, though. How much more am I saving by driving infrequently, not paying for parking or public transit, not needing to buy new business clothes, and eating the food I have in my house for lunch every day?

This was not insignificant in 2019 when I made the change. In 2022 that has to be much more than it was.

So, when you’re contemplating your return to the office strategy, are you calculating the pay cut you’re forcing on all of your employees, and how many of them can’t actually afford that?

Linked: Workplaces are in denial over how much Americans have changed
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Linked: Workplaces are in denial over how much Americans have changed

ByMike McBride Reading Time: 3 minutes

When you look at the survey results, you see things like this numerically. What people want from work and how they have decided work should fit into their lives is not only different than it was 2 years ago, but it’s different for each of us as individuals. “The tragedies of the last two years…

Linked: Pandemic Leaves Firms Scrambling for Cybersecurity Specialists
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Linked: Pandemic Leaves Firms Scrambling for Cybersecurity Specialists

ByMike McBride Reading Time: 1 minute

I’m not sure that these companies have done the math. If enough experienced workers in an industry do more than switch between competing offers but step away from the industry into a different career path, there will not be enough experienced workers to go around.

What are you going to do about that? Sit around with unfilled positions and cry about it, or get serious about raising up the next generation of cybersecurity talent?

Linked: The Rise of the 9 p.m. Work Hour
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Linked: The Rise of the 9 p.m. Work Hour

ByMike McBride Reading Time: 2 minutes

One of the bigger management issues surrounding the remote work model is how and when to communicate. I’m an advocate of more communication, always. I’m a huge advocate of a lot more communication with a remote team.

But, we also have to think about the best way to work together. There are lots, and lots, of meetings that are designed to create better communication but aren’t necessary. Most of them are recurring meetings that no one ever cancels, even when there’s nothing urgent to discuss. Just because we’ve always had this meeting, and we always will.

That’s not a good reason to meet. At the end of the day, if your check-ins or project status meetings are nothing more than a “here’s where we are this week,” we might consider whether it makes more sense for people to send an email instead. Or even a Teams/Slack chat? It’s the same information, but no one has to plan their day around it.

Linked: The remote work revolution hasn’t happened yet
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Linked: The remote work revolution hasn’t happened yet

ByMike McBride Reading Time: 2 minutes

What they argue for instead is a decentralization of our work. That rather than being the center of our lives and our time, work is simply a transaction. We give you output, you pay us. That’s it. It’s all there is.

That’s the revolution they are looking for. It might seem like a simple change, but it’s actually quite a different way to look at the world of work. Go read more and listen to the episode. It’s interesting to consider.

Linked: Microsoft asked 31,000 people what’s changed about work. One result was startling

Linked: Microsoft asked 31,000 people what’s changed about work. One result was startling

ByMike McBride Reading Time: 1 minute

There is more at the link that you may want to read and consider, but the big point is that what workers want is sort of all over the place. As we all stop and consider what role or work should play in our lives, we are making a number of different choices. Leaders who simply assume they can make everyone do the same thing are going to appear out of touch, and that is also exactly what we are seeing. Flexibility sells when it comes to hiring and retaining talent, lack of it just makes you look callous and distant.