This is the biggest home working experiment. We should treat it like one

As an experiment the world’s governments would have found it very hard to
lock down travel in order to see what impact that would have on the
environment and climate change. And yet that has been one of the unforseen
consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.

A similar effect is at play in workplaces. Mass home working was never
going to happen voluntarily. But here we are, working from home.

This is new territory for organisations. It is VUCA for real. And no rules have
been written for this. In fact, the way many organisations are functioning is
from the ground up. Decisions need to made quickly so the bureaucracy is out
the window. People are communicating and working in their own way and as
best they can in the circumstances.

This is new for many people and organisations. Which means it is worthy of
us understanding it. Listening, looking and gaining insights into what home
working is like for our colleagues, what work and what doesn’t. Treating this
like an experiment enables us to build in time to learn and to understand this
new world of work.

And when people are allowed to go back to the office employers will have
another opportunity to understand why they want to work in an office and what
that might look like. It surely won’t be the same after a few months of home
working.