Roberta Matuson* says organisations trying to return their employees to pre-pandemic working as if nothing had happened are running big risks.
Apple remains committed to requiring most employees to work in the office at least three days a week from September, despite staff opposition.
Apple employees have written a letter asking for the policy to be reversed, giving all teams the option to work remotely.
“We believe that in-person collaboration is essential to our culture and our future,” a Senior Vice President at Apple said in a video recording.
“Any new remote positions will require executive approval.”
Mark my words. Apple will be walking back this statement the moment they start to see a rise in unwanted employee turnover.
The only question here is: “What will the top 20 per cent of employees, and potential employees, decide to do?”
The answer will be: “Whatever they want.” The days of organisations controlling the lives of knowledge workers are over.
The most desirable employees are the ones who adapted most effectively to remote working, and these people have proven that work-from-home works.
Employers who draw a line in the sand and insist these crucial workers waste countless hours sitting in traffic away from family each week in order to “be more collaborative” will find themselves losing the war for talent.
Recently I was in Philadelphia visiting our kids, who are seniors at Drexel University.
Our son, a computer science major, shared tales of his friends who are recent graduates making more money than some of my friends, who’ve been working for years in their field.
His friends received multiple offers and have chosen to work for an employer that provides them with the ability to work on their own terms.
If given an ultimatum that is not to their liking, they’ll have no trouble finding another work situation, which may even result in a pay raise.
If you take the same position as Apple and say “my way or the highway”, my advice is to tread carefully.
Discuss with your team the goals that need to happen as we move out of this pandemic, and allow them to help shape the future of work at your organisation.
*Roberta Matuson is president of Matuson Consulting which helps Fortune 500 companies and high growth businesses create exceptional workplaces leading to extraordinary results. She can be contacted at [email protected].
This article first appeared on Roberta’s blogsite.
