#WFH

2020 and COVID changed the places so many of us work. Up until then it was 5 days a week commuting to a place of work for so much of the population.  Pre my move to Greece, that was easy for me as I lived weekdays in London and cycled 7km each way to and from our office each day.  What I got out of that was daily contact with colleagues, some of whom do the work that I do (and could be used as a sounding board in discussion about strategy etc), and some of whom do complementary work - in finance and accounting, credit control, regulatory compliance, underwriting, and actuarial expertise.  Together we are like the cogs of a clock - all different but designed to work together to smoothly produce something regular, reliable, consistent - a service to our customers (those whom we insure).

Face to face-ness is the oil in the mechanism.

Of course the measurable part of what we do can be assessed in various metrics based on our claim database (files opened, files closed, tasks completed, payments made, securities issued/cancelled, etc etc etc) and it is clear that as 'digital' workers we can do our jobs anywhere we can make an internet connection.  The move to working from home was relatively easy for our business to pull off when lockdowns hit, as it had already been tested in our Business Continuity Plan (which was probably originally designed to respond to a bombing or similar in London - our office is right on one end of the iconic London Bridge).

When plague response subsided and the realization had sunk in that business had continued successfully - possibly even more productively (by those metrics mentioned above) than when conducted in the office, the decision was made that we could work 3 days per week in the office (two 'core' days which were designated to be Tuesday and Thursday, and any other day of the individual's choice), and two days per week from home.

Back in UK from 2022, I chose Friday as my 3rd office day (there are Pilates and Yoga classes after work at my local gym that I can attend on Mondays and Wednesdays if I am not engaged in my 2.5hour each way commute).  Commuting is expensive so having a couple of days a week at home is a big saving for many people.  #WFH also gives some families the means to share out school runs, and nursery pick-ups, achieve various housework objectives (freeing up weekends), and allows for a bit more family (or pet) time on those days. 

Unfortunately there is virtually no one else in our office on Friday- the three of us who are don't even move around enough to keep the lights on! (but we do share a private joke about that).  Across London that pattern is repeated and businesses who relied on selling lunch to office workers often don't even open on Fridays now.  I guess jobs have been lost as a result.

#WFH also comes at other cost - for some there is conflict for space at home, competing noise, and/or a feeling of isolation - of having lost something of the oil in the mechanism.  I miss the opportunities to participate in the chance discussions that arise out of unusual incidents, the learning by osmosis, and in particular the interaction with the other parts that make the whole in our service industry.  Sure, I can email or even phone them, but that is no substitute for a face to face discussion, or having lunch together and finding out that their Mum is in hospital, or sharing the office cake on their birthday.  Despite there being core days it seems that respect for even that unity is quite quickly being eroded, and I often cannot find the people I want/need to have a conversation with.

Younger employees probably don't feel that.  They never knew any different and as a result with the retirements of we, the grey beards, the culture of our employer will change forever.  The choir has dwindled, attendance at social events is tailing off, the volunteers at the charity days are the same ones over and over.  The glue that held us together is losing its 'stick'.

The world changes.  Adapt.  

Maybe the glue is re-establishing itself somewhere else - and it might not be a bad thing for humanity.  I was delighted for all sorts of reasons to read the last part of this article on the BBC news website yesterday:  Work Near Home   Quote: It's symbolic that many of these hubs are taking over buildings that used to bring communities together, like churches, council buildings or department stores, Unquote

Let's hope that working nearer to home will strengthen 'human sized' communities, improve connections with neighbours; move the focus, but take nothing at all away from the humanity of us all.

More time to smell the roses perhaps