Remote work vs. the office for your Northern Beaches crew

The news headlines might love talking about the benefits of remote work, but there is actually a strong business case both for and against working from home. 

If you’re trying to determine whether to ask your employees to return to the office – and how to get them to do so – you must understand this business case or risk losing your people. COVID-19 gave us all a taste of a more flexible working life, and showed us that productivity is possible at home. A lot of Sydneysiders don’t want to go back to the way things were. 

Yet, the office isn’t dead yet – and researchers have been gathering a lot of data which supports the continued use of the traditional office environment. So today, let’s discuss the business case supporting both remote work and the office, and talk about ways to encourage your people back without harming their happiness.

 

The business case for and against remote work

First, we should emphasise that this really matters.  

The hiring market in the Northern Beaches has been very tight recently, and it’s not set to get easier (in fact we expect it to get more competitive). Organisations looking to find (and keep) the best talent must learn to balance what is best for the office with what people genuinely desire. 

Northern Beaches organisations are at a turning point, so you must ask yourself: Do you really want your people to return to the office? 

If so, why? 

What benefits will it provide to your team? Is there room for flexibility? If so, how much? 

Getting clear on these points will help you navigate these often-tricky conversations. 

The case for working from home

The main reasons people work from home are: 

1. To gain more flexibility in their life (24.8%) 
2. They have a home-based job or business (23.1%) 
3. To catch up on hours after work (21.2%) 
4. To save time and money commuting each day (11.6%) 
5. Because there are fewer distractions at home (or they prefer to work with less social interaction) (4.8%) 
6. Childcare or family responsibilities (6.4%) 
7. They operate a farm from home (1.9%) 
8. Health reasons (1%) 

Source: ABS 

Look at how many of the above aren’t necessarily a choice: saving money, looking after children, chronic illness, responsibilities at home. 

Australians have seen that their disabilities, flexible lifestyles, family needs and a range of other situations can all be accommodated with minimal disruption to productivity – because they’ve lived that experience. Reducing flexibility may upset these individuals. 

There are statistical benefits to WFH too: 

• Workers have about 22% more focus time at home compared to office workers, enabling them to get more done (Hubstaff). 
• ‘Flexibility’ is the top reason people stay in their role, beating out salary and opportunities to learn (Stack Overflow). 
• Offering hybrid work can improve employee retention and job satisfaction (NBER). 

The case for working in the office

Benefits of the office include: 

1. It’s easier to collaborate casually and spontaneously – fire a question over the desk pod, no ignored DMs. 
2. It’s easier to network when you see more people. 
3. There are more resources, not least of which is spare equipment in case something breaks. 
4. Mentoring is more common when you can ask questions quickly, chat at lunch or join other people’s discussions. 

Put more simply, the office offers a more structured work environment with greater opportunities to socialise, discuss key issues, collaborate and mentor one another. It’s the ‘little moments’ that remote workers miss out on. 

Some statistical benefits of office life: 

• Though workers may have more focus time at home, research suggest they are more productive in the office, and newer workers learn better in an office environment (Stanford). 
  • This same report also notes that while remote work might let veteran employees accomplish more in the near term, it detracts from the transmission of their knowledge downwards (harming productivity in the long run). 
• Remote work damages workplace culture. While the majority of people feel the social aspect of their workplace is important (81%), 78% think it has suffered due to remote work (GPA). 

So what’s the takeaway?

Flexible working isn’t inherently better or worse, there are pros and cons to both life at home and life in the office. 

As you develop your stance on flexible work, you’ll need to take into account both the needs of the business and the needs of your employees – after all, while you can say office life helps with social culture and productivity, if flexibility is the foremost thing great talent wants in their role, you can’t drop it entirely. 

 

How to encourage staff back to the office while balancing flexible needs

The best way to approach a return-to-office policy is to talk with your individual team members about their needs and make a decision about what to do based on those specific people. 

95% of workers want some form of remote work (FlexJobs), so it can’t be ignored. 

An important question to ask is: Does everyone need to be on the same schedule? Flexible work has a lot of wiggle room, allowing you as a leader to offer the balance your people crave while still ensuring they spend a good portion of their time in the office. 

Common types of flexible work include: 

• Flexible start/finish times  
• Flexible days 
• Set remote days, set office days 

 

Expert tips for bringing in people who are happy to work in the office

If you hire people who are happy to work at your premises from the start, you’ll find it a lot easier to maintain an office culture in the long run. 

This can take a little while to build, but if you weave flexible work preferences into your hiring strategy it’ll grow over time. Here are some ideas to think about: 

1. Use perks, not mandates

The majority (79%) of Australians say they would be more swayed by attractive office-related perks than mandates requiring them to ditch flexible work. For example, free lunches, commuting incentives, wellbeing perks (like gym memberships), and so on. 

2. Hire locally

We know that commuting is one of the big issues with the office, but local people don’t have that problem – many live just down the road! Plus, locals are more likely to benefit from nearby amenities like gyms, restaurants and coffee shops (opportunities to offer incentive vouchers). 

3. Look for workers who want stability

There are many great workers around the Northern Beaches who are temporarily employed or out of work, and they’re dying to have a great team again. 

At mme, we’re seeing quite a few contractors and temps making the switch to permanent employment (35% by our estimate), so this is a great pathway for securing top talent who wants something office-based and stable.  

The same goes for those who been out of work and are ready to return to office life. 

Learn more: How to find candidates who aren’t on job board sites 

4. Be transparent during the recruitment and onboarding process

One of the most effective ways to increase employee retention is to set appropriate expectations during job interviews and onboarding.  

If you have rules around flexible work or in-office expectations, share them during these early stages. That way, by the time someone joins your company, they’ll be well aware of what it looks like to work with your team – and they’ll be enthusiastic to do so. 

5. Get a local expert to help you

We know it’s easier to plan all of this than to actually implement it. Getting it right is all about getting the right expert advice. 

Here at mme, we can help you navigate many of these challenges by finding local candidates eager to work in an office closer to their home. We’ve spent years building an in-depth understanding of the Northern Beaches job market, plus an expansive network of high-quality local candidates. 

Our experts can help you to align your current hiring practices with desired office mandates, access local talent pools that meet both your professional and geographical requirements, and offer strategic advice on planning for future hires to avoid location-based challenges. 

To get started, learn more about how we help Northern Beaches employers, or talk to our team today.