Does Remote Work Mix with Organizational Culture?

SUMMING UP

Is Management the Missing Ingredient in Melding Organization Culture and Remote Work?

Those who have experienced remote work are largely vocal supporters of the notion. Its success is dependent, on the one hand, on an effective culture fostered by senior executives who embrace the notion of remote work. On the other hand, remote work can provide an alternative to a toxic office culture resulting from management neglect.

Armando Del Bosque commented, “Organizational culture helps us find what we love, love what we do and then we can overcome many barriers, including social distancing with our colleagues from our work teams.” On the other hand, Melanie Roberts reminds us that, “Charles Handy … refers to culture as the soup we all swim about in, and that soup is thin when the ‘here’ is not a location and people are working asynchronously and perhaps not sharing a common ‘way to do things’.”

Those working remotely expressed their enthusiasm for it. To the extent it fosters loyalty, it may enhance a culture. Betsy Dickson commented on her move to a remote region this way: “ … my employer allowed me to transition to work at home … The freedom, flexibility, and … improved productivity keep me figuring out ways to deal with problems (like an unsupportive manager)… In the past (presumably, in a shared office situation), I would have been gone already.”

Joan De Souza endorses remote work in both her and her clients’ organizations. But she offers caveats. For example, it is more appropriate for certain types of jobs. As she puts it, “working remotely and workflow is better in some departments as they do not have to deal with the somewhat unhealthy political environment at work. In other departments like sales and admin … runs to the coffee room or the watering hole after work stimulates them.” She finds it “challenging to implement our ‘flexible’ mindset to our clients’ employees because upper management has not embraced it themselves.”

Remote work can help some avoid a toxic culture. Alison Leuders comments, “Reasons why I love it include: (1) saving time and money otherwise wasted on commuting … (2) by avoiding the office, I also avoid colleagues who, in the past, inappropriately commented on my appearance, asked me out, or told me to my face that they would never work for a woman, (3) the flexibility of working into the evening without worrying about my safety… Trust me when I say that most men can’t even begin to understand this. Long live remote work!”

Adrian Zicari suggests that the problem of extending a culture into a remote workforce is not one of technology. As he put it, “(Company) structures, procedures and culture are not yet prepared to keep distance work as the new normal … It is not a technological issue, but a managerial one. The technology more or less exists today. What we don’t have yet (in many cases) is the new mindset.”

Do you agree with Zicari? Is management the missing ingredient in melding culture and remote work? What do you think?

Original Post

We all have had conversations over the last few weeks with people working from home for the first time while sheltering from COVID-19. I've tried to use the opportunity to conduct an informal survey: How is it going? Do you think you'd like to change your work habits to continue working from home?

The responses I've been getting are fairly positive: "It's going pretty well. In the future, I might like to alter my schedule to include at least some portion of my time working from home."

Many of us have participated in meetings on Zoom and other meeting services. Some have engaged in telemedical appointments with doctors. Social distancing has even penetrated our television viewing: Our favorite news and opinion shows have been little affected by social distancing. (In some cases, they've improved, perhaps due to the increased availability of celebrities sheltered at home. You also see what your favorite pundit has read since most seem to broadcast in front of their bookshelves.) The experience is different from working side by side as social animals, but thanks to 5G, internet, and cloud capability that didn't exist just a few short years ago, we've communicated without too much difficulty.

It all suggests that responses to the virus may hasten a trend already in process, that of more delivery of work performed remotely.

The pros and cons of working remotely have been hashed over repeatedly. Consulting organizations have found that policies permitting consultants to live anywhere have been effective ways of recruiting talent. However, while these people may live anywhere, they carry out most of their work in teams on the road. My concern is the impact on an organization's culture that a significant increase in work from home may have, particularly where the culture is thought by management to be one of the organization's strengths.

A case in point is Critical Mass, a 24-year-old digital experience design agency based in Calgary, Canada, with 950 employees employed in 12 offices operating around the world. CEO Dianne Wilkins says, "Our greatest threat for years to come centers on talent." The organization's culture has been an important competitive advantage for the Company. As she describes it, "You're likely to meet your new set of best friends when you join Critical Mass." Much of the organization's work is in teams.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, Critical Mass for some months was in the process of implementing a new program for remote work called Liquid. Nearly 10 percent of its talent now works from home. The intent is to accommodate those preferring to work from home in the future. Sara Anhorn, Executive Vice President of Talent, commented, "People want a different way of working … people with the type of talent we need at Critical Mass live everywhere, not just near where we have different plans to open (an office)."

A basic challenge for Critical Mass is maintaining the organization's highly valued culture. One policy intended to support that goal is to require that those working from home maintain the same schedule as those working from an office. Remote work raises questions: What effect does it have on employee loyalty? What can be done to engage remote workers more fully in their work? What has to be done to assure adherence to an organization's values by everyone? Do effective organization cultures and remote work mix? What do you think?

Acknowledgement:

I am indebted to Dan O'Brien and Dan Maher for conducting interviews that provided information about Critical Mass and Liquid.