Aussie workers weighing up value of commute as return to office beckons

The Great Rethink is under way in Australia as workers decide if a return to the office is worth the time spent getting there. Here are the big issues.

Australian workers are grappling with the Great Rethink as they weigh up whether a return to the office is now worth the commute, or if hybrid working or a change of role will shape their future.

Microsoft’s 2022 Work Trend Index annual report has found the biggest challenge for 36 per cent of Australian workers is knowing when to work remotely and when to work in person.

However, only a quarter (26 per cent) of business leaders have created team agreements around hybrid work to define why and when employees should be in the office.

Ingrid Jenkins, head of HR for Microsoft ANZ, says it’s a fascinating but challenging time for bosses and employees who are still in transition.

“The past two years have resulted in a big rethink for workers,” she says.

“We need to reassess our relationships with the companies we work for, while organisations need to listen deeply around how sentiments to work have changed and carefully consider how they respond.”

She says this means organisations must define the purpose of in-person collaboration, create team agreements on when to come together in person, define hybrid meeting etiquette, and rethink how space can play a supporting role.

Jenkins says there is no doubt flexibility is here to stay but there are gaps in our knowledge on how best to organise our teams.

“We have been talking about hybrid for a long time but really for many of us it has been largely 100 per cent remote for a large chunk of the last two years,” she says.

“Organisations are really only now getting to the point of truly starting exploration and experimentation of hybrid.

Global work trends show office workers are thinking carefully about whether a long commute to the office is worth their time.

“We’ve been hearing about this Great Rethink and people are thinking about the experience they want. So it’s important to understand what’s on the minds of our teams and using that to help guide us into how we proposition coming back into the office.”

The findings from a study of 31,000 people in 31 countries identified a gap between leadership and employee expectations, with 59 per cent of Australian managers saying their bosses were out of touch with employees and they were left feeling wedged in the middle.

It also showed 53 per cent of business leaders fear productivity has been negatively impacted by a shift to remote or hybrid work, while 80 per cent of workers say they are as productive or even more productive compared to a year ago. Other impacts of hybrid working that were identified were increased loneliness among workers, having fewer work friendships and bosses being concerned about employees getting enough support.

Jenkins says leaders should be having one-on-one conversations to understand how their workforce feels.

“I don’t think any of us should assume that we understand what our preferences are and what is going on in each of the lives of our team members and how they are thinking about hybrid. Because how you and I think about it might be quite different,” she says.

Ingrid Jenkins, Head of HR, Microsoft ANZ. Image: Supplied

A key finding of the report is that employees have a new “worth it” equation.

Prioritising health and wellbeing over work is more important for 53 per cent of Aussie workers post-pandemic and for Gen Z and Millennial employees, 58 per cent are somewhat or extremely likely to consider changing employers this year if their return to work doesn’t suit them.

Jenkins says a growing number of employees are open to using digital immersive spaces in the metaverse for meetings or team gatherings (49 per cent) and are open to representing themselves as an avatar in meetings (43 per cent), but there are others who are rediscovering the joy of being on site.

“Once people start returning they are reminded of ‘right, this is why I like coming into the office’,” she says.

“They see people they haven’t connected with, engage in spontaneous chats and enjoy the social connections.”

She predicts organisations will slowly build a return to the office, starting with one day for the entire team, such as “Team Tuesdays”.

She says the tone of the leadership and how they are inspiring their teams to return is vital.

WHAT WORKERS WANT

The top four aspects of work that global employees view as “very important” for an employer to provide are:

■ Positive culture, 46 per cent.

■ Mental health/wellbeing benefits, 42 per cent.

■ A sense of purpose/meaning, 40 per cent.

■ Flexible work hours, 38 per cent.

While new-to-the-workforce Gen Z shares the same top three priorities, they list positive feedback and recognition as their fourth priority, while ranking a manager who will help advance their career in fifth place.

Source: 2022 Work Trend Index annual report