Almost three years into a global remote-work trial, many companies are forcing their employees back to the office, either partially¹ or full time². Different claims about the effectiveness of remote work are being made: remote work “doesn’t work for spontaneous idea generation,” “speed and quality are sacrificed” when working from home, and “the pivot to hybrid work is a ‘reimagining’ of the office, designed to create ‘collaboration, team spirit, innovation and a culture of belonging’.”³
However, multiple recent studies show that approximately half of employees are able and willing to work remotely⁴. A hybrid setting, allowing people to work both remotely and at the office might actually be the best solution. But whatever the optimal setting will be, we need to accept the fact: remote work is here to stay.
But why is this discussion about remote versus in-person work—also known as co-location—so important? The first reason is that much of our current work is based on collaboration⁵. That need to collaborate is the reason many managers give for a return of staff to in-person work, whether full time or in a hybrid arrangement. As shared in an internal memo alerting Yahoo employees that they were expected back in the office⁶, “To become the absolute best place to work, communication and collaboration will be important, so we need to be working side-by-side.”
However, being at the office in person does not guarantee successful collaboration. In fact, due to remote and async work, it’s essential that we look beyond co-location as the main factor. Leaders that focus on co-location for successful collaboration and ignore the skills, tools, methodologies and leadership style necessary for collaboration run the risk of their teams being ill-equipped without the strong collaboration skills needed to survive.
This white paper is for team leaders, leaders of collaborations, or managers concerned about the quality of collaboration within their company, and who feel that “work from home” is negatively impacting their employees’ ability to collaborate. In this white paper we uncover six factors of successful collaboration to discover what is required to collaborate effectively and determine the role played by location. We answer the question: do people need to be co-located to collaborate successfully? Finally, we provide tools, tips and best practices to enhance collaboration, no matter where your team members are located.
Download Collaboration 2.0: Debunking the Myth of Co-location to discover:
- The actual factors for successful team collaboration
- When you do need to get together (and how to make the most of your time)
- Tips, tools and best practices for collaboration in remote and hybrid teams.
By Laura Bowley, Facilitator and Ideator
Sources:
- Dilts Marshall, E. (2021, May 4). Working from home ‘doesn’t work for those who want to hustle’: JPMorgan CEO. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-jp-morgan-ceo/working-from-home-doesnt-work-for-those-who-want-to-hustle-jpmorgan-ceo-idUSKBN2CL1HQ
- Hughes, C. (2022, November 10). Why WFH When You Can Live in the Office Like Musk? The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/why-wfh-when-you-can-live-in-the-office-like-musk/2022/11/10/a691cada-6113-11ed-a131-e900e4a6336b_story.html
- Wells, V. (2022, December 20). Return of government employees to the office might signal death of full-time remote work. Financial Post. https://financialpost.com/fp-work/government-employees-return-to-office-death-full-time-remote-work
- PWC (2022).Global Workforce Hopes and Fears Survey 2022. Available at: https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/workforce/hopes-and-fears-2022.html
- Booskamp, E. (2022, September 19). 35+ Compelling Workplace Collaboration Statistics [2022]: The Importance of Teamwork. https://www.zippia.com/advice/workplace-collaboration-statistics/#:~:text=Individuals%20who %20work%20in%20collaborative,according%20to%20a%20Stanford%20study.
- Swisher, K. (2013, February 22). “Physically Together”: Here’s the Internal Yahoo No-Work-From-Home Memo for Remote Workers and Maybe More. AllThingsD.com. https://allthingsd.com/20130222/physically-together-heres-the-internal-yahoo-no-work-from-home-memo-which-extends-beyond-remote-workers/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CSpeed%20and%20quality%20are%20often,get%20to%20your%20desks%20stat!
