In his closing conference speech to fellow MPs, Boris Johnson urged people to return to the office. Government sources have claimed the prime minister believes that being in the office is critical for the training and development of young people and that he believes very strongly in the value of face-to-face working. Echoing this notion, fellow MP Jake Berry claimed that the UK needed “to move away from this ‘I want to work from home’ attitude if we want a productive Britain”
However, a large proportion of Britain’s workforce believes working from home boosts career progression and productivity. It’s totally short-sighted and naive to assume that returning to work and a productive Britain are exclusively interrelated. Location isn’t the only defining factor in driving better productivity and any successful business leader will realise that you can’t apply a blanket approach for every British business.
Instead, business leaders must flex their workforce and really understand what truly drives their performance and alongside that, the performance of the business as a whole. Certain roles and types of work will be better suited to working in certain locations, but what’s important is to recognise that not all roles and people are the same. Add to thid that the nature of work itself is changing as automation gains traction, and you can quickly see that a blanket approach is frankly foolish.
It’s understanding these nuances in every business, along with how they evolve in real time, that will take the best organisations to the next level in terms of shaping a productive workforce, no matter where they are.
