Martin Gilbert: One working style does not fit all

Cabinet Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg’s calling card that he left on empty desks in an attempt to get civil servants back to the office. Putting aside the effectiveness of this tactic, it is a timely reminder of the issue many businesses and organisations are toying with – the location from which people should work.

I agree with Nick Bloom, Professor of Economics at Stanford University, who has been studying remote working for almost two decades. He believes working from home is here to stay.

Bloom says there will be three main themes for screen-based professionals – those who must be in an office, remote and hybrid.

Evidence of this can be found in analysing the volume of workers returning to their desks. Remit Consulting, a property data specialist, says office occupancy nationwide is around 25% of capacity, rising to nearly 33% midweek.

Pre-pandemic, full-time WFH was very rare at around 5%. The numbers were roughly doubling every 12-13 years. But over the space 18 months we have experienced an increase which would have previously taken place over a 30-year period.

I can understand the desire of employers and a good proportion of employees to return to offices.

From an asset and wealth management perspective, they are people businesses. The discussions that take place face-to-face in formal meetings, next to the water cooler or across desks can generate ideas that add value to the work undertaken for clients and customers.

Also WFH is right for some people and not others. For example, it cuts down on the time spent commuting to work and provides flexibility in how to schedule your working day which can be an advantage or disadvantage. It is good to be able to switch off from work!

On the flipside, some people miss the office environment and the people. Furthermore, the office is a great place to learn, particularly for younger members of a business and new joiners.

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In essence one size does not fit all.

It is important to be pragmatic and as Bloom suggests focus on managing outputs, not inputs. During lockdown people’s work habits may have changed and their productivity may be better. So returning to the office may mean we lose the gains made during the last two years.

Admittedly we were fortunate that two technologies came of age to support agile working – file sharing via cloud and video calls, such as Teams and Zoom. The latter has been an amazing development compared to the somewhat archaic conference call facilities we all had to navigate pre-Covid. Importantly virtual meetings (formal and informal) have kept colleagues connected – those who worked in the same office and also with those in other geographies – and ensured regular communication with clients.

The benefits of office-based working are important, but managers would do well not to focus solely on location.

Instead look to ensure there is a collective culture – wherever people are based – of working for clients and customers.

Martin Gilbert, co-founder and former CEO of Aberdeen Asset Management, Chairman of AssetCo