Return to office. Hybrid work. The great resignation. These front-page topics now frequent board rooms and dinner tables. The pandemic has changed the lexicon of work forever. Issues facing organizations are firing from all directions and will likely impact who fades and who thrives.<\/p>\n
As a company focused on the places people work for over a century, the latest round of Steelcase research among global office workers is surprising in many ways and reinforcing in others. For instance, twice as many people say they\u2019d rather work at home \u2013 often spending hours hunched over tables designed for eating or on sofas designed for relaxing \u2013 than work in an office that should be designed to help people work better. What went wrong there?<\/p>\n
We\u2019re also learning distance is not making the heart grow fonder. The Atlantic<\/a> dubbed it the \u201ctrust recession.\u201d Data shows the longer people are away from one another, the less they trust each other \u2014 true for leaders and employees, and for colleagues. Without trust, innovation, productivity and retention are all a risk. Leaders know they need to bring people together\u00a0 \u2013 87% of people will be expected to spend at least some time in the office according to the recent Steelcase research.<\/p>\n