Leaders are setting a double standard

The return of employees to the office is causing upheaval as organizations try to find out what works best for them.

An added layer of concern is the fact that millions of members of the workforce are leaving their jobs, and sudden high levels of attrition could lead to more skill gaps in organizations.

The Future Forum Pulse survey spoke to 10,818 knowledge workers in the US, Australia, France, Germany, Japan, and the UK to understand their thoughts about returning to the office and the issues they face.

On the back of the survey, it is clear that employee experience is plummeting for the vast majority of organizations.

Flexibility and retention

34% of knowledge workers are returning to the office full-time. Compared with employees who are working in hybrid and remote environments, full-time office workers have had twice as steep a decline in work-life balance and 1.6 times as rapid a decline in overall satisfaction with their working environment.

Compared to remote workers, office workers are experiencing 1.5 times more anxiety and stress.

On top of these wellbeing issues, those who are in the office are more than twice as likely to look for a new role elsewhere. This will undoubtedly concern leaders as attrition can be costly, but they may also need to look at their personal behavior.

Deborah Lovich, a managing director and senior partner at Boston Consulting Group, noted the dangers companies face: “Employees have clearly proven that they can get the job done while having flexibility in their work lives.

“If executives roll back this flexibility—or put off key decisions on the options that employees will have going forward—they’re setting themselves up for a wave of departures.”

Double standards in the workplace

The survey also found a clear divide between leaders and non-executive employees.

Non-executive employees are twice as likely as their seniors to work in the office five days a week, and their work-life balance is taking hit as it’s reported to be 40% worse.

Non-executives are also reporting more than twice the level of work-related stress and anxiety as executives.

Evidently, there is a divide in how employees and leaders are feeling, and this is when it’s important to consider why policies are being implemented.

While many executives may be used to face-to-face meetings, forcing staff who don’t need constant in-person interaction in the office could damage business goals. Stressed and burnt-out employees are not as productive as happy ones.

Additionally, if rules are being set in stone, it is best to lead by example rather than making staff feel like they have to suffer hypocritical rules.

The way people are managed has had to change over the pandemic, and many workers are looking for empathetic leaders rather than those who crack the proverbial whip.

With this in mind, it is important to ask staff what they want and find out what specific departments need to work effectively. After all, 68% of all knowledge workers said they prefer hybrid work. On the back of this, it is unlikely that all staff feel that going to the office is an effective use of their time.

Speaking about the findings of the study, Brian Elliott, executive leader of Future Forum, commented: “Leaders need to move away from dictating days in the office and rigid nine-to-five schedules, and focus instead on aligning their teams around a common purpose and leading by example.

“Trusting your teams with the flexibility to work where and when works best for them will lead to better business results and happier employees.”

The world of work has changed, employees are looking to leaders, and it is time to listen and set an example of how work should be done. Who knows, you may have a few surprises.