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lmost two and a half years after the pandemic has forever changed the way we work and relate in a work context, when returning to the office, flexible models - which allow remote work - have been, as a general rule, the regimes that companies have chosen to implement. Productivity has survived the change in working models and, according to studies, in some cases it has even increased. And people's well-being also benefited.
Thanks to these results, giants from the most varied sectors, from EDP to KPMG, including Farfetch, decided to adopt hybrid work models, and others, such as Liberty Seguros, Airbnb or Revolut, took a further greater step, towards more flexible regimes, allowing remote work on a permanent basis, giving employees the possibility to choose from where they want to work.
Studies indicate that productivity is not compromised, on the contrary, and that well-being and motivation are enhanced. In a survey conducted by Capgemini, 63% of companies surveyed report an increase in productivity due to remote work, and 88% of organisations say they managed to save on real estate expenses in 2020.
Studies indicate that productivity is not compromised, on the contrary, and that well-being and motivation are enhanced. In a survey conducted by Capgemini, 63% of companies surveyed report an increase in productivity due to remote work, and 88% of organisations say they managed to save on real estate expenses in 2020.
Also the Adecco Group, in the study “Resetting Normal: Defining the New Era of Work/2021”, shows that, if fears of productivity drops were an obstacle for employers to move towards more flexible models, there is no reason to fear. More than 80% of the professionals surveyed say they feel as productive or more productive than before the pandemic, and want to maintain the model in which they feel they are more effective: 53% want a hybrid regime, in which more than half of their working time is performed remotely. A desire that is more expressive in younger generations and in professionals who are parents, the study data reveal.
“Most professionals want a hybrid work model, with flexible schedules. After a period of more than a year and a half marked by successive confinements that affected the 'desk' kind of work, people had to necessarily create the conditions to do it effectively and realised the advantages of reconciling work with personal life, managing their own schedules”, says Carla Rebelo, CEO of Adecco Portugal.
And they realised that it works. “It is also a sign that many people, but also companies, were able to continue their activity without interruption and adapt to this new work paradigm”, she adds, based on the research of the group, which involved 15 thousand professionals from 25 countries.
Mental health. Benefits and concerns
The focus of companies should be on “unlocking the potential of each employee, regardless of where they are working”, defends Pedro Galhardas, managing director, responsible for the strategy & consulting area at Accenture Portugal. People with the option to work in a hybrid model “are able to more easily manage mental health challenges, have stronger working relationships and plan to stay in the companies where they work for a long time”, he defends.
The focus of companies should be on “unlocking the potential of each employee, regardless of where they are working”, defends Pedro Galhardas, managing director, responsible for the strategy & consulting area at Accenture Portugal. People with the option to work in a hybrid model “are able to more easily manage mental health challenges, have stronger working relationships and plan to stay in the companies where they work for a long time”, he defends.
The study “The Future Of Work: Productive Anywhere”, by the consultancy, which covered a total of 9,326 professionals, reveals that 83% of people consider the hybrid work model to be ideal, with the possibility of working remotely from anywhere between 25% and 75% of the time. Within the group of people who want to maintain a mixed working model, 40% feel they can be productive and maintain well-being anywhere. Only 8% admit to feeling disconnected and frustrated in this type of model.
Flexibility ends up, as a general rule, by positively influencing the well-being of people, who have come to integrate, in a more harmonious way, their professional and personal lives. For Miguel Garcia, general manager of New Work Portugal, for whom remote work was not totally unknown even before the pandemic, giving this flexibility and freedom “helps in the balance of personal and professional life and, in the limit, greatly benefits both”, refers, adding that it is important for people to find their “sweet spot”, a place where they remain calm, safe, focused and productive.
Watch out, though. “Not all professionals have the right profile to manage their work and teams in this model”, warns Carla Rebelo. With remote work, the pressure on leaders to manage remote teams has also increased. And it is also important to be aware of those who traditionally look out for their people.
The search for illnesses related to mental health has increased in the period of the pandemic, concluded a survey carried out by the online marketing platform Semrush. Words like “anxiety”, “depression” and “stress” appeared at the top of the searches; however, the term “burnout” had the biggest increase, with 122%.
For Adecco Portugal, mental health in a remote work environment is precisely one of the biggest challenges that organisations face. The report reveals that organisations are at risk of losing a new generation of leaders, with more than half of young leaders (54%) reporting burnout and three in ten respondents more generally saying that their mental and physical health has declined in the past 12 months. The increase, in the order of 14%, in additional hours worked contributed to this.
For Adecco Portugal, mental health in a remote work environment is precisely one of the biggest challenges that organisations face. The report reveals that organisations are at risk of losing a new generation of leaders, with more than half of young leaders (54%) reporting burnout and three in ten respondents more generally saying that their mental and physical health has declined in the past 12 months. The increase, in the order of 14%, in additional hours worked contributed to this.
Adaptation is the watchword in determining the success of these new models. “There is a fact that Adecco has been confirming, which was a pre-pandemic trend, but which was obviously accentuated and accelerated through the new work paradigm imposed by this event: the confirmation that soft skills are an inherent success factor adapting to new ways of working”, says the leader of Adecco Portugal, recalling that 67% of non-managers say that leaders do not meet their expectations of checking their mental well-being.
An asset for attracting talent
Despite the challenges, more than a nice to have, remote work already seems to be a must have, especially among the younger generations. Studies carried out in the United States of America reveal that there is already a tendency for workers to leave their jobs to avoid having to stop working remotely.
According to data from the American Morning Consult for Bloomberg, 39% of workers admit to quitting if employers are not flexible and allow remote work. And the number increases in Generation Y (Millenials, after the early 1980s) and Z (after 1996), with 49% admitting to leaving the company.
“The work models to be adopted are increasingly a concern of organisations and the job market, in a decision that is clearly conditioned by the sector in which the organisation operates or by the type of functions to be performed, but that has an impact growing in its ability to attract talent”, comments Rui Teixeira, chief operations officer of ManpowerGroup Portugal.
“Working-from-home models, in remote or hybrid format, are increasingly present, being well valued by workers, who do not want to lose the flexibility acquired during the pandemic. Organisations must meet these preferences, and bet on models that promote flexibility in working hours and places, but also other incentives that encourage autonomy and balance between work and personal life”, he adds.
“Working-from-home models, in remote or hybrid format, are increasingly present, being well valued by workers, who do not want to lose the flexibility acquired during the pandemic. Organisations must meet these preferences, and bet on models that promote flexibility in working hours and places, but also other incentives that encourage autonomy and balance between work and personal life”, he adds.
Only in this way will they be able to develop a “unique value proposition” that makes them more competitive in the current context of talent shortages. And this must also be a basic concern, since, to make matters worse, we are facing a situation of lack of professionals who have the skills that the market is looking for.
