As an avid „remote worker“ since at least 2015 I still find myself wrapped up in thinking about what the (supposedly) more widespread adoption of the practice will mean for society, cities and ultimately the products and services we use. Personally, working from home (and/or in a seperate remote office super close to home) has been a pure positive: Less time wasted on commutes, more uninterrupted time to actually think, the freedom to design a work environment that really fits my needs, a lot of flexibility that I can use to be present for my family when they need it, et cetera.
Especially the last point has proven to be critical last week, as a cold has taken hold of the family and interrupted both child-care and work (Covid test included). Designing work environments and cities that account for these needs and that take workers times serious is – even without a pandemic – a good thing in my book.
The Economist‘s cover story this week on remote work and if it‘s here to stay even after the pandemic is over:
„(…) This [theory] says that home-working is actually more efficient than office-work, and that the glory days of the office are gone. The office, after all, came into being when the world of work involved processing lots of paper. The fact that it remained so dominant for so long may instead reflect a market failure. Before covid-19 the world may have been stuck in a “bad equilibrium” in which home-work was less prevalent than it should have been. The pandemic represents an enormous shock which is putting the world into a new, better equilibrium.“
„The extent to which home-working remains popular long after the pandemic has passed will depend on a bargain between companies and workers. But it will also depend on whether companies embrace or reject the controversial theory that working from an office might actually impede productivity. Since the 1970s researchers who have studied physical proximity (ie, the distance employees need to travel to engage in a face-to-face interaction) have disagreed on the question of whether it facilitates or inhibits collaboration. The argument largely centres on the extent to which the bringing-together of people under one roof promotes behaviour conducive to new ideas, or whether doing so promotes idle chatter.“
What will happen to cities once everyone is “going remote”? Is everyone escaping to the suburbs, away from dense city centers that have proven to be a net negative during the pandemic? Karl Sharro:
„Let’s admit that we have been through over the past six months has had a massive impact on our worldview. Overnight we all had to absorb the message that other people are a danger and they should be avoided. How we build back society and trust is a challenge.“
„Rinsing the same old ‘urban’ thinking won’t cut it. Many of its advocates are clearly flummoxed, everything you have argued for is now seen as a problem: close human interaction, density, public transport. And these can’t just be waived away with platitudes about the city.“
But:
„It’s legitimate to ask questions about the durability of the current model of the city in light of this, but the mistake is not to take history into account, how cities have transformed themselves when they faced crises, and their resilience and adaptability.“
„The most recent example is post-industrialisation in the Western context and the impact it had on cities. Cities had to reinvent themselves and did, and while the trends vary in terms of growth/decline of specific cities the intensity of urban activity zones has increased overall.“
And here we have Matt Webb posing the question of how this „reinvention“ could look like and what services may emerge to make working from home even more attractive:
„We’re used to office perks and the benefits of working in a business neighbourhood: free snacks (if you’re lucky), a comfy chair, good lunch spots nearby… what future working-from-home perks can we invent, if we’re in this for the long term?“
„Like, is there remote work facilities management that can come set up my desk and give me a sound baffle/backdrop for my video calls? (Has Ikea launched a Zoom kit yet?) If I were a manager, could I expense desk beers on Fridays for my team, and is there a company that can sort that out?“
„Then there’s good coffee and the social life. It can feel pretty distant sometimes at home. But while it’s nice to have face-to-face banter, does that really need to be with co-workers? I’d just as soon have my water-cooler moments with the people who live on my street.“
„So an ice cream van that pulls up, jingling out the MIDI version of Josh Wink’s Higher State of Consciousness at 11am, everyone on the street downing tools and heading out for a caffeine hit and to catch up with friends?“