White-collar lethargy is the new pandemic

Many companies, at the peak of the pandemic, extolled the virtues of their WFH policy to woo talent, showcasing their flexibility to accommodate employees who chose to work from anywhere but their offices.

However, all along, barring a lucky few who had the flexibility to work from anywhere, there was a silent population that had no choice but to turn up for work every day right through the pandemic. Take, for example, doctors and healthcare workers, retail storefront employees, delivery staff, public transport operators, factory workers, banking and essential services staff and so on.

After the pandemic, the workplace dynamics changed irretrievably. Companies the world over did everything possible to woo employees back to the office. Life returned to pre-Covid normalcy with people travelling for leisure, restaurants and bars buzzing again, flights, hotels and resorts becoming jam-packed and traffic snarls as we knew them returning. While all of this is happening outside, sadly, some offices are still wearing a deserted look on most days.

“White-collar lethargy” has firmly set in, and CEOs believe that is the new pandemic! There has been an undercurrent of resistance to turn up at the workplace and they are seeing employees coming up with innovative reasons for not turning up at the offce. They are seeing lack of engagement, commitment and ownership, drop in productivity and, in some cases, employees moonlighting on the side. We are faced with dysfunctional organisations where collaboration and camaraderie have gone missing. Further, there have been multiple instances of misuse of privilege. All these factors have led to broken trust and increased attrition across the spectrum.

Successful businesses are built on a network of people-to-people interactions, relationships and interdependencies. Collaboration is at the heart of business and virtual interactions no longer serve the purpose. Many times, impromptu discussions at the workplace result in new ideas, innovation and growth. We have no option but to breathe life again at the workplace to build a vibrant organisation.

On a positive note, organisations today are more flexible in their approach and are quite willing to offer hybrid working options to employees. Location of work is less important, and companies have discovered efficiencies in remote working.

However, it is important to keep in mind that flexibility is never a precondition and it must be earned by the individual. It is critical that mutual trust between the employer and the employee is established. Well, it is also quite possible that an unconscious bias is likely to creep in when considering people for growth opportunities within the organisation. If you aspire for a high-growth career trajectory, do you need a better reason to turn up at your favourite workplace?

The writer is MD, India, & Regional Chair, Asia, EMA Partners