The current state of remote working isn’t good for the long-term with Dr. Aaron Barth

If we moved to widespread remote work under regular circumstances, things might look and feel a bit different. But, almost overnight we turned dining rooms into offices and blew up the ring light market against the backdrop of a global health crisis.

Those who lived through that shift might be able to relate to Zoom fatigue, cats as co-workers (or alter egos), and the cementing of sweat pants as office attire. More promising, the commute is gone, we’ve got extra time for ourselves, and we don’t have to contend with co-workers not making a fresh pot of coffee after taking the last cup.

But, the shape of remote work isn’t what it should be. It could be so much better. And realistically, it needs to be. Dr. Aaron Barth of Dialectic recently partnered with us on a research study to understand the impact of remote work on inclusion.

What we found were some obvious barriers to inclusion, but also a set of contradictions that remote workers are feeling. These sentiments centre on performance, manager relationships, sick time, and added responsibilities. In some cases, we’re seeing positive gains, but overall there’s short-term thinking that’ll have long-term negative effects for people and organizations.

Aaron talks about these contradictions in this week’s episode of People at Work. The current state of remote working needs work. There are alarm bells ringing and this isn’t an office building fire drill.