Life is still a little sideways right now and we are all finding new ways of adjusting and working things out. We have been hearing from many of our hiring managers and candidates that their work styles have changed. We found this interesting and dug into it a little more. 

Here is what we found:

 “I am not a babysitter”

When this all started, constant communication was the recipe for success.  Employees and employers weren’t in the same room, so they had to make it up by reaching out frequently.  We are hearing that some managers just plain got overwhelmed.  A very common response was that people are just too busy to add anything else to their plate and the constant “babysitting” got old.  After a few weeks of nearly constant communication, the managers we spoke with said they fell into a rhythm with their staff.   

 “My Boss turned into a ‘helicopter’ Manager”

Initially, everyone was adjusting to working at home and we heard from both staff and managers that it was challenging.  In some cases, the changes were good and in some cases, not so much.  One of our candidates put it best.  Prior to working remote she had a great relationship with her boss. He was not a micromanager, he provided her learning opportunities, and if she was a little off at first, he took the time to walk her through it. After Covid, things changed. Her manager was no longer patient; she could tell that she was bothering him. On top of that, he expected daily progress reports. The candidate told us she took a step back and recognized that her manager had a full plate too and realizing that, she was able to cut him some slack.  Perhaps we can all take a lesson from this young woman and have a little more grace in our professional lives while we figure things out.

 “The communication button is on”

When we were all sitting in the same room, it was easy to make sure that someone understood your point. Showing someone something on a computer screen was as simple as pointing to it.  With everyone working virtually, it is a challenge if people don’t understand initial instructions. In person you are able to clear things up in the span of a conversation. Now, we have emails and Zoom as a replacement and that requires you to clearly communicate everything.  The words that are used, the style of the writing, and the tone all matter more now than they did before.  What may seem funny when it’s being written may not be taken that way by the recipient. 

“To Remote or not to Remote”

This is a general sentiment that we are finding in our conversations.  More and more people have had practice at working from home and have figured out what works for them.  The biggest complaints about virtual work are opposite sides of the same coin but are both rooted in a lack of balance: people are fighting with distractions and there is a lack of interaction.  As we started back to school, e-learning has been almost at the top of the list of reasons why parents want to go back to work. On the other hand, virtual work can be isolating especially if you are an extrovert or live by yourself.   We find that both employees and hiring managers would like to have multiple options available and the choice to make what fits them best.