WFH?

[Editorial]

Work from Home is not a new idea it has been around forever back then it was called a “Cottage Industry” and it is still going strong especially in rural areas, what is new is that large corporations started doing it during the COVID pandemic. The workforce loved the idea so much so that they don’t want to go back.

They love the fact that can now work from home and do not have to commute which allows them to move out of the city.

But are they shooting themselves in the foot?

Will companies realize; “Hey I can hire someone in India or China and pay a tenth of what I pay for a worker in Texas or New York or Atlanta?” After all if you can work in the Catskills instead of NYC why not in Bangladesh?

Sitting in an office together has many advantages for the employer and the employee.

I am old fashion and when I was a boss I practiced “Management by Walking Around” I talked to my employees not about work but other thing and I learned a lot from them, I walked down the hall and dropped into purchasing or accounting. 

When I was trying to find the status of a needed part, it was part work and part social. It creates a lot of business and social networks. That is an added benefits to being in one building together.

When you attend a meeting in person rather than on Zoom there is a difference… a big difference. What did you do while waiting for the meeting began with your client? You gossips, you socialized. Or a meeting with your supplier who is behind schedule, it was rather intimidating for a supplier to sit in a room with angry customers. When a power plant failed to turn on I had to face seven angry Korean customers it was very nerve-wracking. Now I could be playing solitaire while the meeting is going on and they will never know.  

Another thing it is a privilege to be able to work from home, people who work in retail can’t, people who work in manufacturing can’t, people who work in the trades can’t, and so many other jobs can’t do it from home. Teachers found that learn form home students wasn’t as effective as in person learning.

So now the younger generation wants to sit at home by themselves isolated. In their little silos all by themselves. Those who are self-motivated and introverts might do good but for many it is a nightmare of isolation.

When manufacturing had a problem and engineering was in the same building, the engineer could be there in a matter of minutes… instead of the next train, instead of fighting traffic for an hour.

There is a push starting to bring back manufacturing to the states, to shorten the supply chain. The companies that are doing well have shorter supply lines. Made in America means you don’t have to wait for your ship to dock in LA or in Newark.

How long before the WFH employee finds themselves in completion with workers from around the world?

[/Editorial]