The Benefits Of Remote Work Are Undeniable, But There Are Also Drawbacks

There’s no one-size-fits-all strategy for companies’ return-to-office plans

No workplace looks the same as it did a year and a half ago. 

This is especially true for companies that went fully-remote after building a strong in-office culture. The pandemic has tested and shifted any long-held expectations about how a workplace should function. 
 

As we ease back into some sense of normalcy, some companies are choosing to remain fully remote indefinitely. There are certainly benefits to this model: it widens the talent pool and creates more inclusion for employees, such as working parents who find it difficult to balance long commutes with caring for a family. However, a fully remote model does take away some opportunities for valuable connections and learning opportunities. 

There is no one-size-fits-all strategy for companies’ return-to-office plans, but I believe that the answer lies in flexibility. Workplaces should strive to accommodate all levels of employees. Here’s how I view the problem of remote-first work, and what I think we—and all workplaces—can do to fix it.

Having a Remote Option Is Important

Before the pandemic hit, Dialpad was a company that thrived within its in-office environment. We’ve always said that our secret sauce is our people—we hire super passionate employees who care deeply about one another, and that dynamic really shines when we’re in person together. 

Even so, I found myself facing my own professional dilemma a few years ago. When I started at Dialpad, I had a 30-45 minute commute every day. As the years passed and traffic worsened, that commute ballooned to a point where I was sometimes spending three to four hours a day travelling to and from the office. With three small kids at home, this setup wasn’t working. I took a sabbatical, wanting to focus more on being there for my family. 

But then the pandemic hit, and it provided a sort of unexpected silver lining. Not only could we now hire talent who didn’t live near our office, but we could also provide a more flexible setup for parents like me. Suddenly, with a remote-first model, I could do my job in a way that allowed me to balance my work at the office with my work as a parent. 

We’ve grown our team by almost 100% year over year the last two years. 40% of those employees are completely remote, meaning they won’t be returning to an office in the future. All of these are great things, but there are also drawbacks to a completely remote setup. 

Remote Onboarding Isn’t the Same

The benefits of remote work are undeniable, but there are also drawbacks. For one, there’s something that’s lost when employees are onboarded remotely. 

There’s no replacement for getting to experience office culture first-hand. Feeling the energy of an office and getting to chat face-to-face with new colleagues on your way to meetings is not something technology can replace. Onboarding is also an inherently slower process when it’s done remotely; people can’t acclimatize as quickly as they would in the office. 

Ideally, I would love every employee to be onboarded in an office, with the option to work hybrid or remote after that. This option isn’t available for everyone, so there are a number of onboarding processes we’ve put in place to foster familiarity and intimacy between new hires and their teams. 

One of those things is our New User Manual, a document each new employee completes to inform managers and other employees about how they work best. New employees use this manual to outline how they like to receive feedback, what motivates them, and any accommodations or considerations that exist around their work schedules. Managers and team members use these documents to help us understand our new team members as people, especially when we don’t have the option to meet them in person.

Innovation Thrives on Face-to-Face Interaction

Another aspect of in-office magic that can’t be mimicked remotely is face-to-face collaboration. It’s undeniable that the speed and electricity of innovation is increased when people are in the same room.

While our company has demonstrated that we can be successful without being together physically, I still believe that the energy created during face-to-face creative, brainstorming, and strategy-defining interactions makes them better and more effective. 

Again, I think a hybrid solution is great to allow for these kinds of meetings. Our CEO often talks about our offices functioning as a “clubhouse” in the future: a place where employees can socialize, brainstorm, and collaborate, depending on the needs of each team.

Beyond that, I hope that even folks who work completely remotely will still be able to meet with their team twice a year, either through a team-building event or a company summit. Video meetings have allowed us to stay better connected during this pandemic. I have been able to know teammates really well, but nothing can replace the personal connection created during in person meetings.

Ultimately, I believe that it’s each employer’s responsibility to provide an environment that fosters the best employee engagement and performance, and the solution for that will never be one-size-fits-all. 

Tasha Liniger is the CHRO at Dialpad. Prior to her current role, Liniger was a part of the founding team at BlueJeans as the Vice President of People where she helped expand the team globally and managed the company’s 100% year-over-year headcount growth. Before BlueJeans, Tasha led PeopleOps for Topspin Communications which was acquired by Cisco Systems in 2005. Post-acquisition, Tasha moved into Cisco’s mergers and acquisitions (M&A) team where she helped execute on the company’s aggressive M&A strategy. She brings years of experience at hyper growth companies to Dialpad where she leads the company’s expansion in new global markets. Visit www.dialpad.com  Connect Tasha Liniger