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Work from Home versus Work from Office

July 11th, 2022 by Kenneth Abrahams

August 4th, 2021 was going to be my return date to the office. It was going to be time to pack up my home office and head back to 63 Tosca Drive to set my desk back up and return to full time work from our “World Headquarters”. Unlike many, I was actually excited about the prospect. Truthfully, there was a lot I missed about the office that I was looking forward to. There is an energy in the office that I don’t get from working at home by myself. My daily banter with Kim about what she would be providing me for breakfast and lunch (the answer was almost always the same…nothing). Donna and or Nick listening to one of my conversations with a client and then politely asking me if I had lost my mind. Trying to interpret Waydeanese, Wayde’s unique communication style, for others in the office. Getting a crash course from Mark and others on the best shows to binge watch on a variety of streaming services and in general just being around a good group of people. It was however not to be. In mid-August I was heading out on a tour that was going to take me to Louisiana, South Carolina, Delaware, and several schools in Connecticut. With us being short staffed I knew that I was going to be on the road and working a lot of events. It didn’t seem prudent to go back in the office. We have plenty of space in the office but also several people in our office that have co-morbidity factors, including me, and it didn’t seem wise to add another body to the mix unnecessarily.

So, I have stayed at home and currently there is no plan to work in the office anytime soon. Over time, we instituted a work from home/work from office policy or schedule for all our staff. There is a group of people that either need to or like to work from the office, at least some of the time, while others don’t need to be in the office at all. Donna, who handles the personnel for the company, has created a schedule that seems to work for everyone. Much of our operations team needs to work in the office since they pack and load all the programs which can’t be done remotely but they understand that and don’t complain. Conversely, our sales staff is 100% remote, with Bonnie being in Washington state she has always worked from home. Let’s face it that would be a crazy and expensive commute every day. All in our organization are happy with the situation.

It is hard to believe that the work from home/office or WFH/WFO controversy is still raging but raging it is. Articles are still appearing in newspapers, magazines, and websites. We are still hearing about it on the radio, both on news programs and talk radio. Bloggers and internet sites continue to have it front and center and social gatherings often find it to be a topic of conversation. Companies are clearly struggling with it. Recently, Elon Musk mandated that workers return to the office for 40 plus hours a week or they would be fired. Starbuck’s and Trader Joes have tried to force office workers back to the office instead of remote or hybrid, which led to those individuals trying to unionize. Flexing their group muscle as it were. For some, applying for a full time in the office position is a non-starter, especially if it involves a lengthy commute into a city or major metropolitan area.

We often forget how daunting it can be for a new employee to start at a company that is fully remote. Lily, who was our social media intern until recently, wrote a blog about heading into the working world. She was concerned that a fully remote or even significantly remote position was not for her. How would she meet and get to know her co-workers? Over Zoom how do you make those solid connections especially with co-workers that have worked together for many years and were a team long before COVID? As a new employee in a virtual world, how do you find someone that can mentor you and act as a guide through the mystery of a new job in a new place? All are great questions and significant hurdles to jump.

Recently, we did a series of events for a company, one of the events I happened to work. As I got off the elevator and entered the office, several other people came through the door at the same time I did. It was clear from the reaction and conversation that, for many of them, this was their first time in the office or their first time back in several years. “Oh my gosh, it is so good to meet you in person” or “it is awesome to actually be back in the same room and not seeing you as a one-inch square on Zoom” was heard over and over again. That day, I was doing LinkedIn headshots, it was fascinating listening to the conversations of employees as they waited in line as well as the conversations that I had with folks while photographing them. Several individuals commented that they couldn’t remember the last time they wore a dress, real pants, or shoes on a workday. Others commented that they had to try on a few things to see what still fit. All and all that group seemed to truly enjoy the day and being back together with co-workers new and old.

There is no right or wrong answer to this. Each company, and in turn, each individual needs to do what they believe is right. A longtime friend and I were talking about this recently and he made a very valid point. Those individuals that worked hard in the office pre-pandemic are probably working just as hard if not harder from home. Those that spent their days staring at a computer screen ordering from Amazon or working just hard enough to not draw the boss’s ire or get fired, are more than likely working at the same level remotely. Like it or not this is a new era where workers are holding more of the cards then they used to. Will working remotely be a long-term trend? I have no idea, but it is clearly the preference for many people today.

For years, I enjoyed my daily routine of getting up, feeding the dogs, showering, dressing, then heading to the office to work for the day, then heading to the gym and heading home. It was comfortable and familiar. Now, I am just as comfortable getting up and walking the 5 feet to my desk, having the dogs stay with me all day and then taking them out for a walk every night after the workday is done. My commute was much easier than those that are driving in bumper-to-bumper traffic every day, but I don’t miss it. As an individual and as a business, I/we are lucky to have a great group of people that work hard regardless of where they are working from.

About the Author

Although he is reluctant to tell people this, Ken Abrahams is one of the owners and founders of FUN Enterprises, Inc. based in Stoughton Massachusetts. There are many things that over the years he has struggled with but has had a supportive staff and an amazing family to lean on.

To find out more about the company go to our website www.funent.com you can also go to this link to sign up for our newsletter which comes out about 6 times a year https://funent.com/subscribe-to-the-funny-pages/.  Our newsletter will tell you more about the company and the products and services we offer as well as some games, things to do and the occasional cooking tip.