The easy hack to optimise productivity

By Megan Dunn

Isn’t it funny that before the emergence of Covid in 2020, the concept of working from home wasn’t really widely practiced or wholeheartedly embraced.

Fast forward a little over a year and the phenomenon of working from home is extremely normal, extremely popular and gaining drastic momentum as perhaps ‘the better way’ to work - in all kinds of different aspects. The notion has begun to dissolve the traditional idea of the 9-5 office set up that millions of people globally have become completely accustomed to. Working from home offers a very comfortable alternative that the working population has certainly warmed to. COVID-19 has transformed life as we know it in every conceivable way - and working life is no exception to this rule. Back in 2020, when Covid first reared its ugly head, a major concern for many heading into lockdowns (with no date of when restrictions would be lifted) was, what the hell is going to happen with my job? Can I still work? How would this be possible? The questions were endless and vast, uncertainty seemed to be the only certain in these scary and foreign times. Initially, the concept of working from home seemed difficult and complicated with countless hoops to jump through. Although we were all kept inside, the old motto remained - business never sleeps. So, as we all adjusted to the new normal, our working lives followed suit. Companies quickly began the transition of organising for their employees to work from home. This entailed ensuring all technologies and software were downloaded, discussing any new policies and basically organizing and implementing any action to make this new situation accessible and feasible for both company and employee. Let’s not forget to thank Zoom for making meetings of any sort possible. It became the hottest, most used app during the pandemic, helping people stay virtually connected, whether that be for business or personal purposes. How productivity would be affected by this massive change was questioned early. It was assumed that the home atmosphere would wreak havoc on perceived work ethic. With the kitchen, couch and bed so close, slacking off seemed easier than ever before. Except the general trend of what actually took place was a happier, more content employee. People were able to do things completely unachievable in the fixed office routine. They could wear their pajama bottoms whilst in a Zoom meeting with their boss and enhance their time management by walking their dog on lunchbreak. The possibilities here seemed endless with personal management, and accountability taking precedence. What really resonated with people was it gave control back into the running of their daily lives, while still completing all work duties as required, all boxes being ticked. The results from a 2020 University of Otago study found that out of 2,595 New Zealanders working from home during lockdown, majority of people were evenly or more productive (73 percent), and that interestingly, a great deal of people would like to continue to work from home at least part of the time post lockdown (89 percent). This study serves as a crystal-clear reflection of the evolving perspective on the work environment from the modern Kiwi professional and almost as a call to action for employers to respond appropriately to the growing desires of their employees. Neovia Advisory Ltd, which specialises in financial services in Christchurch, is doing just that. They give employees the option of working from home one day a week post pandemic. The reason of which stemmed from their wellness initiative; if people wanted to work a day from home for their own personal reasons, then the company would indefinitely support this. This initiative embodies the flexible culture the company has whilst trying to live by their family focus value. Neovia’ s Senior business advisor, Vera Richards, says of her restyled work structure, “I love it as there’s no travel time, the time I work during the day is flexible, there are no parking costs and I get a lot done as there are fewer interruptions. “My work life balance has significantly improved.” The pandemic was a learning curb on an entirely elevated level, it seems like absolute stupidity to leave insights discovered in that time behind. Like all things, we should use crucial lessons from an experience to develop core initiatives to implement into our lives to improve it and fulfil any newly discovered preferences. Working from home supports an enhanced view on work relations which increases productivity, meaning work from home definitely isn’t something to be slept on. CT

What really resonated with people was it gave control back into the running of their daily lives, while still completing all work duties as required, all boxes being ticked.