The world of work feels like living on an ant farm. You toil away at your section in full view of some mysterious patron and hope you survive the next day. It is an uncertain existence, and there is no guarantee that a child might shake the entire structure for fun. No wonder US productivity figures are down. Frightened workers filled with existential dread are less productive than those with better psychological safety. This week workers in Canada went on strike for better wages and the right to work remotely. Business leaders are pushing back on efforts by employees to work remotely, and I want to discuss it.
The environment in many large corporations is more like a feudal kingdom than a customer service organization. Unfortunately, those in positions of power at the top often have a disproportionate amount of authority, money, and job security. Additionally, business leaders treat those who generate profit as expendable resources. This unequal distribution of power can lead to a lack of appreciation for the hard work of those driving the company's success and a feeling of frustration and injustice for those on the front lines. Corporations need to recognize their employees' hard work and create an environment where all team members, from the top down, feel appreciated and supported.
I also suspect that it contains a dose of retrograde thinking shaped by unhealthy attitudes about masculinity. Despite all the changes in the workforce since the 1970s, the business world is still a boys club for mediocre men. Joan Williams, the director of the Center of WorkLife Law at the University of California College of Law, summarized the philosophy best: "These are men with very traditional views, who see the home as their wife's domain and work as men's domain."
Women, people of color, and LGBTQ folks can join this club. Still, they must be hardworking, dedicated to the firm, hide their authentic selves, and avoid taking time off for childbearing, raising a family, or looking after aging parents. Finally, these people need to be replaceable because the market is the only constant, while people, in the words of Donald Rumsfield, are fungible.
Employers see remote work as a way to balance family demands with work, while leaders see it as a reflection of "softness." This worldview makes the conflict between business leaders and employees so divisive. Remote work is for sissies who do not want to advance, and it is an expensive perk that was necessary during the pandemic, but now that we have vaccines is unnecessary. It is easy to see why civil servants want to strike about the right to work remotely. Then they can do the necessary work and still care for obligations outside the office.
Many leaders come from narrow social circles and cannot recall working with women or people of color as equals. Thus, they are biased that what worked for their careers will work for all the other employees at the firm. Leaders like this also need to understand what the people who work for them are doing. A software developer attempting to solve a gnarly problem will not write as many lines of code as an engineer mocking up interfaces for APIs.
It creates something called productivity theater, where people look like they are busy when they are acting for the benefit of the boss. Instead of working on helping the business and helping customers, contemporary workers spend time in empty activities and acting out a performance of productivity. For leaders used to the status quo, this is better than measuring performance and managing a team remotely.
As an agile coach or scrum master, you must meet employees where they are, balancing commitments inside and outside the office. A new mother will want to work from home, and when they come into the office, they will need a place to use a breast pump which is private. A project manager who must take a call with India needs to go home early or work from how because the sleep schedule is different from other people in the office. It is not easy, but with some empathy and effort, a remote office can work better than everyone sitting in a cubical.
It is not easy leading other people. Leadership requires emotional labor, patience, and a thick skin. Being in charge also requires you to see people like the individuals they are instead of ants toiling away on an ant farm for your amusement. Finally, you can adjust to changing conditions and treat them as opportunities to improve the business. Allowing remote work is one of these opportunities we could not miss.
Until next time.
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