The pros and cons of a return to the office - Rob Aberdein

After divisions over Brexit and disagreements over how to deal with the pandemic, a new binary issue is now vexing businesses and splitting opinion: return to the office or not?
Rob Aberdein is Managing Partner of Simpson & Marwick, now also the public face of Moray Group, a professional services venture launched in 2020Rob Aberdein is Managing Partner of Simpson & Marwick, now also the public face of Moray Group, a professional services venture launched in 2020
Rob Aberdein is Managing Partner of Simpson & Marwick, now also the public face of Moray Group, a professional services venture launched in 2020

It’s a dilemma for every employer and legal firms are no different. Across Scotland, the issue is high on the agenda at partnership and board meetings; what exactly should “return to the office” look like?

At one end of the spectrum, we’ll see firms exiting leases or markedly downsizing. Working from home has reduced fixed costs, allied with a flexibility on headcount that fits their business model.

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Likewise, I know Managing Partners and CEOs desperate to get their entire workforce back in the office as soon as possible. They are convinced that’s the key to bouncing back and ensuring future success.

The office was where we went to learn, to build relationships and trust and to develop teams. Picture: Getty ImagesThe office was where we went to learn, to build relationships and trust and to develop teams. Picture: Getty Images
The office was where we went to learn, to build relationships and trust and to develop teams. Picture: Getty Images

No-one can claim to know the answer. There’s unlikely to be a magic, “one size fits all” solution. Certainly, not while there remains such a long road to travel, influenced by new Covid variants, vaccines and seasonal factors.

Most likely, we’ll land somewhere in the middle, with a flexible approach allowing Partners and their teams to decide the most effective way to deliver services, both internally and to clients. In our businesses, our main consideration has been colleagues’ safety and personal preference but that must be balanced against maintaining our ability to deliver the best client service.

Some colleagues have found their homes entirely unsuited for remote working and cannot bear the blurring of work/life boundaries. Others love the buzz of the office, the human interactions and social side of office life.

Some departments have thrived when working from home, like litigation or family law, where solo working is often the norm. Many colleagues have become more productive as clients became more open to video meetings, rather than being dragged into offices for a face-to-face sit-down.

However, other departments like volume legal services or corporate, where teamwork and collaboration are vital, are certain they will see productivity wins by getting back into the office.

Perhaps the more profound discussion among law firm leaders though, is about the purpose of the office. Long before the pandemic, the office was far more than the place you went to “do work”.

While we rarely had cause to stop and think in those terms, the office served a multitude of purposes. It’s where we went to learn (in a structured way or by osmosis), to build relationships and trust, to develop teams or to simply get a better feel for how colleagues were feeling about life or coping with caseloads.

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For the most ambitious, the office is the place they go to put themselves on the radar for promotion and advancement. Career success has always been closely aligned with visibility and being in the eyeline of the boss is a simple function of proximity.

Yet many studies during Covid have shown workers to be happier and more productive at home. The absence of commutes on bug-filled trains and buses has left workforces healthier. A friend who runs a financial services business in Frankfurt with 3000 staff has never had such low rates of absence and attrition.

A careful, thoughtful and long-term approach will require investment, management buy-in and a recognition that change is inevitable and the pandemic has simply been an accelerant. The changes were happening anyway, they’ve just been hastened.

A blended approach will see progressive companies recognise the value of in-office interactions, where the nuances of non-verbal communication are vital; where learning by osmosis flourishes; and where it benefits certain high-impact, high-value negotiations and deal-making.

However, the trust and flexibility of home working can lead to healthier, higher-performing staff and moving less important meetings online suits many clients, while delivering environmental gains. Covid has delivered a rocket to those firms who previously thought of “flexibility” as a swear word.

The pandemic has created huge hardship, along with unexpected opportunities. Navigating the return to the office is likely to be fraught with difficulty but perhaps one of the few positives to emerge from Covid will be the emergence of better work environments, that will in turn lead to happier, healthier colleagues and better client service.

Rob Aberdein is Managing Partner of Simpson & Marwick