Blog: The Great Office Comeback

Ah, the age-old debate of working from home versus working in the office. It's like choosing between sweatpants and business casual, between Zoom meetings and water cooler banter. Now that the dust has settled on the post-COVID working landscape, let's take a lighthearted look at the differences between these two worlds. Yes, it’s another ‘post covid reflection’. You’ve heard loads, I know.

The morning commute

Working from home: Roll out of bed, stumble to the kitchen, and start your day in your PJs. The only delay is how long it takes to boil the kettle.

Office life: Forget the snooze button. Brace yourself for the daily battle on public transport.  In London, it’s very public. But hey, at least you can blame your tardiness on "delays on the Tube."

Dress code

Working from home: Business on top, party on the bottom. Who needs pants when your webcam only captures the upper half of your body? Cue the mullet fashion – business casual up top, pajama party down below.

Office life: You've got to dust off those work-appropriate outfits and remember how to tie a tie. Wow, only one pair of trousers still fits?? But don't worry, the office is a judgment-free zone, except maybe for Caroline the office manager who always seems to be silently critiquing your wardrobe choices.  But she supports Millwall, so ‘glass houses’ and all that…

Meetings

Working from home: Zoom, Microsoft Teams or whichever video conferencing platform your company swears is the best. Enter the meeting with the classic "Is my camera on?" panic and the fear of accidentally sharing your screen with the entire team while you search for that cat meme. Yes… cat memes.

Office life: The sweet sound of real-life interaction! Forget about "You're on mute." It's time for the real MVP – awkward silences during in-person meetings. No more hiding behind a screen; it's time to perfect your poker face. And trying to hide your impatience and judgement for colleagues that are WFH that day, clearly more relaxed than they need to be.

Lunch break

Working from home: Raid the fridge like a secret agent on a mission. No judgment for midday snacking, and you can finally savour that gourmet meal you've been craving without judgment from the office microwave.

Office life: The eternal struggle of finding a microwave that doesn't stink, even though it gets cleaned - what are people heating in there?? Brace yourself for the lunchtime small talk and the mysterious disappearance of your favorite snacks from the communal fridge.

The great productivity mystery

In the grand finale, after all the analysis and comparisons, one truth emerges – humanity has returned to the office, but productivity seems to have taken a detour to an undisclosed location. Perhaps it's basking in the glory of newfound freedom, lingering somewhere between the walls of the cubicles and the home office setup.

So, dear reader, as we navigate this post-COVID working world, let's embrace the chaos, enjoy the camaraderie of the office, and share a laugh about the productivity that has decided to play hide-and-seek. After all, the real winner is the one who can juggle Zoom calls and in-person meetings with a perfectly timed snack break – and maybe a nap under the desk for good measure. Welcome to the new normal, where the only certainty is the uncertainty of where productivity has decided to set up its holiday home.

The office can feel like machine - it’s intended to do so. Maybe a bit of humanity is all we need to feel less like a cog and more like a person? Just remember, we still have KPI’s, metrics, milestones, checkpoints and sprint goals to hit…