As we figure out what the new workplace is going to look like, today we got news that Amazon is delaying its return to the office until 2022. A number of other large tech companies have commented that they’ll likely never return to the office like they were prior to COVID. The world has changed and many businesses have realized that there are many jobs that don’t need to be in the office. Plus, many employees love not having the commute and enjoy the ability and flexibility that working from home provides.
We’ve seen this play out in the world of Health IT. Epic got mainstream media coverage on their hard line decision to have their staff return to work. They later walked back that decision a little bit, but then required all Epic employees to return to the office by July 19. No update on how this has gone or if they’ve been more flexible with this as the delta variant has spread more rapidly than previous variants. However, it does seem clear that Judy Faulkner, Founder and CEO of Epic, will continue to encourage employees to be in the office.
Cerner on the other hand is talking about a much more flexible workplace. I recently toured just one of their campus and saw the flexibility made available to their employees. Workstations were available to employees who wanted to be in the office, but many were still working from home. It seems like Cerner has realized that many of their workers don’t need to be in the office. Plus, it’s their job to provide spaces to their employees that make them more productive than they can be at home. Otherwise, why should they come into the office?
Another sign of where health IT companies are when it comes to returning to the office is a look at their commercial properties. For example, Cerner just sold 3 of their office properties in the Kansas City area. I won’t be surprised if we see similar transactions from MEDITECH who has some of the most amazing office space in the Boston area. Although, I recently saw a video from MEDITECH encouraging employees to come back to the office. The enticements in the video were ice cream and schwag which made the video a fun watch, but didn’t seem like a really compelling set of reasons to go back to the office. Although, it did send a clear message that they hoped their employees would return to the office.
In an online discussion of this topic with Rasu Shrestha, he aptly noted that “experts predict that COVID19 will be part of daily life in the near future, with new variants appearing periodically.” This is a fine point to remember. We can’t just ask the question of whether employees are more or less efficient and effective in the office or at home. Employers also may need to consider the best way to handle variants that may cause future lockdowns or put their employees at risk by being in the office. Employers must plan for situations where it’s in their and their employees best interest to have them work from home.
The decision to work from home or in the office is a really nuanced discussion that varies by company, by role, by person, and likely many other factors. There’s no one size fits all answer that everyone should follow. I do like the overarching idea that creative efforts are often best in person, but even that isn’t a hard and fast rule.
What do you see as the office of the future in healthcare IT? Would you be willing to switch jobs if your employer doesn’t provide the right work environment? Do you expect more flexibility in where you work?
