Allowing employees to collaborate across a network of places can address hybrid work issues

In the future, AI copilots, gig workers, and skills-based hiring will make work dynamics more distributed and less predictable. Organizations should help workers take hyper-local business trips to maximize opportunities in that new world.

This mobility could be changing desks to help a teammate or leaving the office opportunistically to meet a prospective client unexpectedly in town. The common thread is movement with purpose; we know why we want to change locations.

Unfortunately, the coronavirus changed how we perceive the value of our offices entirely and has reduced workplace mobility for many workers exactly when we should be maximizing it.

Knowledge workers in lockdown found working from home surprisingly productive, and a dreaded commute was suddenly optional. While I won't debate office mandates like Amazon's, people clearly dislike being told to go to ineffective places for unclear reasons.

At the same time, assigned desks have become a hybrid negotiating tactic. With proper change management and improved hospitality, enabling choice between diverse (unassigned) office settings can offset the hassles of finding a seat. But employees who endured a commute to spend hours on video calls in a mediocre office are in no mood for extra steps.

Reduced mobility is connected to a perceived “return on commute,” where workers either stay home because it’s easier or commute........

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