Mastering Back-to-Office Mandates: A Manager’s Guide to Not F*cking It Up

Ugh. I do not want to go back to the office, no matter what corporate leadership says about it.

Okay. That’s not entirely true. I miss the camaraderie, community and collaboration that in-person work provides. 

What I do not miss is the loud-ass HVAC system with its inconsistent on again off again ‘it’s too hot, now it’s too cold’ personality. I don’t miss the lack of truly personal space or even places in the office that feel inspired. I certainly don’t miss the bland, boring walls. 

And I’m not the only one. According to the Pew Research Center nearly half of workers who can work from home (46%) would be unlikely to stay in their job and 26% would be very unlikely to stay. That’s a lot of people willing to quit rather than go into the office.

While there are a lot of reasons people prefer to work from home, a contributing factor to consider is office culture, starting with the look and feel of your office space. We spend upwards of 7.9 hours per workday at the office so it’s no surprise that nearly half of your team working from home would rather quit than go back to a boring, lame, uninspired office. 

Furthermore, according to a poll commissioned by Mindspace, 31% of millennial employees find their current workplace boring and uninspiring. And, even 21% of millennials have rejected job offers because the workplace is uninspiring. Makes ya think, doesn’t it?

However, your boss’s boss is mandating that everyone come into the office for any number of reasons. (Don’t worry about the why. You can try to argue, but you won’t win. And if you are the top dog reading this, we say to you, “Aye-aye captain. We’ll make it happen!”) 

It’s up to you to figure out how to get everyone back to the office without hating your guts! 

In other words, how do you successfully execute a Back-to-Office Strategy without f*cking it up?

Understanding the Back-to-Office Transition

Check this: your team has mastered the art of Zoom calls, navigating messaging/email/texts, and the business-on-the-top-lounging-on-the-bottom look, not to mention getting their work done in 5 hours instead of 7.9 and now you’re the one dragging them back to the office. 

It’s like trying to herd annoyed cats, but with more coffee breaks. 

Hint: you’re gonna need proverbial treats. 

Understanding the nuances of this transition will make a huge difference in how you approach it. I believe it begins with something super simple–listening to your team. When your team is actually heard and their concerns are addressed they feel more engaged, more empowered, and more supported. Try practicing active listening with your employees. You might also consider collecting feedback anonymously, giving people a level of comfort to provide (mostly) honest answers. The key here is fully considering your team’s needs and responding honestly with what you can and can’t accomplish.  

Tip: Seriously, just be honest and straight-forward, okay? If you are doing the mad-dad “because I said so” thing or reverse engineering reasons why everyone should just suck it up and come back to your lame office, good luck with that!

Effective Back-to-Office Plans

I’m a producer by training. I believe in process, planning, and setting clear expectations. I beg of you, when creating your plan, set clear objectives, timelines, and protocols to keep things flowing like the freshly raked zen garden sitting on your desk. You could consider a phased approach letting employees dip their toes back into office life without diving headfirst into chaos. And make sure you do that thing called ‘listening’ while you solicit feedback throughout the process. 

Tip: Ensure you communicate your plan to your team like voting in Chicago – early and often. 

Employee Engagement Techniques

Keeping your team engaged during this transition is like trying to keep a toddler entertained on a long-haul flight–it’s exhausting. Believe me. I’ve been going back and forth to Switzerland to visit my babies’ momma’s family every year since the day they were born. I’m not saying you should throw toys and cheese sticks at your employees, but what I am saying is this: make it stress free and enjoyable – it has to be about your employees ongoing experience as part of your company, not just putting out a bowl of candy nobody actually wants. While good snacks and sparkling water don’t hurt, make sure you’re not just plying them with free food.

Here are some suggestions, but selecting some that fit your team and company culture is essential.

• Take the team on outings like a night of ping-pong or axe-throwing. Studies show that employees who spend time together outside of work are always more productive. My lawyer says to tell you that I am not liable for any axe-related injuries. 
• Celebrate major holidays with craft parties. Bonus if it’s writing cards for isolated seniors or anything that also gives back to your community. Just mind the glitter.
• Volunteer as a group at local organizations. But don’t “volunteer” everybody. This can look like bespoke campaigns supporting small nonprofits in your neck of the woods. Trust me, the major charities don’t need your token participation and logo sharing. Let your employees support causes they care about.
• Turn the office into an Escape Room. Caution: forcing employees to find clues to unlock the door to leave the office could be construed as cruel and unusual.
• Host an art activation where employees get to screen print their very own t-shirts over cheese plates, cocktails and inspired mocktails.

Tip: Ask your team what interests them. Make it a conversation, not another ill-conceived mandate. Once they are invited to give their input and you have buy-in, they will feel involved in the solutions. Then you’ve converted yourself from a tiny dictator to a bad-ass leader.

Don’t Forget The Office Itself 

According to the Global Insights Report from Unispace:

The physical design of the workplace plays a vital role in how employees engage with the brand and culture of an organization. Finding the balance between representing the global corporate brand and local cultural nuances is key to ensuring employees feel both connected to the company and its leadership as well as feel comfortable day-to-day.

Nobody, especially your top performers, feels good in a soulless workplace. Seriously, give a good think about the ways your office sucks and fix it. Think about it – you’re not only competing with other companies that want your best people (who are also willing to leave for better digs), you’re competing with the very personal setup your team curated at home for themselves. If you don’t want to fuck it up, you might consider getting some help.

In my humble opinion, art’s role in workplace design is so vital. With a reasonable investment, you can change the vibe of your office with curated rotating art exhibitions, murals, cool experiential events, and more.

Tip: Free up some budget to trick out the joint. Set up lounge areas for a chill vibe. Get some plants in there. Make sure the lighting isn’t ghastly. And give my boy Evan La Ruffa a holler for some top notch art consulting and curation.

Conclusion

At the end of it all, I challenge you to live up to your LinkedIn profile, support your team (and management) and prove that you are the champion of inspiring workplaces and company culture. 

I promise: if you invest in turning your office into some sweet, sweet digs you’ll be regaled as the hero you are, rewarded with a plaque, and just quite possibly get bonus days off–which you can enjoy as soon as you find that last clue to unlock the office door. 

Learn more about art for offices via IPaintMyMind.org.