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Returning to the office after 18 months of WFH
August 26, 2021
After graduating in 2019 I was thrilled to land my first job in PR. The office was filled with energy, and I loved working in such a fast-paced environment. However, after six months of getting used to being in a buzzing office for the first time in my life, the world went into lockdown, and everyone had to adjust to working from home full time.
PR is all about communicating with people. Whether that’s speaking to colleagues, clients or media, you need to be able to speak to people on multiple topics and in all capacities – about work, personal life and general chit chat.
Communicating virtually has been made so much easier with the likes of Zoom, Teams, Google Hangouts and Slack. But virtual meetings take their toll and the phrase ‘Zoom fatigue’ is now common within companies and well understood by employees. So, how did we all get used to working and communicating virtually?
In the agencies I’ve worked in, we’ve tried to minimise time spent on online meetings so that we can concentrate on the work that matters. While it was always fun catching up with journalists, clients or friends over coffee and cocktails, the same sort of meetings over the computer lost their appeal.
As meetings taking place in the physical realm disappeared, everyone industry-wide had to adapt to the world of virtual conferencing. But now as offices reopen, how can people re-adapt to commuting to work and meetings finally taking place in-person again?
Every business approach to the return to work will be different. Some have decided to completely give up their offices and work from home indefinitely. Others are adopting a flexible working approach, and a few are determined to get employees back in the office 9-5, five days a week.
Whatever your company decides to do, it’s important that you feel safe and protected, and then you are less likely to feel stressed about returning to the office. Routines are going to change, and many will be feeling anxious about the shift.
At Pumpkin, we’re going for a gradual return – starting with one day a week in the office – and the aim is to build up to three days a week in the office. But if Covid has taught us anything, it’s to keep an open mind and be flexible.
It’s easy to say for someone working in PR and Communications but communicating with your boss really is key to making sure you feel comfortable with the return to the office. Request a conversation with your manager, inquire about how many days you’re expected to be in the office and find out if there are any options for flexibility. Everyone is keen to make the return to the office as smooth and easy as possible, so make sure you keep an open mind and discuss your options.
Ella Wallace-Browne