Big Books & Bold Ideas with Kerri Miller

Is working from home here to stay?

A mom working from home while her kids play in the background
Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels

Americans are eager to return to a world without pandemic restrictions — except when it comes to work. Studies show almost 70 percent of employees who’ve worked from home this past year want to continue with a form of remote work, even after COVID-19 is under control. 

Working parents are even more sold. Six out of 10 say they will quit their jobs in search of one with more flexibility if they can’t continue remote work.

Employers are adjusting. Twitter and Facebook announced its employees may continue to work from home forever, if they choose. Other companies are hiring C-suite managers just to oversee remote work. Even hometown giant Target is in on the trend, giving up one-third of its office space in downtown Minneapolis in favor of more flexibility for its workforce.

It’s a lot of change at once. Will we be able to adapt? That’s the question MPR News host Kerri Miller tackled on Tuesday. She was joined by two women who have studied the work-from-home trend even before the pandemic forced us all into a vast experiment. How can employees — and employers — make the shift?

Guests:

  • Tsedal Neeley is a professor of business administration at Harvard Business School and the author of “Remote Work Revolution.”

  • Kate Lister is president of Global Workplace Analytics, a research and consulting firm that helps employers understand and prepare for the future of work.

To listen to the full conversation you can use the audio player above.

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