Insights
Should Your Company Have Its Employees Come Back to Work?
Posted June 30th, 2021 in Articles
Companies of all sizes continue to face challenging questions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. While vaccination has greatly reduced the risk of infection in the United States, the risk still remains, and company leaders must carefully consider the employment-related policies they put in place going forward. This includes policies regarding where their employees work.
Calling Employees Back to the Office
From the early days of the pandemic, some analysts have predicted that the COVID-19 virus would change the way companies operate forever. Not only would customers adjust to delivery and other home-centric services, but employees and employers would both adjust to a remote work environment. While this may ultimately prove true to an extent, it is already clear that many companies and individuals still prefer things the way they were prior to 2020.
For many companies, calling employees back to the office makes sense. It builds relationships that foster productivity and job satisfaction. It also provides a desirable level of oversight, and it helps companies maintain effective cybersecurity programs.
On the other hand, many employees prefer working from home. With some companies allowing their employees to continue working remotely—at least a couple of days per week—requiring employees to work in the office five days a week could prove to be a competitive disadvantage. Additionally, even with appropriate virus-related policies and procedures in place, having employees return to work inherently presents at least some liability risk as well.
So, what should companies do? As with most types of business decisions, this is a question that needs to be answered on a case-by-case basis. Company leaders should weigh all pertinent considerations and make informed decisions based on quantitative and qualitative analyses of the options that are available.
Rebuilding a Company’s Workforce
Another related consideration involves rehiring or replacing employees whose positions were terminated due to the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. When is it time? Or, will it ever be time? Is rebuilding the company’s workforce the best approach, or can the company reduce costs by operating more efficiently with fewer employees?
These are also difficult questions with which many company leaders are currently struggling. When and whether to rebuild a company’s workforce similarly requires an in-depth analysis, and it is necessary to consider costs on both sides of the equation. While some company leaders may be anxious to revamp their operations and restore full capacity, jumping the gun could mean incurring sunk costs. On the other hand, if a company does not have the systems in place that it needs in order to meet customers’ demands with a reduced workforce going forward, this could mean losing business and scrambling to find a way back to normal.
Speak with a Business Consultant at Mithras Investments
Are you struggling to decide whether to have your company’s employees come back to work? If so, we can help. To speak with a business consultant at Mithras Investments in confidence, call 305-517-7911 or request an appointment today.
