On 3 March, I participated in an event at Deusto Business School (still in person) invited by Madrid Business Forum in women's week and I focused a large part of my presentation on the difficulties of the advance of telework in Spain.
On 9 March, in celebration of the Women's Day at IBM (this time already in streaming) we reflected, together with philosopher Fernado Broncano, on "Trust in the digital era". One of the main conclusions was that in an increasingly digitalised world, trust in people was going to be a differential value.
On 11 March, the COVID-19 prevention protocol was activated at IBM, and the vast majority of professionals went home to work, something that did not represent a big change for us because it has been part of our culture for years.
Today, with more than half of Spain teleworking, it's not so terrible, is it?
It is curious that only under the yoke of a pandemic, we have realised that it is possible to work at home.We are more productive than when we did it from the office despite having to combine it, in many cases, with the care and tele-schooling of the youngest children and in spaces and with means that are far from optimal.
Throughout my professional career, in which for years I have combined face-to-face work with working at home, I have seen that teleworking pays off. Personally, because my day was extended by an hour, and I gained time to read, be with my family, exercise or simply rest. Also because it saved me from traffic jams and the resulting stress, while at the same time I polluted less. Because in the peace and quiet of my home, I could concentrate and have moments of reflection, of study, of thinking, which are very difficult to achieve in the office. That is why I came to the conclusion that teleworking was better for the company, for individuals, for families and for society. And that is why I had been wondering for years why teleworking was not progressing in Spain.
I think I've figured it out, and I think it was a question of trust. Or rather, a lack of trust. COVID-19 has had to come to extirpate deep-rooted beliefs, prejudices, insecurities, fears and show us that yes, you can trust professionals and yes, you can think of much more balanced life models, avoiding having to travel daily to an office..
However, human behaviour, which is always surprising, is leading us to an adoption of marathon working days, with continuous video calls, no time to eat, no breaks. We run the risk of heading for a worse model than the one we have had until now. It is time to stop and think about establishing order in terms of timetables, breaks, digital disconnection periods. An order that must be established by the management of organisations, giving guidelines and leading by example.
When this confinement is over and we can come together again, we need to take another step and evolve towards a hybrid model of teleworking and face-to-face work.The new "work and time management system", in which each of us can organise our time and work in the most productive way for our businesses and our lives.
Professionals have shown that they can be trusted, now it is time to look for innovative formulas and solutions to facilitate teleworking in the right conditions of space and security. Would it make sense to organise our lives around the neighbourhood by moving shared workspaces from their current locations in city centres to peripheral areas?
Out of crises come opportunities. We have before us the possibility of creating a new "everyday life" that is more balanced, productive and beneficial for everyone.. Let's move towards a new model of work and life.
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Carmen García
Executive Director at IBM. Vice-president of the Spanish Marketing Association.