Dec 21, 2023
It’s the last episode of the year, and it’s very hard to break tradition! Maya and Pilar talk through some of the recent stories around remote work and the world of work and try to make up their minds as to whether we’re moving forward or backwards…
Just as they’ve been doing over the last three months, Maya and
Pilar comment on this month’s guest, Valentina Thörner the Empress
of Remote! What was particularly memorable was her tiara story (of
course!) and the way in which she continues to advocate for
experimentation at every level in the organisation. (To hear
Valentina talking about the two axis of remote work (location and
schedule),
check out episode 342.)
09.25 MINS
There is a danger of organisations being seen to be
discriminating against certain employees if they make them go back
to the office. Legally things are not that clear cut. This article
from October showed the need for organisations to understand the
implications fully:
Case update: employers must do their homework before making ‘back
to the office’ decisions.
12.52 MINS
One example of the world of work moving backwards is
this
guidance by the UK government against a four-day work week in local
authorities. Note the lack of evidence to support it: “it does
not believe that it delivers local taxpayers’ value for money.”
At 16.00 MINS, Pilar brings in an example of the
voiceover industry, which makes it clear that being able to work
remotely might continue to perpetuate an “always on” culture.
This might all sound like our hosts are in a negative state of
mind, but maybe this is something that also applies to listeners?
Maybe they are seeking information to navigate the more difficult
facets of the modern work environment.
The most popular episodes have focused on terminations (333),
conflict (331), The upside and downsides of creativity and
productivity (330)… But also some more uplifting ones like
Effective Manager Mindset for Global Virtual Teams (315) and one on
visibility and transparency in leadership with Mark Kilby
(321).
On the moving forwards side…
21.12 MINS
Discussing Buffer's "State of
Remote Work 2023" report, Pilar and Maya note a surprising
trend: more remote workers now feel that working remotely has a
positive impact on their career growth. This contradicts the common
belief that remote work might hinder career advancement.
27.00 MINS
We couldn’t end our reflections on 2023 without talking about
Generative AI. We already did an episode on AI in November 2019
(https://www.virtualnotdistant.com/podcasts/artificial-intelligence
), so it’s something we’ve always kept an eye out on.
Now that Generative AI is being integrated into everyday tools and
is more accessible, what’s going on in organisations? Check out
Salesforce’s recent research which shows that More
than Half of Generative AI Adopters Use Unapproved Tools at
Work. (Does it remind you of how remote teams in organisations
often use Shadow IT?)
Generative AI is being used widely by all sorts of professionals,
and a few months ago, Amazon had to cap the number of books that
authors could upload daily, as GenAI was being used to crank up
books.
Speaking of which… Pilar has co-written a book with Chat GPT. “The
Remote Worker’s Guide to Time Management” will be out in all
formats in January, but the
Kindle version is already out for pre-order.
40.10 MINS
If you don’t want to read a book co-created with a bot, then maybe
you’d like to chat to humans? The doors to the brand new community
of Remote Work Europe are now open! There’s been a rise in closed
online communities as social media has become noisy and unreliable.
Maya embraces this and has set up Remote Work Europe
Connected for remote workers of all kinds who are looking for a
space to seek help, connection and inspiration.
That’s it from us this year, we hope you enjoyed our 2023 What’s
Going On episodes!