WFH woes | Remote work is stunting Gen Z's communication skills

Flexibility and remote work are now considered some of the most sought-after aspects of a company to employees, and rightly so.

Flexibility can lead to better wellbeing, productivity and equity in the workplace. But the experience of working in an office five days a week hasn’t been available to many young people, and there may be formative features of starting work in an office that they are missing out on.

A recent study suggests that young employees are missing out on workplace norms associated with working in the office, potentially stunting their growth and ability to communicate effectively. Experts say this is largely due to a lack of ‘osmosis learning’ – gaining knowledge, skills and unconsciously understanding ideas from being in a physical space.

Helen Hughes, associate professor at Leeds University Business School, told the BBC that remote models can lead to young people prioritising the impression they’re making as opposed to their job performance. She said: “They can have broader anxieties around how visible they should strive to be. In a hybrid or remote environment, it can be too easy to fall off the radar and find their work goes unnoticed.”