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As a CEO and entrepreneur, I felt compelled to respond to the comments made by Sydney’s Nicole Duncan, CR Commercial Property Group chief executive and managing director.

In a radio interview, she called this generation “selfish” because they don’t want to work in the office.

“In our younger days we caught trains, buses, ferries to get to work,” she said. “Yes it did take two or three hours, but you’ve got to be in the office.”

I have to respectfully disagree. My feeling is that it’s 2023 and if you don’t learn to adapt and adjust with the times or you’ll wind up like a Blockbuster executive who missed the opportunity to buy Netflix.

I also find the comments saying “this generation” are “lazy” bloody frustrating.

I’m so sick of leaders who want to play the blame game.

How about we leaders asks ourselves the question: “What is the benefit of working in the office compared to working from home, and how do we make this a place people want to turn up to?”

The desire to work from home does not make someone lazy.

Travelling an hour each way to the office is an extra 10 hours per week they don’t get paid for, and working from home means they regain that time in their own life. If the job they do can be achieved remotely, that option should always be available.

Many of us couldn’t think of anything worse than sitting on public transport for two to three hours a day, especially post-pandemic.

If people don’t want to come back into the office, workplaces need to look at why they don’t want to be there. The work culture could be one reason! Blaming it on a lazy generation is ridiculous.

Don’t get me wrong, I am a firm believer that older generations still have much to teach us. I just don’t think this one is one of them; I don’t think starting a generations war is beneficial to anyone.

Flexibility is great for the organisations and the people that work for them.

In a study conducted by Stanford University, researchers found that when call centre employees at a Chinese travel agency worked from home, they had a 13 per cent increase in productivity compared to their in-office counterparts.

The study also found that the remote workers reported higher job satisfaction and took fewer breaks and sick days.

An Airtasker study found that remote workers reported feeling less stressed, had better work-life balance, and were more productive than their in-office counterparts. The study found that remote workers saved an average of 8.5 hours per week by not commuting.

Fast Company also agrees that remote work is good for productivity, and states, “remote work is not going anywhere”.

The companies unwilling to adapt will be unable to on-board and retain top tier talent and staffing.

The sooner we start learning to seek to understand what drives and motivates individual employees, the sooner we will get increased buy-in, greater employee satisfaction, and better productivity.

One of the key ‘groups’ that have benefited from the new remote work movement are parents, particularly single parents.

First-hand, I can tell you that some of the best and most productive staff I have on my team are single mums, working from home. I promise you, they are the complete opposite of lazy.

If I forced my entire team to work from the office, I would lose invaluable talent that, frankly, I don’t have the time, resources or desire to replace.

As for Gen Z, they often get a bad rap, but understanding how to attract, retain and get the most out of them is more productive than labelling them lazy and putting them in the too hard basket. Consider too, you’ll be scrapping 30 per cent of the talent pool over the next 10 years, should you choose to ignore their needs and preferences.

Listening to your workforce, and actioning their preferences, enhances your workplace culture.

Perhaps, returning to the office works for some of your team.

Some people find the human connection helpful; but for others, being part of a crowded office these days is anxiety inducing.

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Business is honestly best served by doing what works for the teams.

I’d rather protect my employees, my business, and myself, so we get the job done in the best way for everyone. I’m not sure that’s selfish or lazy.

Aimee Baker is the CEO of Ari Group and has an extensive background in recruitment and business services.

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