Productivity
Since working remotely, Sandra expressed that productivity has been increasing. She has more autonomy to organise her office and personal time. Some days can be full of follow-up meetings, but these are “down to the point”, without any “chit chat”, making the meetings shorter and concise.
Sandra’s office hours now vary more during the home office time, depending on how advanced her projects are. So while some days she may work more than is required, other days it may be less.
Communication and relationships
Sandra misses physical interactions and social gatherings, such as birthdays and lunches. Those moments of informal or private talks with people from other areas has given her valuable information about events and has put company decisions into context. Now she is left with the digital conversations within her team.
This situation also affects her relationships with the teammates: Since meetings are basically for follow-up purpose, Sandra mentioned that she has no idea of what is going on with her teammates’ personal life and vice versa. She phrased it like this: “On some occasions, it feels like the team is being distant and cold.”
Regarding reaching the manager, Sandra mentioned that now every project is objective oriented. While she likes this approach, it has the downside of making it harder to reach her boss, when she has any doubts to solve a problem. Due to the tight agenda of her boss, full of meetings and phone calls, she usually does not receive an instant response from her supervisor, which delays many issues.
Motivation
Sandra likes to be recognized and she mentioned that her boss tries to do it as often as possible, either by one-on-one meetings or in weekly meetings. She understands that during these difficult times she cannot ask for a promotion or even an increase in salary, but she is aware that her motivation comes from the satisfaction of doing a good job and overcoming challenges.
Moreover, the financial situation may influence motivation: Although Sandra is saving expenses for fuel (for not having to commute), on the other hand she has additional expenses, such as for light and Internet. In addition, what is more, her salary was reduced by 15% for three months. While she thinks that this is not “fair”, she is accepting it for the company’s sake, because she understands the situation we are in.
Another point that does affect motivation is Sandra’s workplace situation at home. Living in a department, she does not have enough space and lacks good equipment like a comfortable desk and chair. Sometimes this makes her feel a little unmotivated and exhausted.
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