The Future of Our Work

Lessons we learned from the past year

• It’s impressive how quickly we can, collectively, adapt, when necessary.
• Working from home (or otherwise remotely) really IS possible (+1)
• I am so amazed how supportive leadership has been through all this.
• Solid / reliable / fast internet connection (I would say this is a must and maybe a duplicate backup connection)
• I am so lucky to have a house to work from
• Everyone needs a laptop (and maybe a Stanford-owned phone), a large-format monitor, and BT headphones
• Feeling of being obligated to be available in Slack anytime of the day.
• Home wifi has been a frequent weak link. We found it helpful to provide recommendations for improvements and encourage people to look at mesh wifi systems.
• Flexible department IT Support that is familiar to the end user and backup laptops to loan if a computer has issues
• Remote work opportunity gave me the chance to become part of Stanford
• I have been able to attend more conferences than I thought was possible in 1yr (+2)
• Our team functions remotely every bit as effectively as they do in the office. More so, oftentimes. (+1)
• Learned to use the “mute” button in Zoom. 
• Sustained team productivity -- possibly even higher
• Meetings scheduled up to mid-afternoon worked best to schedule across multiple time zones.
• Booking meeting for 50 minutes or 25 minutes to allow for a break. (+3)
• Having an occasional kid or pet pass by is fun - helps to alleviate stress :) (+1)
• Hiring talented people opened up to a larger pool knowing that they won’t be on campus.
• Since we’ve not had our weekly lunches when all in the office, my manager has been doing them online periodically during this time for us to connect outside of our standard meetings.
• You must balance your work/private life and your availability to others
• Working from home is very relaxing and I do NOT miss the commute (+4)
• The forced nature of remote work (we are all having to do it) has made it easier. Can we be this successful in a blended environment with both onsite and remote workers?
• Students - important connections with them
• It’s difficult to concentrate in a space that has always been to relax and enjoy family (+1)
• While I mostly worked from home for part of the week pre-COVID, being full time at home has really helped me prioritize my own well being since there is no commute. (+1)
• Common communication tools are key (+1)
• Despite the commute, I miss the interoffice interactions and being able to meet up with a co-worker on the spot.
• Sharing a workspace with your family member is doable, but requires coordination and give and take, and changes your personal work process.
• Working with children at home is hard (+1)
• Physical queues in meetings are hard to read on Zoom or Slack. 

What we would like to see at Stanford going forward 

• Stipend for work-from-home setup and Internet subsidy (+3)
• Fiber connections for all
• Consistent university-wide policies around telecommuting and remote work (not all departments are as open as UIT) (+1)
• REAL support for people to work from home, on an ongoing basis, part or full time, if desired by the employee.
• The ability to work out of state to care for elderly family members without needing to take vacation or leave. Basic care like helping them with things. Shouldn’t require an emergency room or illness scenario.
• Check in from management to ensure we are set up correctly. 
• No Wednesday mandatory days, my school district starts at 9am on Wednesday, yikes
• Alternative remote options if you live in an environment that is not conducive for working (i.e. not enough space, no privacy).
• Onsite places for remote groups/workers to gather for special events, onsite retreats, annual planning exercises, etc.
• All conferences should have a virtual option going forward. 
• Modern endpoint management solution for remote system deployments / support / mgt.
• Start a ferry service from the east bay to the docks at RWC
• Create opportunities for informal meetings with senior leaders
• Managers virtual office hours where employees can just drop in and have a conversation with them. 
• A way to ensure equity between remote workers and those required to work on campus
• A push towards more uniform work spaces so they can be interchangeable
• Flexibility to work remote full time/100% (+1)
• Quarterly work retreats to connect and share if more people are remote more often
• Recommendations on an at-home work setup (camera, audio setups, etc.)
• Can we have some sort of ergonomic software that will help us take breaks from the computer