Microsoft conducted a study of its US workforce to find out what happened when the technology giant sent all employees to work from home in early 2020.
The study concluded that communication was becoming less important and employees were spending less time with, colleagues from different divisions of the company.
The study concluded that remote work could be harmful to performance and innovation, and found that emails, instant messaging and other forms of communication that replace personal interaction made it difficult for employees to share their ideas and access new information.
Microsoft’s research also focuses on the struggles of young workers who entered the labour market during the pandemic, as well as those who started new jobs remotely, who rely heavily on older colleagues for information about their work and the broader company, much of which is learned through informal encounters and face-to-face interactions.
As this interactivity is no longer possible, new workers find it more difficult to adapt to their new role and integrate into the broader organization.
For more information, view the original story from ZDnet.