The New
Workplace
The Problem
The global pandemic and the months of lockdowns and stay-at-home orders completely transformed where and when work happens at the Aspen Institute (and everywhere). When things opened up, there was no way to go back to the way things were.
What management needed:
To devise a new policy around in-person/remote work that optimized productivity while preserving organizational culture. Also needed enterprise-level consistency in policy while accounting for differences in operational needs across programs and departments.
What Staff Wanted:
To preserve the flexibility that work-from-home allows while maximizing the interpersonal connections that only in-person work can offer.
What Happened Next:
Pherabe launched a year-long Workplace Experience initiative to determine a way forward, chartering a staff-led committee, launching online surveys, external benchmarking of peer organizations, and walk-throughs of office spaces to inform a new way of working for a post-pandemic world.
The Solution:
An entirely new in-person/remote work policy that sets average percentage targets for individual staff to achieve a balance of in-person/remote work throughout the year, a new rent allocation methodology, changes to office furniture and layouts, and more intentional opportunities to gather and collaborate in person.