Here is what most companies will learn from sudden enforced remote working

Peter du ToitI'm the founder of FutureWork IQ where I spend my time assisting businesses to improve their climate literacy so as to understand the projected impacts from the expanding climate crisis and how to adapt their workplaces in the face of these impacts.

(BREAKING NEWS from Italy this morning: “In the early hours of Sunday, Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte signed a decree enacting forced quarantine for the region of Lombardy – home to more than 10 million people and the financial capital, Milan – and multiple other provinces, totaling around 16 million residents.”)

Globally this is what most businesses will learn if forced to physically distance:

1. We should have prepared for something like this earlier
2. We didn’t realize that there is MUCH more involved than just sending everyone home with their laptop
3. Communication & collaboration virtually is a very important skill – we should have spent more time acquiring it.
4. Virtual Work Skills (aka Digital Literacy and Fluency) is non-negotiable for remote work
5. It takes careful design to create a workplace that easily accommodates flexible and remote working

What would you add to the list?