Nomadic Working: Fantasy or Unstoppable Wave of Change?

Let’s start by defining the nomadic worker – While we all may see ourselves as somewhat of a nomad having worked outside of the office for the past year, in this case, we’re strictly referring to workers availing of a remote working arrangement, while consistently changing their geographic location.

Nomadic working conjures up images of millennials swinging in hammocks with a laptop in one hand and cocktail in the other, against the backdrop of a white-sanded beach and a cool blue ocean – Seeming like a pipe dream on par with a lottery win, the turbulent year we’ve experienced and the questions Covid has forced upon employers have dragged this nomadic pipe dream much closer to reality for many. Begging the question – Can I too work like a Nomad?

This same realisation has drummed up a rash of speculation among experts and laymen alike around the possibility or improbability of a nomadic working future. As with all great debates around nuanced topics, there are strong opinions both for and against. In all likelihood, this will result in a change somewhere between both polarities - but change all the same, because one certainty is, Covid-19 has forever altered the way we work.

What is the Debate?

Essentially, Workforce Planning and HR experts are weighing the potential outcomes of the past year’s wholesale switch to working from home on the expectations and mentality of today’s workforce. Including the allure of the nomadic working lifestyle and whether this will become a popular choice or desire of the modern employee.

On one hand, the positive results and sentiment of flexible or WFH policies were under exponential growth long before C-19. Many who were forced to work from home, overnight with little preparation, both in terms of their physical ‘office space’ and corporate support - may refute that statement, but it is true. The simple fact is - working from home during a rolling lockdown, without preparation, while homeschooling, amid anxiety-inducing panic over job losses and illness, is a bad setting to trial working from home.

For those who found their WFH experience enjoyable though, the allure of taking a deeper step into the remote working world may be quite the temptation. After all, the day-to-day practicality of such an arrangement fades like background noise when conjuring up images of an office composed of sand, sea and sunshine.

Corporate intervention could quickly shut down any hope of this reality for many though, because while each of us has upheld our responsibilities through a less than ideal WFH situation - Requesting to work in a nomadic fashion still feels like too much to ask for many employees, which makes it likely that even faint resistance from an employer will be enough to dismiss any such request. The prediction is that employers will be open to facilitating these nomadic arrangements for senior or executive level management only.

In addition, these dreams of moving to new, exotic locations and experiencing new cultures are natural after being caged in for so long. Many experts believe the buzz of interest around nomadic working will dampen as restrictions ease and the stimulation of our previous social lives return. On the other hand, time away from society may have allowed introverts time to realise they are much happier with less social interaction and to begin forming plans to live their lives in that manner – encouraging remote relocation and a permanent WFH arrangement to accommodate the same.

What is the Reality?

Ultimately, change is coming and that’s unavoidable. However, the extremes to which WFH will be pushed are yet to be seen. More than anything else, the pandemic has sparked debate and forced experimentation into working remotely. A new bar for working arrangement flexibility has been set, which means employees and employers will be able to push the boundaries of their structure to new extremes. That will surely translate to an increase in nomadic working – while simultaneously giving rise to a hardcore group of on-site proponents, galvanized by a shocking, albeit tainted exposure to remote working.

Interestingly, this poses another wily issue for employers, more specifically their workplace policies and procedures. Not only will employers now need to redraft same, to account for a change in the demands or expectations of employees - They also need to balance these alternate working arrangements with each other to maintain communication and productivity while staying committed to the long-term goals of the organisation. That’s a lot of plates to spin.

At the end of the (work)day, the pandemic has forced us all to re-evaluate what we consider our own worlds, professionally and personally. Being confined fuels a vast range of desires but primarily, it fuels our desire for freedom of choice – Which is the exact base-level driver behind the nomadic lifestyle. Employers at a base human level, cannot help but relate to this desire given the unilateral impact of a global pandemic. Meaning the rise of the nomadic worker may well be on the way – if they make a definitive choice to pursue that lifestyle.