The Future of Work is in Nature

What if I said that the future of work is in nature?

Forget about investing billions into urban complexes, city skyscrapers, campus headquarters, or co-working spaces. What if all, or at least a portion of investment, was poured into small offices scattered throughout rural locales in nature? Sustainably built, architecturally and environmentally woven into the landscape of our earth. Would you dare?

McKinsey & Co have recently gone on record to say that “offices must be places of magic”. And what could possibly be more magical than nature?

A great employee experience has historically been touted as being one that includes nap pods, state of the art fitness centers, free food, couches, game tables, and the famous “bring your dog to work policy”.

However, the reality is that employees crave elements far more fundamental and essential to their human needs. We are humans, remember?

A recent HBR article highlighted that the number one office perk was actually natural light. As simple as that.

In a research poll of 1,614 North American employees, they found that access to natural light and views of the outdoors were the number one attribute of the workplace environment, outranking stalwarts like onsite cafeterias and even premium perks like on-site childcare.

And it totally makes sense.

There is a vast amount of research that shows that access to nature, plants, and sunlight decrease stress and have a positive impact on mental health. Businesses have gone lengths to do away with the fluorescent lighting that has dominated many office floors for decades, investing in tonal colored furniture, “living walls”, and campus landscaping.

It isn’t surprising to know that employees who work in environments with natural elements reported a 13 percent higher level of wellbeing and are eight percent more productive overall, according to a report of 3,600 workers in eight countries in Europe, Middle and East and Africa.

Can you imagine what the effects of working in nature might be? No longer substituting for the real thing?

But isn’t big business antithetical to nature? One might ask.

Unfortunately, and understandably so, that is the dominant narrative we see playing out before us. The impact of capitalism on our earth has been horrific. We are collectively grief stricken, walking around is a numb state of unnameable angst as a result of the images we cannot unsee. Ravaged forests, polluted oceans, distressed animals, endangered wildlife. This is the state of affairs, and big business has a lot to do with it.

This is creating a corresponding push from younger generations of workers who have, even pre-COVID-19, said they want to work for forward-thinking organizations who prioritize flexibility and purpose over profit. They value this over salary and are more likely to look past openings at firms who cling to more traditional setups, routines, and ways of doing business.

In a study from Deloitte, it was identified that 87 percent of millennial workers believe that “the success of a business should be measured in terms of more than just its financial performance.” Citing the values that support long-term business success are people treatment, ethics, and customer focus.

As a species we are void of our connection to the land, and yet something primal within us continually calls us home. We know and feel the immediate effects of being in nature — clear mind, deep breath, soft body. The natural world is not only impactful for our mental and physical health, it creates the conditions for creativity, innovation, and inspiration.

Time in nature, anywhere on this planet, is the wellspring of restoration and connection. Nature is subtle in its ability to heal, to enliven, and to achieve harmony. As humans we are part of the living book of nature, in symbiotic relationship to this vast cosmic force. And we want to commune with it, and protect it.

The pandemic has shown us that our daily lives and our working lives are inextricably connected. No longer are they separate but rather they are in direct relationship with one another. We want to feel good at work. We want to be inspired, held, motivated, and connected to others and to something we believe in — something bigger than ourselves.

Offering professionals a place to work and play in nature will pay dividends toward creating better business and therefore, a better world.

You could say that we are already gravitating toward this with millions of professionals having already relocated from large, densely populated, expensive cities to start lives in smaller locales throughout the United States.

It is likely that we will see as much as three to four times as many people working on remote, flexible schedules than before the pandemic. This will undoubtedly have a profound impact on urban economies, transportation, and consumer spending, among other things. As well as a potential upside to rural communities who might realize an increase of commerce and population size in the coming months and years.

So the question for business leaders remains: break the lease, renovate, go fully remote, wait it out, or try something undeniably new, innovative and potentially profound.

My suggestion? Focus on a decentralization strategy that reconnects your business and your people with the driving force of all of life — nature.