[Real Beat] How to Cope with Loneliness of Working Alone... Emerging 'Connection' Technology [Office Shift] (28)

Messenger, Video Conferencing, AI, Metaverse and Other Technologies Enter the Office
‘Relationships and Emotional Exchange’ That Remote Work Cannot Replace... Impact on Productivity

Editor's Note[Jjinbit] is a shortened form of 'Jung Hyunjin's Business Trend' and 'Real Business Trend,' a segment that showcases trends in changes in work. The segment within Jjinbit called 'Office Shift' carefully examines changes in offices triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic and will serve as a foundation to explore answers to work styles through experiments we have conducted together. It will be delivered to you every Saturday and Sunday morning. After 40 installments, it will also be available as a book.

"We live in the most technologically connected era in history. Yet, the rate of people feeling lonely has doubled since the 1980s."

A warning was issued four years before the COVID-19 outbreak. Vivek Murthy, a physician and the U.S. Surgeon General of the Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC), pointed this out in a September 2017 Harvard Business Review (HBR) article. He called this phenomenon the 'Loneliness epidemic.' "How socially connected one is mainly depends on the institutions and places where they spend most of their time during the day. The workplace is included. While new work styles like telecommuting create flexibility, they reduce opportunities for relationship-building," he emphasized.

Another warning sounded six years later. Murthy, who was reappointed as the PHSCC Surgeon General under the Joe Biden administration, released an over 80-page report titled 'Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation 2023' earlier this month. He pointed out that loneliness has become a public health threat akin to smoking or obesity, as people worldwide have experienced disconnection in daily life due to COVID-19. He expressed concern, saying, "The impact of social isolation is comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day."

◆ Concerns Brought by the COVID Experience... Digital Technology Development is 'ing'

When the world was paralyzed by COVID-19, technology connected people. Inside personal offices called homes, colleagues met via laptops using the internet, conversing through cameras, high-quality microphones, and speakers. Work materials were easily shared via email and messengers 24/7 without significant restrictions. Meetings with overseas colleagues were possible via video calls without long business trips by plane. It was believed that telecommuting and remote work could sufficiently maintain relationships and interactions with colleagues.

However, various communities and social networking services (SNS) were flooded with posts and photos seeking communication and empathy. People shared pictures of carefully prepared meals at home, saying, "I’m posting because I feel lonely eating alone while working from home," and showed off their newly purchased monitors on desks, boasting about their home offices. Office workers, unable to meet even family and friends due to the pandemic, complained of isolation and fatigue in contactless work environments.

Communication through online messengers and video conferencing technology proceeded without issues but felt subtly different. Everyone was always connected in virtual spaces, yet physically separated in reality, making emotional exchange difficult. Saving commuting time and cutting off unnecessary relationships were advantages. Still, doubts about interpersonal relationships and inter-organizational communication created by digital technology grew.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta Platforms, who initially intended to continue telecommuting during the early COVID-19 period, said this year, "Building trust face-to-face is easier (than remotely), and such relationships help work more effectively," for these reasons.

Beyond the internet and computers, various technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the metaverse are entering offices one after another. It feels like a step closer to a world where humans work together without facing each other. Will these advances in digital technology exacerbate loneliness among office workers? Is there a way to leverage the benefits of technology that transcends time and space constraints while fostering relationships and collaboration within the workplace? This is a time requiring deep reflection and delicate responses from companies and offices worldwide.

◆ 'Modern Epidemic' Loneliness Strikes Productivity Directly

From a corporate perspective, loneliness felt by employees is truly 'poison.'

Siegel Barsade, a professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania who studies organizational culture, explained in a past interview with CNBC that loneliness affects corporate performance in two ways. Employees who feel lonely at work lose motivation to work hard and pay less attention to their tasks, making it difficult to achieve good results. Also, the very state of feeling lonely hinders further communication with colleagues. It becomes difficult to trust coworkers, which in turn impedes free information exchange.

It has already been proven by many studies that better relationships among employees lead to higher performance. When bonds between employees are strong, work-related exchanges become more active, and interest and participation in the workplace increase. A report by Accenture showed that when employees feel highly connected with colleagues, annual revenue growth rises by 7.5%, and an analysis by McKinsey found that employees who feel well-networked with coworkers have 1.5 times higher work engagement.

Polling firm Gallup includes the question "Do you have a best friend at work?" in surveys studying employee engagement for this reason. Jim Harter, a Gallup workplace and well-being researcher, emphasized, "Having a best friend at work has become much more important since the surge in remote and hybrid work," adding, "Data generally shows that younger people feel weaker connections to their workplaces."

◆ Seeing Faces Doesn’t Build Relationships... 'True Connection' is Key

So, is returning to the office essential to build relationships and trust that technology cannot fill? Many CEOs have stressed the importance of employees gathering in one place to collaborate and create synergy in the endemic era. Hybrid work, introduced while reducing telecommuting, has emerged as one solution. It uses technology to increase efficiency while providing time in the office to build relationships and trust so employees can collaborate.

However, it is noteworthy that Murthy’s warnings existed even before the COVID-19 crisis. He pointed out, "Working in an office does not guarantee meaningful connectivity. Even in offices full of colleagues, or in open spaces, everyone is looking at their computers."

Global management consulting firm Accenture surveyed 1,100 executives and 5,000 employees across 12 countries including the U.S., U.K., and China last year, asking, "Are you well connected with your colleagues?" Surprisingly, 4 out of 10 office workers answered "No." Ironically, only 36% of hybrid workers and 22% of remote workers answered "No" to the same question.

This means some feel more connected while working remotely than in the office. Simply gathering in one space is not important; active efforts to build relationships matter.

Just as technological changes have transformed office relationships, Airbnb, which adopted telecommuting as its main work system, holds in-person social events about a week each quarter. Some companies provide support for gatherings such as company dinners to encourage employees to build relationships.

Elin Shook, Chief Leadership & Human Resources Officer (CLHO) at Accenture, said, "Culture does not come from space but from bonds with people," adding, "People are experiencing a new world not only in work but also in life. It is natural that fundamental ideas about how to connect with each other are changing significantly."