The losses and income of WFH
In just a few months, the era of working in a studio – the almost universal standard for the creative class – was questioned. Reports of increased productivity during the forced lockout have prompted larger companies to consider permanent WFH as a longer-term strategy, reduce the risk of big city rents, and benefit from the lower overhead costs required to support a distributed workforce are.
There are also obvious advantages for many employees, with the potential for more flexibility on the working day, especially for those who have to travel long distances. But how could this longer-term shift affect the studio environment and the creative process? What happens when the common space for creativity moves between four walls of a studio and four sides of a screen?
The distinctive feature of Stink Studios for customers has always developed ideas that use technology in new and interesting ways and then bring those ideas to life. In order to gain this in-depth knowledge of how things are actually made, it is important that team members from all disciplines are involved in all phases of the creative process.
With the maturation of cloud computing, the functions for real-time collaboration of many creative tools have also matured. Remote workflows have become even more important for remote teams. Regardless of whether you're developing interactive best practices in Figma, discussing collaborative whiteboards in Miro, or handing over assets in Zeplin, the collaborative online space has already allowed most modern businesses to quickly adapt to remote setup during the pandemic .
However, there are still many challenges as things develop. Meetings via video feel even more rigid due to online booking. The discussions that take place in the moments before or after a meeting are often the most valuable in terms of human connection. We have definitely seen an increased burden on producers. What is the best way to support, coordinate and motivate a team that they cannot see in the whole room? There's also less room for spontaneity to look at someone else's screen and see something unexpected – the alchemy of a designer sitting next to a developer, a motion designer sitting next to a copywriter – it's important that these things not get lost through remote work.