THE ARMY GOES LOCATION INDEPENDENT
T
he COVID-19 pandemic threw the world into chaos. Faced with a worldwide lockdown where proximity to anyone meant the risk of contagion, businesses and institutions reliant on an in-office workforce suddenly
found themselves struggling to figure out how to continue work when working out of the office was either impossible or risky. And the DOD cubicle farms that seemed perfectly efficient up to this point were now massive obstacles to safety and productivity.
However, during this time, the Army and DOD began to inno- vate. Launched into figuring out new ways of doing work, the Army pushed out more digital technology and collaboration tools in the first six months of quarantine than it had since the advent of the internet. And now, three years later, many folks departed the office and haven’t gone back, and are beginning to under- stand in a way that wasn’t clear before, maybe they shouldn’t go back. Returning to long commutes, stuffy offices and cubi- cle farms holds little appeal, but even less so for service members where being tied to a location means making a trade-off between career progression and other considerations. By decoupling jobs and location, the Army can reduce this trade-off.
Service members face a host of location-based challenges to their service, from spousal employment to dual military couple co-stationing, from child care to the high cost of living and avail- able housing, from staying near resources essential to those in the Exceptional Family Member Program to facing the hassle and expense of commuting. Many of these challenges can be reduced or eliminated by untethering service members from their locations. Ten all that remains is the challenge of teaching an organization that prizes in-person meetings and “butts in seats” how to become more location independent.
MISSION COMMAND AND DISTRIBUTED WORK Despite the sudden prevalence of these concepts in conversa- tion, remote work, telework and distributed teams are not new. Tey aren’t even new for the Army. Te Army has battalions and brigades spread across small posts in Korea and Germany and operated out of distributed combat operation posts in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Horn of Africa and other locations. Many offi- cers can recount stories of commanding some or all of a small post miles from the flagpole, including signing for buildings and equipment, managing services and garrison functions, and
DISTRIBUTED WORK
The benefits of distributed work. It may not be for everyone, but can be corrected with performance management, mentorship and training. (Graphic by Jimmy Blain, Army Talent Management Task Force, and USAASC)
116
Army AL&T Magazine
Summer 2023
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