Asynchronous work: Me in the morning, you in the evening

The Hamburg mobility specialist Free Now would like to offer its employees as much flexibility as possible.

Many of the approximately 2,000 employees communicate exclusively via online tools, without being required to be in the office and without fixed working hours.

So-called channel discussions and info threads take the place of meetings.

Employees can network with each other at any time via various channels or follow announcements.

This makes joint decisions possible, even if not everyone contributes at the same time.

If you're not there, you can continue where the others left off.

Free Now works asynchronously: Employees can not only work anywhere, but also at any time.

The important thing is that they do their job.

Whether this happens at home or in the office, at ten in the morning or late at night, it doesn't matter.

Many expect more freedom from this, as the market research institute “3Gem” determined in a recent survey.

61 percent of those surveyed believe that asynchronous work creates a better work-life balance, and 41 percent believe the model is future-proof.

At the same time, two thirds of those surveyed say that their company does not yet meet the technical requirements.

For Sascha Stowasser, work and future researcher and director of the Institute for Applied Work Science in Düsseldorf (ifaa), the result was foreseeable: "I'm more surprised that there are so few," he says.

“We humans want to have our needs met.

In particular, this means making our work flexible.” In theory, asynchronous work sounds promising, but implementation can only succeed if there are clear rules of the game.

Slow approach important

For it to work, you need competent managers.

"Leading at a distance is challenging, but doable," says Stowasser.

Despite all the freedoms, asynchronous work means above all personal responsibility and self-organization for the employees.

"If we give people this responsibility, they also have to know how to deal with it," he says.

Clear rules from the boss are essential.

Are there times when everyone needs to be reachable?

How are working hours tracked?

How quickly should you respond to emails?

When everyone works their own way, the pressure of having to be available at all times also increases.

And: Despite all the freedom, there needs to be clear agreements with colleagues.

When teams no longer meet in the office but see each other virtually - if at all - the sense of community suffers.

"That can promote loneliness," says Nale Lehmann-Willenbrock, Professor of Industrial and Organizational Psychology at the University of Hamburg.

"Spatial and temporal distances between employees and their work create flexibility for the individual, but new construction sites for social interaction." Social cohesion is "a very important resource for overcoming stress".

"Without synchronous, interactive exchange, this important building block is completely lost," she says.

Her suggestion: at least weekly meetings.

Even if it's just for coffee.

If you want to work asynchronously, you should approach it slowly.

"It is best to use individual building blocks in small doses, to evaluate them regularly and to adapt them," advises the work psychologist.

During the transformation, we should take our time and act with caution.

Lehmann-Willenbrock would like more freedom of choice for working hours and location.

Ultimately, however, the decision rests with the employee: "I don't have to do it.

I can also opt for a classic solution if that's the right path for me," she says.

Futurologist Stowasser, on the other hand, is certain: “We are now increasingly aligning ourselves in the direction of asynchrony.

This is not a temporary corona phenomenon either, but a long-term runner.”

Working hours and break times are strictly regulated in this country.

However, if you work asynchronously, you determine the place of work and the daily working hours in theory - and quickly lose track of things.

This is where the model reaches its limits.

Only what is permitted is practicable.

Personal responsibility cannot be achieved completely without control: "Real flexibility can only be achieved with working time accounts," Stowasser knows.

Compliance with performance requirements, occupational safety and health at work also requires a great deal of additional effort on both sides.

Still, asynchronous work can pay off.

Those who enable flexible work are particularly well received on the job market.

"Anyone who can organize their place of work and working hours flexibly works more independently and feels less stressed," says Sascha Stowasser.

Asynchronous working not only strengthens the employer brand, but also increases employee satisfaction and performance.

Anyone who exploits their own performance curve works more concentrated, motivated and successful.

In the end, the experts agree, the model will establish itself, at least partially, in our everyday lives.