What is it like wfh/hybrid in a c-suite role?

[unlikelychump]

I currently work pretty much full time in the office in a Chief Exec role. I like working in the office,enjoy the short commute, love my colleagues and mostly hate teams calls.

For other reasons I am considering looking for a new job. I know there wouls be some benefits from a predominantly wfh arrangement (I have 3 kids 10-14). I have now seen an interesting job so it has become a real consideration.

If you are in a v senior role (not chief executive this time) do you get any downtime or is it relentless teams meetings? Do you manage the lunchtime walk, occasional coffee with friends and chance to put the slow cooker on? I am expecting some flexibility in my schedule but not sure how realistic it actually would be.

I currently dont work excessive hours in the public sector. This new role is for a major charity.

Thanks!

I am and always have been private sector. The more senior I have become, the more important it has been for me to actively manage my calendar. I block time off for loads of things. It doesn't mean I am definitely unavailable (proactive "focus time" blocks are one example which I block but will override if necessary) but people viewing my agenda will think twice before trying to book me then, instead of a slot where I am free. Only necessary people can see specific entry details, most people just get free/busy

I also decline things, propose new times and even meeting lengths. So many people default to 1hr without thinking. I don't have that kind of time - you get 15mins (maybe 30) and my prep time beforehand.

It is true that I probably don't have as much free time as more junior colleagues, but that is a function of my seniority and I accept the deal. But on the flip side, I have flexibility. If I know I am due at a late meeting for West Coast US, I'll probably take an easier morning. I am trusted not to take the piss and and so I don't.

I'm not as senior but consider in a new role - if you are in the office where is everyone else? Lots of people end up on Teams calls from their office anyway.

If you aren't commuting how do you set yourself up for the day + demarcate between home and work. Much easier if you have a dedicated office with proper ergonomic set up so you're not distracted by home life when you dont want to be.
If the kids get home at 5 but you have another hour of work to do will you stay there and finish? Or can you trust yourself to get back in the zone after they're in bed?

How do you manage your energy? Very easy to get stuck inside all day when WFH especially on dark/wet days.

How far do you get your energy from people around you in the office? (Even if only spied through a glass door)

Whats the dynamic like at home? Will your job be taken less seriously by your partner if you WFH?

These aren't c-suite specific questions - and you should have more control over your diary than most workers but in a new company you will take a while to know what you can delegate /delay/dump, and it may take longer to sniff stuff out if others aren't in the office either.

I’m not a senior as you! But I work with a lot of people who are in the charity sector at that level. And my honest take is that there is no time of the day or night where they are not working. And it was like that before we all started doing working from home and hybrid. Before they were just on their phones constantly and now they’re just on teams constantly. So maybe see if you can visit before you commit.

Same. I'm not that senior but colleagues on £120,000+ are and they never stop. I work for a big charity. Weekends and evenings work, annual leave almost non existent. If you don't want that stress don't do a c suite job. Only people I know who have that kind of down time are in the private sector TBH - although lots also stressed!

I slightly fear this about the charity sector tbh. Am nervous about moving out of the public sector. I am a very hard worker and dont even mine occasional evening work but I am less keen on being contacted by colleagues out of hours.

(Currently work in emergency services and happy to be disturbed in emergencies but not for routine work)

DH is low-ish level c suite. His days are pretty Teams heavy, but he says he finds it easier to focus at home because in the office people pop over to “just ask…”. They have a team day when everyone is in the office and he says it is his least productive. I suppose that depends on your team (which wouldn’t be clear in a new job) and your individual working style. I have never seen him take a lunchtime walk, but he does manage to eg do the dishwasher whilst the kettle boils. He definitely wouldn’t pop out for a coffee or have someone over. I have had friends round during the day who haven’t realised he was home because he didn’t leave his desk the whole time they were here.

I’m not sure how much of that is his working style, but he is very busy. Any flexi time feels like he is double-justifying it, if that makes sense? It is as though he needs to work extra hard before and after.

@unlikelychump would you get a work phone? DH doesn’t (he did in his previous company, in a more junior role) and I don’t like that he has teams and emails on his personal phone. I think it makes switching off really difficult.

I’m never really off (currently on holiday and still checking messages twice a day) but I do have the freedom to schedule my days as I see fit. I currently do a 3 in 2 wfh split and split my workload accordingly, I load my office days with f2f meetings and catch ups and keep my home days light to avoid being sat on Teams all day and to get some work done! I’ve always been private sector, have had discussions about charity jobs but they were comparatively poorly paid ( roughly a 30% pay cut) and I don’t think I’m suited to the pace of the charity (or indeed public) sector, everyone I have spoken to describes painfully slow decision making and death by red tape. I’d say you’ll be doing enough at all hours at c suite level to not worry about chucking a wash on while the kettle is boiling!

You set your boundaries from the start. It is definitely doable. I am assuming here you are not planning to be the emergency contact for the DEC or anything!

Once people realise (and - importantly - are empowered to realise) that the thing they think is on fire is actually just a bit warm and can easily wait till morning, they'll learn to cope without defaulting to the boss. You may even set some welcome new standards!

And to @NorthantsNewbie point "They have a team day when everyone is in the office and he says it is his least productive."
It is not inherently less productive. It is differently productive. Not all work is how many words churned out on a page or time spent on calls. Once I reframed it in my head to be equally valuable face to face work, relationship building (a vastly underrated skill) and similar, it made trekking in a lot easier!

Hi - i have a very senior role. I do wfh a couple of days a week but unfortunately have not once met a friend for coffee. I tend to work 8-6 on my wfh days. I do however manage to throw a load of washing on and unpack the dishwasher at lunch. I prep dinner early ( when I get lunch) so sometimes I can put things in the slow cooker or in oven. I usually just grab lunch on the go.

I’m not senior but am an exec assistant to C-suite in private sector, they predominantly wfh. They spend about 70% of the time on zooms. They also schedule in gym time, house stuff, networking coffees (not friends), picking up kids and kids’ bedtime. Flipside is they often work in the evenings, sometimes weekend, and quite often when they are on holiday.