Nomadism has been around for a long time for sales representatives. However, the phenomenon is more recent for IT developers, who can work remotely and regularly synchronize their code with the production server.
Today, influencers send us their videos from Dubai or the Pacific islands. We mustn't overlook the fact that making hard TikTok videos is a job when it's regular and frequent.
Nomadism began to penetrate the corporate world by developing Flexdesks - offices that belong to everyone. This idea first appeared at Accenture in 1995 and has since developed in line with well-being at work.
This principle aims to improve communication by deregulating employees' geographical locations. The results are often quite different. This disorganization has naturally created new, invisible modes of regulation. First come, first served. Those who arrive early get the best seats. Those who arrive later are pushed out to peripheral areas or noisier spaces.
Ultimately, this creates a certain jealousy and a form of competition between employees. We also lose the ability to design our space according to the reality and specificity of our activities. The office is no longer a working tool but simply a space that must be rearranged daily.
And this is all the more absurd given that everyone returns to the same place every morning. Management is happy because it feels in control, and employees are happy because they have "hacked" the system to maintain their freedom.
It's important to understand that any coercive decision taken without the agreement of a group will prompt that group to develop workaround strategies and even to lie, if necessary, to maintain its prerogatives.
This is just as clear in the case of time sheets and other control and surveillance systems set up to counterbalance a blatant lack of hierarchical trust.
CoVid has generalized the principle by pushing employees towards telecommuting for all professions that allow it. Two or three days a week at home and the rest of the time at the office, sharing the common space.
I think we can all agree that telecommuting proves the Flex Desk right. We will now have to adapt to maintain motivation and performance with staff no longer constantly contacting their colleagues.
Today's nomads are SBFs: Sans Bureau Fixe (without a fixed office).
And it's still difficult to measure the impact of such an upheaval on work performance over the medium and long term.
What is certain is that the experience of salaried work is becoming increasingly similar to that of self-employment. This will likely make the distinction between private and professional life increasingly complex.