Gen Z CEO reacts to CEO’s overarching assumption of child rearing for remote workers

A Gen-Z CEO has hit back at former Asda boss Lord Stuart Rose – and says some of the best work can be done “from a laptop in bed”.

Lord Rose, the former boss of Marks & Spencer and Asda, 75, told BBC Panorama working from home is creating a generation that is “not doing the right job”, on 20 January.

But Vicky Owens, 24, who owns social media agency Socially Speaking, says “suffering from a long commute to the office” isn’t linked to productivity.

She says her eight employees are more productive thanks to hybrid work, and “chilling” at home during the workday isn’t “lazy.”

She feels that allowing her employees to work from home makes her a more approachable boss, and she never forces anyone into the office if they don’t want to.

Vicky, from Manchester, a social media strategist for brands including Netflix, Vogue and TikTok, said: “I’m not sure why older generations think that suffering on a long journey will make you more productive – I can’t believe it that someone would say hybrid. work is making us lazy.

“Taking the opportunity to rest while working is beneficial – but don’t confuse it with laziness.

“We are understanding, as the new generation, what will make the team more productive.

“For this, we need to think smarter, not harder – and being mindful of employee well-being is a top priority.”

Vicky founded her business in early 2021 after spending months cold calling businesses and offering to revamp their social media pages.

Since then, she has been a social media strategist for major brands.

She even employs her sister, Lauren, 22, full-time.

After going through her own struggles with anxiety and panic disorder during her teenage years, Vicky says it enabled her to recognize when an employee might need help.

“When I wasn’t good with panic attacks and anxiety at first, it was nice to have the option of not leaving the house,” she said.

“Being aware of other people who might struggle with this has been a benefit – I’m not going to force anyone into it.

“The profit numbers have shown, if you give people flexibility, time and space – productivity increases.

“As a good leader, you have to think about what will make the team more productive; for some people, there is too much going on in the office and they prefer to work from home.”

The CEO thinks Gen Z has a better awareness of mental health issues than older generations – which makes them more open to hybrid work.

But she also “refuses” to force her non-local employees to make a long commute to the office if they don’t want to.

As well as two hybrid working days per week, Vicky also offers flexible hours for people who live over 40 minutes away.

“Usually what I do when I have a new team member is I ask them to be in the office as much as possible in the first month,” she added.

“I just see how they are and how self-sufficient they are; then we start thinking about the arrangement that would work best for them.

“If they’re not local – it might work to change their schedule a bit, like letting them work from 10am to 4pm in the office and an extra two hours from home.

“As long as people can be in meetings on Monday and Friday and can respect that there are limits to hybrid work, I think it’s fine.”

Even as the founder of the company, Vicky says some of her best work is done from her laptop in bed.

While it’s not “all the time” – she says it’s important to rest her body and fuel herself for days at the office.

She said: “I think when older people think of working from home, they think of us taking Zoom calls in our pajama bottoms.

“They think we shouldn’t change, shower or even wash our hair.

“But even when I work from home, sometimes I literally stay in bed on my laptop.

“My body gets so tired from work that sometimes it’s good to rest.”

Vicky’s advice for older CEOs:

1. Don’t assume that social media can’t be used effectively for work.
2. Just because your employee wants to work from home twice a week doesn’t make them lazy.
3. Check the well-being of your employees – and offer them days to work from home if necessary.
4. Offer flexible hours for employees with longer commutes – like six hours home, two hours away.
5. Ask the hybrid workers to write a memo of the work they completed at home.