Problem
For decades, leaders have talked about flexible working options, yet only few companies were consistently using these practices prior to the global health crisis of 2020. In March 2020, organizations were suddenly forced to implement remote and flexible working arrangements which oftentimes conflicted with the organization's history, values and their leaders' management style. As a result, organizations have encountered new questions and challenges, such as: How can we respect the privacy of employees, while maintaining order and cohesion? How do we align our strategy to the new (and externally demanded) working conditions? How can our vision and values adjust to the challenges that we are currently facing? Do we need to change our internal and/or external networks of relationships to adjust to our new environment? Is our organizational structure aligned with our current needs?
1) In an exploratory manner, reflect on the main challenges that Airbnb might be facing in terms of its strategic design, politics and culture.
2) Identify key practices and processes that could be implemented in Airbnb to address these challenges, based on your knowledge of the organization.
3) Explore the future impact that these practices might have for the organization. Would it be beneficial to Airbnb to maintain some of these practices once the crisis over? If so, which ones and why? Are there any potential obstacles for their long-term implementation?