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Reported by: Nurul Addina Azime  Last month, we asked whether we have been focusing too much on where people work.
As flexible work continues to be part of the workplace conversation in Malaysia, perhaps there is a more useful question to ask: Can work move clearly and fairly when people are working across different locations, teams and schedules? Because flexible work is not simply about allowing someone to work from home. It is about designing responsibilities, communication and workflows so that people can stay productive and connected — without needing to be online all the time. By: Vivien Chong  I used to think a good dashboard would solve many visibility problems.
If the work was tracked, surely people would update it. If the dashboard existed, surely meetings would become clearer. If the data was available, surely decisions would improve. But I learned, even in our own organisation, that this is not always true. At one point, I developed trackers and dashboards to improve visibility. On paper, they looked useful. But the team was not updating them consistently. Meetings were still getting longer. Important due dates were still being missed. Work was still getting stuck. By: Vivien Chong  Managers are often where organisational ambition meets daily reality.
In many organisations, managers are expected to lead change, drive adoption, improve performance, support wellbeing, and keep work moving. But many managers have never been properly taught how to structure work. Work From Home Is Back in the Conversation. But Maybe We've Been Asking the Wrong Question7/24/2026 Reported by: Nurul Addina Azime  We’ve all been here before, haven't we? The debate over where we work—home versus office—feels like a familiar script we’ve played out countless times. But as recent encouragement from the Malaysian government puts flexible work back in the spotlight, it’s worth asking ourselves: are we stuck debating the wrong question?
Following recent encouragement from Malaysia's Human Resources Ministry for employers to consider flexible work arrangements where operationally suitable, WFH has returned to the workplace conversation. Can teams stay productive? Will communication become more difficult? How do we ensure work keeps moving? These are valid questions. In fact, many of us asked the same ones a few years ago. Reported by: Nurul Addina Azime  Welcome back to my thoughts this month.
I came across something from the World Economic Forum recently that made me pause longer than usual. Not because it was talking about AI. But because it was really talking about people. And it led me to a simple question: Why do some organizations move forward confidently with AI, while others struggle — even when they have access to the same tools? The answer, I believe, is not technology. It’s readiness. Human readiness. By: Vivien Chong  Many organisations are investing in better tools, new systems, dashboards, and now AI.
But the work still feels fragmented.
This is something I see often in growing organisations, especially SMEs. The problem is usually not a lack of technology. It is a lack of operational clarity. By: Vivien Chong  Last month, we ran a Smartsheet Empowerment session with a simple goal:
Start with how work actually flows — then explore how Smartsheet can support it in a practical, meaningful way. Of course, like most good working sessions… it didn’t stay “simple” for very long. And honestly, that’s what made it valuable. Reported by: Nurul Addina Azime  Recently, Gallup released an interesting workplace study with a headline that instantly caught my attention: “Leaders Have Better Lives but Worse Days.At first glance, it sounds contradictory.
Based on my reading, I found it quite interesting because honestly… It feels very relatable to today’s working environment. Usually when we think about leaders or managers, we imagine they have everything under control. Better salary, more flexibility, more experience — basically a “better life.” And according to the article, that part is actually true. Leaders tend to feel more fulfilled and engaged in their work overall. Reported by: Vivien Chong
There’s a moment most leaders recognise, but rarely name.
The business is growing. Revenue is moving. The team is bigger than before. But running it feels… heavier. Decisions take longer. Conversations multiply. Things that used to be obvious now need alignment. And somehow, even with more people and more tools, clarity feels harder to come by. That was the tone in the room at our recent Scaling Without Chaos executive roundtable, hosted by 57Network and facilitated by Dr. Felicia Ang. We brought together a small group of founders, CEOs, and operational leaders — intentionally kept small so people could speak honestly. And they did. What stood out wasn’t how different their challenges were. It was how similar they were. Reported by: Maizatul Ilma  Internships are often seen as a period to gain experience by completing assigned tasks. However, my experience at 57Network was different. Instead of following a fixed role, I was given the opportunity to explore, ask questions, and learn through actual work situations. The focus was not just on what I was doing, but on how and why the work was done.
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