Working From Home
Helping Single Workers Deal With Isolation Is Good for Everyone
German software maker SAP has hosted virtual wine tastings and BBQs—and even designed a Tinder-like app for lunch dates.
Illustration: Oscar Bolton Green for Bloomberg Businessweek
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Companies typically regard singles as lower-maintenance employees—steady, flexible, and predictable. There are no sick children to upset their routines, no spouse calling for a timely return home. It’s wake, work, repeat.
But when the lockdown shuttered offices, many singles started missing the social interactions built around the workplace—the water cooler banter, coffee breaks, or after-hours drinks with colleagues. Life became a lot of endless days of lonely toil.