Remote working, whether it is working fully at a remote location, telecommuting, or working from home... no matter what you call this trend or new way of working... it is here to stay and is something that we all need to adapt to and learn to work with at some point.
This trend is here to grow with the advancement of technology and the way our current and future workforce wants to work and engage. We are living in a world without geographical boundaries. In this new world, getting an education while sitting in any part of the world is possible. In this world, staying connected to your family from a million miles away is possible, and in this world, working from anywhere is possible, at least for the majority of functions.
Latest statistics on the trends of the work-at-home population in the U.S. (Based on analysis of 2005-2018 data - report released in 2019)
The regular work-at-home workforce population has grown by 173% since 2005.
4.7 million employees (3.4% of the workforce) now work from home at least half the time.
Forty percent more U.S. employers offer flexible workplace options than they did five years ago.
50% of the U.S. workforce holds a job that is compatible with at least partial telework, and approximately 40% of the workforce works remotely at some frequency.
80% to 90% of the U.S. workforce says they would like to telework at least part-time. Two to three days a week seems to be the sweet spot that allows for a balance of concentrative work (at home) and collaborative work (at the office).
Fortune 1000 companies around the globe are entirely revamping their space around the fact that employees are already mobile. Studies repeatedly show desks are vacant 50-60% of the time.
Source:GlobalWorkplaceAnalytics.com
A few important things to keep in mind while implementing a remote work arrangement are to provide employees with clear expectations on what to do, properly train them on various aspects of their work, and set expectations on the deliverables and results. Make sure they know how to connect with other team members. Allow them and trust them to be self-supporting and effective, no matter where they are. As long as they have an effective technology platform/tools and expectations are clear, your employees will be able to contribute in many valuable ways. Lastly, train your managers to measure the team's success by results.
This new way of working (Remote Work and/or WFH) can offer lots of benefits not only to the employees and employers but to our economy, and even our environment... still skeptical about it?
Here is some data from the Global Workplace Analytics report on the potential bottom-line impact or ROI:
If those with compatible jobs and a desire to work from home did so just half the time (roughly the national average for those who do so regularly), the national savings would total over $700 billion a year, including:
Businesses would save an average of $11,000 per half-time telecommuter per year.
The telecommuters would save between $2,000 and $7,000 a year.
The greenhouse gas reduction would be the equivalent of taking the entire New York State workforce permanently off the road.
The Congressional Budget Office’s estimate of the entire five-year cost of implementing telework throughout government ($30 million) is less than a third of the cost of lost productivity from a single day shutdown of federal offices in Washington D.C. due to snow ($100 million).
Based on this data and the trends we are seeing, I think we can all agree that we will need to adapt to this new way of working at some point or at a certain level in our companies. Remote work is not for all companies and/or for all roles, but still, the majority of roles can deliver results from anywhere in the world. It is part of the company culture & values, and it depends on how much we trust our employee base. The usual concerns about this trend from employers are:
Engagement & Results:
How can we still keep our remote workforce engaged and deliver results?
How do we make sure that our remote employees do not feel disconnected, isolated, or misaligned with the business?
Company Culture:
How can we keep our company culture & values intact with our distributed workforce?
How do we make sure that we are not losing the sense of "One Team" as we grow our teams in different parts of the world?
As an employer, these concerns are valid, and it can be challenging if we don't put some thought into how we are going to implement or formalize this in the company environment. Fostering trust, setting clear expectations, creating an open line of communication, and being accessible can help create an engaged remote workforce. Setting clear expectations on how the employees' performance will be measured and creating an environment of accountability and ownership will help drive results.
Engagement & Results
Let's take a deep dive into how we can create an engaged workforce (remote or not) and get the desired results. The first basic foundation of a successful employee relationship (or any relationship) is TRUST! Trusting that your employee has the intention to perform at their highest potential and trusting that they are there to be successful in their roles. Trusting that even if they make some mistakes, their intentions are not to mess it up, and as a manager, as a company, you create a culture where mistakes are okay to make as long as we learn and grow from them. No one wakes up in the morning and goes to work to mess up their day, their career, or your company. Mistakes do happen; to err is human!
Most importantly, an environment that doesn't allow mistakes is just closing its doors to any new inventions or creativity. It's through trial and error that you learn, improve, and create something magical. Make sure to create a space where employees feel safe about sharing their thoughts, ideas, and even mistakes. After all, the light bulb that lights millions of houses was not invented entirely on day one. There were tons of failures and mistakes before it.
You can promote trust & increase engagement by investing time to get to know your employees and letting them know you a little bit on a professional and personal basis. When connecting with employees for your 1:1s, don't just jump straight to business. Spend a few minutes to connect with your employees genuinely. When you spend time learning about your employees, really listening to what they are working on, what their needs are, where they are struggling or doing great, and appreciating their efforts - that's where you reap significant results. Make sure not to lose out on small little moments to recognize your employees when they do well, and give words of encouragement & guidance when they struggle. People do notice these small things, and small things can be very impactful and can bring you BIG results.
Setting aside time to have an in-depth discussion about goals and expected timelines will ensure that expectations are crystal clear. You'll both know what you're hoping to achieve by the end of the month, the end of the quarter, and the end of the year. With this outcome in mind, your remote team can feel confident knowing they're working on projects that will help them be successful. Additionally, you can feel comfortable knowing that they're making progress toward goals that will have a meaningful impact on the company. The key to success in this is to carve out time for check-ins, follow-ups, and provide timely feedback and guidance. When setting expectations, it is not only about the expected results and timelines, but also having clarity on the way of communication from both sides.
Company Culture
Identify & communicate your company's core values and make sure they are the true guideposts for you and your team. Talk often about company values & culture to instill them in the company's DNA. Create opportunities to reflect and give shoutouts to team members who exemplify company core values. Use hashtags with company values in your communication & Slack channels. Use technology to talk & reflect on culture, making it a living & breathing piece in your company. Create a Slack channel for employees & teams to give shoutouts to anyone who showcased the company values in their project or interactions with the team. It all comes down to creating the vibe by reminding and educating your teams on the company values and practicing them throughout company processes and sprinkling them all over your company policies. Building a great company culture is hard, and it's always a work in progress. With a lot of intention and a lot of hard work, a company with a remote workforce can build a strong, positive culture that fosters teamwork, productivity, and innovation.
It's easy for remote workers to feel isolated or lost if there is a communication barrier. Focusing on communication is the key to connecting employees and bringing results. If your team doesn't get to see you regularly, then build a strong virtual presence. Use all the digital tools available at your disposal to stay connected. Make sure to do your 1:1s using video with your remote employees; remember, they do not get to talk to you face-to-face that much and miss out on those hallway conversations, which are useful for quick feedback, guidance, or providing updates. Set clear expectations on methods of communication, and as a manager, make sure you are accessible and carve out time for your 1:1s. These can be very precious & valuable, especially for your remote employees. If you have to cancel your 1:1 with your remote employee, then make sure to connect with them as soon as possible, even if it's only for a few minutes.
Fostering strong workplace relationships through community is the key to building a unified team in the age of the anywhere workforce. You can build a strong virtual community using technology. Be creative and see what you can do to help teams come together. It can be work-related huddles or brainstorming activities online, your weekly team meeting, a shoutout for your employee going above and beyond, or it can be a meet and greet for new hires. There are endless possibilities of what you can do with the use of technology no matter where your employee sits. Whenever possible, leverage video meeting tools to connect with your remote employees or teams. This will help you get that face time. Technology can't replace the importance of in-person meetings or relationships. To strengthen the relationship with your remote teams, consider creating an opportunity for everyone to be together once or twice a year.
Remote work may or may not be an option for all positions and types of businesses, but if it is something that your company can leverage, it can be very useful and beneficial. It can not only help with hiring highly talented people around the world but also help with retention. Numerous reports show data on the increase in productivity for employers that offered some sort of flexibility in their work.
You can still achieve results with the distributed global workforce, with a little bit of planning, implementing proper tools, and fostering the right culture around it. Work without geographical boundaries exists today, and it will only expand in the future. The question is, are you ready for it?
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