The Future of Remote Work: How Businesses are Adapting

Introduction:

According to a recent survey, 86% of workers believe that remote work is the future of work.

Research by Enterprise Technology Research confirms this assertion: the percentage of employees permanently working from home will double by the end of 2021.

In this article, we will discuss what the future of remote work might look like, and define the steps you need to take to prepare your business for this major change in work organization.

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Table of Contents

1. What Will The Future Of Remote Work Look Like?
2. Remote Work Best Practices For Your Employees
3. Everything You Need To Know About A Hybrid Working Environment
4. The Future Of Remote Work: Key Takeaways

What Will The Future Of Remote Work Look Like?

After the pandemic, people are happier to work from home, 84% of employees said that their leadership knows how to operate their team and that they are able to accomplish all of their tasks when working from home.

In fact, according to a recent survey, over 50% of employees say they would like to work from home at least three days a week, and 30% would look for another job if they had to return to full-time office work.

Let’s look at a few more significant numbers that hint at the future of remote work:

• Telecommuting has grown almost 400% in the past decade.
• By 2028, 73% of the companies in the US will have remote workers as well as office-based ones.
• 84% of remote workers prefer working from home over going to the office.
• 86% of workers prefer to work alone in order to achieve maximum productivity. Likewise, 75% of people who work remotely choose to do so because there are fewer distractions.
• Another 86% of workers say that remote work reduces stress.
• 69% of millennials, who are becoming the dominant workforce in terms of numbers, say they would give up other work benefits for a more flexible working environment.

Employees aren’t the only party benefiting from remote work. In 2015, telecommuting saved employers $44 billion in office usage and space rental costs.

Telecommuting also benefits the environment and is the road to a greener future: working from home reduces greenhouse gas emissions by an equivalent of 600,000 cars per year.

Remote Work Best Practices For Your Employees

The future of remote work requires well-defined guidelines for daily operations that you and your employees should follow to a T.

In addition to the company guidelines we talked about above, your employees should also figure out ways to keep themselves on track with their work and maintain productivity.

When transitioning your company to a remote working environment, here are seven pieces of advice to share with your employees that can help:

1. Figure out what makes you most productive: Different things work best for different people. Let your employees know that they should experiment to find their own rhythm that keeps them the most productive. For example, give them permission to start their day at different times (if possible) and work from different places.
2. Keep good meeting etiquette: Setting a ‘cameras on’ rule during meetings can help make sure your employees are alert and engaged. Other teleworking best practices for meetings include requesting the meeting agenda ahead of time, taking notes and following up with the team when needed.
3. Communicate clearly: The communication dynamics between remote workers are different from office workers. You are restricted to chat apps and you may even need to talk to people in different time zones. Make sure your team communicates everything of note promptly and clearly, and they remain available when they’re expected to.
4. Set clear boundaries between work and your private life: Work hours and private life often merge into one entity for remote workers. In fact, the biggest problem for 22% of remote workers is unplugging after work. This can lead to burnout and social isolation of your employees. Help them separate work from their personal life by insisting that they should stop working once their workday is done. Also, suggest a special workplace in their homes that they can physically walk out of and switch to their personal life when the workday is over.
5. Be visible and proactive during work: Instead of micromanaging, ask your employees to check in with you to provide status updates about their tasks and projects.
6. Be accountable: Distractions can hinder productivity. Consider asking your team to time and log their activities to help them stay on track, and/or to block off time on their calendar each day for time-sensitive tasks to ensure deadlines are met.
7. Know your responsibilities: To avoid duplicate work and wasted time ensure your employees clearly understand their responsibilities and tasks. Define responsibilities on each project, note who is responsible for what and share this with the entire team. Finally, confirm assignments with your employees.

Everything You Need To Know About A Hybrid Working Environment

If you or your employees are not quite open to either working from the office or working from home full time, there is a third option — a hybrid working environment — that is a compromise between these two.

A hybrid workplace will be one of the viable options for the future of remote work, so let’s dig into the specifics.

What Is A Hybrid Working Environment?

A hybrid working environment combines office work with remote work. Its goal is to provide an optimal balance of productive work, less commuting and reduced stress.

This working model offers employees autonomy and freedom around where they choose to work from. It provides an opportunity for employees to adjust their work around their private lives, rather than the other way around.

A hybrid workplace looks different from company to company. Some organizations require different people on the premises on different days. Others may request in-person presence only when there are meetings to attend.

This is an ideal working scenario for many companies because it blends work structure and sociability with employee autonomy.

Pros And Cons Of A Hybrid Work Environment

A hybrid work environment comes with certain benefits over fully remote work and office work.

The most notable advantages of this arrangement are:

• Better work-life balance: A hybrid workspace prioritizes the employee. It reduces the stress and anxiety an employee may have about returning to a public workspace and commuting every day.
• Cost reduction: With less need for larger offices, businesses can save money in office maintenance costs and real estate rent. Also, employees save money they would spend on public transportation or gas.
• Crisis-resilient culture: Hybrid working environments can quickly and easily switch to a fully remote environment in case of a potential future lockdown.
• Reduced spread of contagions: If employees don’t feel well, they can choose to work from home and contribute to the safety of others.
• Larger talent pool: A business that combines office and teleworking is not limited to hiring employees in specific regions and can employ the best talent from remote places.

There are also downsides to the combined working environments. If you don’t properly execute a hybrid workspace plan, you risk creating a divide between workers who stay in the office and those who work from home.

The following disadvantages highlight the importance of a sturdy hybrid environment plan:

• Not everyone has a home environment fit for work: Designated home workspaces, distraction-free environments and quality internet access may not be available to all the employees within an organization.
• Important info may be missed during meetings: When employees are unable to attend a meeting in-person but, rather, via video conference calls, it’s easy to miss out on important pieces of information if they’re distracted or zoned out.
• There may be a perceived imbalance in worker output: Employees that work from home are less visible than those who work from the office. It is quite common for decision-makers and managers to see employees in the office as those providing greater work output. This may result in remote employees being passed up for opportunities and awards.
• Challenges in communication and collaboration may arise: Employees working remotely and those working from the office have different experiences during their daily work routine, which may cause issues in collaboration and communication.

How To Implement A Hybrid Work Environment In Your Company

Before switching to a hybrid workplace, it is important to carefully implement your strategy and best practices for a painless transition.

Here are the most important steps to follow when implementing a hybrid work culture.

1. Rely Heavily On Your Intranet

As we discussed in the “6 Steps For A Seamless Transition To Remote Work” section, storing all of your internal processes in one place, like your Intranet, can help ensure all of your employees are on the same page regardless of where they work from.

These documented internal processes play a vital role in providing a centralized source of knowledge employees can turn to at any time when they need guidance and assistance to tackle the task at hand.

2. Communicate Your Plan & Make Your Employees Part Of The Process

Keep lines of communication open throughout your company. All employees, whether remote, hybrid or in the office, should understand what you expect from them and what they can expect from your company’s leadership.

Including our employees in the discussion related to a hybrid workspace environment – for example, questions on work organization and ideas on how to maintain productivity – your hybrid workspace initiative may end up being more successful. Your employees will feel more included and, therefore, more satisfied with the process.

3. Prioritize Safety In Your Physical Workplace

Keep in mind that your employees will be coming to your offices periodically; therefore, it is vital to adhere to all physical workplace health and safety requirements.

Follow your local authorities’ health and work safety guidelines on the maximum number of employees allowed in a workplace, hygiene and cleaning practices, risk assessment and other relevant aspects of work safety, depending on your industry.

4. Establish Equity

One of the potential roadblocks for a hybrid work environment is that not every employee may be able to return to the office. For example, those living with young children or elderly parents.

Whether your employees continue to work remotely or switch to full-time teleworking, ensure they have the same opportunities for job success as those who come to the office.

5. Tap Into Your Company Culture To Balance Out Two Distinct Work Experiences

Keeping a unified workplace culture may prove to be a challenge when managing two different work experiences – that of working from home and working from the office.

Invest an equal amount of effort into your at-home employees and in-office employees. To keep both groups of employees connected to your business goals and values, use online collaboration tools and platforms and organize video conference meetings to keep everyone on the same page.

Conclusion: Key Takeaways

The future of remote work is bright: following the global pandemic lockdown during which companies switched to teleworking, more and more businesses plan to make this work organization permanent.

To successfully adapt to remote work:

• Define specific remote work processes
• Adopt helpful tools and platforms
• Establish communication channels
• Set daily goals for all employees
• Allow your employees time to settle in
• Trust your team

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From VoIP phone services to secure networks no matter where your employees work, we can help you create a reliable remote work infrastructure that ensures your team’s maximum productivity at all times.

FAQs:

Q1. What Are The Advantages of Working from home?

Work from home offers various benefits for both employees and employers. Some of them are:

• It Improves the work-life balance
• Provide savings for both businesses and employees
• Helps to stay mentally fit by Reducing stress and commuting time
• It keep our environment clean by reduced carbon emissions
• Provide opportunity to larger talent pool for employers

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