The rise of remote working is still early.
More business owners are swapping rigid 9to5 schedules in favor of flexible space and remote working as an option for retaining employees and encouraging a healthy work-life balance.
Remote working will continue to explode as more people want to operate remotely and more jobs are able to be done that way.
Tools that enable this will accelerate this transition and within a few years, the majority of people will be remote workers.
The results?
- Productivity will increase
- The level of happiness will increase
More than that… Workers will find more purpose and meaning in their lives as they are freed from the constraints that office work puts on their lives.
The future is already here!
Some impressive statistics
In a survey undertaken at the Global Leadership Summit in London, 34% of business leaders said that more than 50% of their company’s full-time workforce would be working remotely by 2020. An entire 25% said more than three-quarters would not work in a traditional office by 2020.
It is clear that remote work has become a global phenomenon. Yet in a majority of companies, flexible work options, including telecommuting, are still considered a perk rather than standard operating procedure.
Nevertheless, more innovative companies understand that trends are clearly moving towards more flexible work as a way of doing business. And that this can offer many benefits to employers and workers alike.
So what is causing the shift towards working remotely, what are the exact benefits, and last but not least — how to make it work?
The reasons
1. Attract to top talent
Remote work can help you appeal to top talent that may just be at a geographical remove from you, or are seeking a change in their working habits.
2. Enjoy higher employee retention
Businesses have reported a 10 percent rise in retention when they started offering the option of working from home. In addition, many people surveyed have said that they might be tempted to leave their current position if they were offered a remote position at another company.
3. Improve productivity
Metrics say that, not only will remote workers remain productive, but they work even more efficiently than they did previously. Office culture can create a number of distractions; these are alleviated with remote work.
The benefits
We asked the community, here are the answers:
- “Definitely the flexibility”
- “I find freedom to be the biggest benefit.”
- “From a work perspective, my productivity is GREATLY improved as a remote worker.”
- “I don’t have to commute and I can dress how I like.”
- “We’re much less distracted during the day.”
- “I get more done and have less distractions.”
As many community members, so many benefits — and we must admit that the Upstack community is not small at all and it’s great to find out from everyone what the benefits are for them. In this way, we manage to build a strong company culture!
As for companies, consider these top four benefits why many companies continue to go remote:
- Recruit and retain top talent
- Happier and more productive employees
- Promote healthier workers and bottom-line.
- Create superior long-term business performance.
How can you benefit from it?
Many organizations are afraid of the departure from traditional practices to remote working — partly because they are unsure how to manage it effectively. For the vast majority of such employers, remote work should be seen as a win-win situation, because the employee can move to a location of choice and save money in the cost of living, and the employer will see higher productivity and lower attrition, and save on real estate costs.
To conclude
Remote work is not and will not be for everyone, and not for 100% of industries. But in the growing number of industries that remote work is a viable way of doing business, there are some significant benefits for both employees and employers. It is up to you to take advantage of these benefits.
Discover NOW the professional adventure of embracing remote working through Upstack!
