Remote Working is a work style that allows people to work away from office. It actually certifies that work does not need to be performed in a specific work place or location in order to be effective.

In the last two years, remote working has been a habit that entered our lives significantly. It was able to break into all industries that had the ability to work via a computer or even a phone. In other words, it was mainly followed in commerce and service industry.

It is still widely used in large companies occupying a large number of employees. Of course, there was a belief that it is not easy to be productive while working from home, at least in Greece. However, abroad, it is widely known especially to people named as digital nomads.

Certainly this type of work has both pros and cons.

Disadvantages

Connectivity

One of the disadvantages is the connectivity, or in other words connecting to the internet. Until recently, internet speeds, especially in Greece, were not particularly high. In this way, there was difficulty both in connecting to platforms where employees work and in communicating and participating in video meetings. However, lately there has been a spectacular increase in the Wi-Fi network both in fast internet speeds and in geographical range throughout the country.

Remote work environment

A second disadvantage under consideration is a person’s home environment where they have to work when working from home. That holds true when his family also works at thw same place, as it happened during the pandemic. Another case scenario is when their children attend school from home, which makes the situation hard to handle. A calm andquiet space needs to be ensured for someone to be effective at work. But there are some solutions, such as scheduling or defining a specific “work space” within their house for each person.

Control

A third disadvantage, but not so important, is how a manager can control a business and its employees effectively while having adopted remote working. Theoretically, when someone is not physically present at the office, it was very difficult to check whether they do work and how efficiently they do it. This is obviously not accurate enough, as the quality of the work they produce is more than obvious. In other words, an experienced manager is able to know the workload that an employee produced. Of course, a worker who produces less work at the same time frame, may have invested in the quality of the content. All in all, when communication with the employee is continuous, then the desired result can be achieved. After all, the purpose of control must be merely to deliver results and improve employee productivity.

Advantages

The positive points seem to outweigh the negative ones, though.

Flexibility

Let’s start with the freedom the employee feels while working remotely, as, they do not need to live somewhere specifically, as long as they have a good internet connection. In other words, they can be anywhere and work at the same time. But even while working from home in the city where the company’s offices are located, they will not have to commute to work, which on average can be time consuming. Thus, employees feel more rested, which boosts their productivity.

Concentration & efficiency

The house or private space from which people can work may be a better working place compared to the office of the company they used to work for, especially if it is a company with a large number of employees. This happens because concentration and productivity increase dramatically, without losing touch and communication that can remain constantthrough chat apps, video conferencing applications and phone calls.

Company Costs

The company’s profit in costs, both operational and fixed, like rents, when they have remote employees is definitely something to consider and measure. On the other side, that is something that can be achieved only if the type of work or services they provide allows it.

Labor Market

Traditional managers, who still view remote working negatively. For them the biggest argument that can be given is competitiveness in the labor market. To explain it further, when an employee knows that they can find a remote workelsewhere for the same or better money, then they will definitely not opt for their company. So, in the long run they will not find efficient, dynamic and productive employees to fulfill their company’s needs. This means that they will have to adapt at some point and give in to this company policy, being more flexible. Otherwise, they will have to give in to the qualifications of the employees they hire and their experience level.

Sense of Responsibility

Last but not least is the sense of responsibility that the remote employee feels. Specifically, the latter feels more dynamic and responsible. This feeling can bring both a boost in their productivity and an increase in quality of work they provide. Moreover, a recent survey published by the Royal society for Public Health in the UK has shown that 55% of the participants feel more stressed about their commute to the office.

Conclusion

No matter what we think will happen towards the end of the pandemic, remote working will continue to be present in our lives. The number one reason for that is that it was widely used abroad and served multiple needs. Its forced implementation in Greece revealed the benefits that come with it and now seems to be our new work pattern for our postpandemic work life.

If you would like to learn more about remote working, book now a free consultation with us at https://meetings-eu1.hubspot.com/jennie or visit our website www.jenniekamaradou.com/en