Ever since the pandemic hit us, companies all over the world have been working remotely. Many organizations have accepted that remote working is likely the future. So how are these companies planning on going fully remote? Are there any benefits to it? Are there any drawbacks?
In this article, we will go through each of these queries. In addition, we’ll also see some of the major companies going remote. Let’s begin by defining what a fully remote company is:
What is Fully Remote Work?
So what is a remote job? A remote job is a role that an employee can complete outside of the typical office environment using just a computer and a strong wifi connection. It could be from anywhere since it allows you the flexibility of traveling everywhere. If your office for instance is located in New York, working from California means you’re working remotely.
Fully remote work means you don’t work from the office physically, instead you work from anywhere without any travel restrictions. After the pandemic, many companies have gone fully or partially remote. During these times, working from the comfort of your lounge, too, is working remotely.
Is Your Company Fully Remote?
That depends. If all of your employees do all of their work remotely, yours is a fully remote company. However, your company can be partially remote depending on how many employees work remotely and how many work onsite.
How do People Work Remotely?
The beauty of remote work is at people can work from anywhere. Some people, for instance, have a major portion of their week dedicated to remote work. They may typically work from their home, a nearby cafe, or even while traveling. When necessary, they can work from their office.
Others may head to coworking spaces which are a hub of connectivity, communication, and networking. These spaces are designed to give you many opportunities to meet people from various industries. People who are using these coworking spaces come from all types of jobs. They can be freelancers and even entrepreneurs who want to rent out workspace for themselves or their team.
In a nutshell, coworking spaces give you the freedom of working remotely/from home with all the professional amenities and networking opportunities that you’d find in a normal onsite office.
What are the Benefits of a Fully Remote Job?
In a fully remote job, employees and employers both find many benefits. Some people prefer working remotely because of the liberty of working whenever they feel the most productive it comes with. Some people also find the most productive and creative when they’re traveling. Remote work allows them to do that and that helps them work with a fresh mind and perspective.
Let’s dig deeper into the benefits of working remotely for both employees and employers:
Flexibility
Perhaps the biggest upside of working remotely is the flexibility it offers. This allows employees to maintain their lives outside of work as well. For instance, parents can take care of their children while working at the same time. If someone wants to pursue their education, with remote work that is possible, too.
Greater Pool of Potential Talent
One big advantage of remote work for employers is that it allows for a greater pool of potential talent with almost no geographical restrictions. Employers can hire talented employees from all over the world resulting in a diverse workforce.
Less Commute Stress
Statistics tell us that the average commuting time for a person in New York is 35.9 minutes. When the work is fully remote, it saves you the stress of commuting and saves time.
Saves Money
One benefit to working remotely is that it saves money. According to FlexJobs, the average person can save about $4,000 per year by working remotely. As for the employers, a typical company can save around $11,000 per year for every employee who works from home at least some of the time according to Global Workspace Analytics.
Fewer Sick Leaves
When employees work from home they aren’t exposed to as many germs. This leads to fewer sick days and hence fewer leaves from work. This is especially a great way to combat contact of Covid-19.
Remote Work is Good For the Environment
It is clear that working from home, using fewer resources, fewer cars on the road will have some impact on the environment. Transportation which includes vehicles and other modes of commuting is the largest source of greenhouse emissions in the US. When most of the people will be working from home or remotely, it will lead to less traffic congestion and hence reduced carbon emission.
Work-Life Balance
Numerous studies tell us how job stress can be chronic for human health. Working remotely helps maintain a heath work-life balance because it allows workers flexibility. Remote workers also tend to be happier and more stress-free as compared to those that aren’t. One reason for this is that it provides more time to engage in hobbies and improve personal relationships.
In addition, remote work also provides workers more time for exercise, the ability to eat nutritious foods, recover from illness if there are any, and creates a comfortable work environment.
Higher Retention and Lower Turnover Rates
When offering fully remote work, employers may experience fewer turnover rates because of the benefits it comes with it. Another reason for this is that employees have fewer reasons to look for a new role. For instance, an employee looking for a new job because of relocation may not have to do that while working remotely.
Saves Time
Time is a valuable asset. Both employers and their employees can save quite a bit of time working from home. Getting ready each day and then traveling consumes a lot of time every day which can be used productivity otherwise. However, with remote work, workers save a lot of time ultimately increasing productivity.
Increased Job Satisfaction
Remote work comes with freedom and flexibility that in turn increases job satisfaction. Employees who can adjust to their roles like this tend to be happier leading to many benefits fr employers such as loyalty, more productivity, a better reputation of the company, and satisfied employees.
What are the Disadvantages of a Fully Remote Job?
Difficulty with Communication
Remote work calls for ways to communicate using online tools, strong internet connections, and being vigilant at dealing with various time zones. Amidst all of that, some difficulty with communication, loss of facial expressions, and inability to interpret body language are inevitable.
Distractions
When you’re working away from the office, distractions in the environment are likely to follow. Whether it’s a crying baby, someone at the door, or a neighbor, distractions can help slow down work and waste time.
Isolation
For workers who are habitual of working in an environment full of people may find it hard to work in isolation.
Hard to Build Team Spirit
When working on-site, it is easy to raise team spirit through motivator and arousing interest. With remote work, doing this may be hard and not as effective. Similarly, it is hard for employers to look after each and every employee in a remote environment. This leads to employees feeling isolated and overlooked.
10 Hybrid/Fully Remote Companies
If there’s one thing the pandemic has proved is that workers can be productive no matter where they work from. Considering this, many big companies today are going either fully remote or hybrid. Below are examples of some such companies that have embraced the new change:
Apple
Apple is a multinational technology company located in California, USA. The tech giant specializes in consumer electronics, online services, and computer software. In June 2021, Apple announces its workers will work three times a week with the option to work from home twice a week. Apple also offers the option to go fully remote to its employees for some roles.
Facebook, the largest social media network announced in June 2021 that its employees can permanently work remotely.
Microsoft
Microsoft announced that its employees can work from anywhere for half of their workweek with the option to go fully remote as they see fit after the approval from management.
Spotify
Spotify is one of the largest online music streaming services that allows its users to search, listen to and download as many songs as they want. Spotify too announced a hybrid work approach for its employees where employees can work from anywhere across the globe. For employees that choose to work in an office environment, Spotify also offers a coworking space.
HubSpot
Launched in 2006, Hubspot has risen to become the leading inbound marketing and sales platform in the world. Hubspot offers its employees three modes of remote work. First, they can work from home with an approved setup at home. Second, they can work from the office for two or fewer days every week, and lastly, they can work from the office for three or more days every week.
Twitter was one of the first companies to announce that its employees can permanently go remote depending on their roles. In addition, they also offer a hybrid work option for those employees who choose to work on-site.
Upwork
One of the biggest freelancing platforms, Upwork announced in May 2020 that its employees can now choose to work from home permanently or they can adapt to a hybrid work approach as per their roles. For employees who wish to work, on-site can do so in their offices located in Chicago and San Francisco.
Pinterest is known for its pinboard-style social networking site where users can pin, manage, or create images based on events, hobbies, or interests. After the pandemic struck, Pinterest made it clear that it’s not expecting their employees to work on-site and therefore they announced a remote-first hybrid work approach. In addition, they also opened their doors to hiring employees from all over the globe with no geographical restrictions.
Slack
Slack is a channel-based messaging platform. Slack offers its users messaging, searching, and communicating with the team efficiently. Most of the employees at Slack permanently work from home and it’s also looking to hire more remote employees.
LinkedIn is a professional networking site that allows millions of users to search job posts and create their professional identities to grow their professional careers. In July 2021, LinkedIn announced that its employees will work in a hybrid work environment with the option of going fully remote.
How to do Remote Work the Right Way
Remote work requires some practices that make sure you do it the right way. Let’s see some of these:
Hone Your Skills
In order to do remote work successfully, you need to add more to your skills. You can also learn skills from scratch or hone your existing skills. For example, you may be a great writer but to do professional writing you may need to familiarize yourself with tools such as WordPress or GoogleDocs, etc.
Use Productivity Tools
To make the most of your remote work, you can use productivity tools to be more time-efficient. For instance, you can use a time tracking app like AttendanceBot, to help you track the time you spend on each task. You can also use tools that help you reduce distractions during work.
All Set to Ace Your Remote Work?
Going fully remote is quickly becoming a favorable work setup. Many companies are therefore going either fully remote or hybrid. With the right tips, skills, and practices you can do your remote work successfully.