Remote working trends – is working from home the future of business?

Remote working became a requirement for many companies overnight in 2020, with businesses suddenly pivoting from office to remote working due to the coronavirus pandemic. Let’s take a look at current trends, the future possibilities for remote working and its effect on global business and recruitment.

Firstly, let’s take a quick look at some statistics to demonstrate how the remote working landscape has changed as a result of the pandemic. Findings from a study conducted by employment agency Reed* show that:

In 2021, five percent of job vacancies advertised remote working roles
This was a four percent increase from pre-pandemic numbers
In January 2021 hybrid / dynamic job advertisements peaked at over nine percent
These figures dropped to five percent in summer 2021
Job applications for remote or hybrid work have grossly outnumbered the number of roles

The number of remote and hybrid roles advertised may have peaked, but the demand for these roles remains high. Companies can, and should, capitalise on this trend by creating more remote and hybrid roles in their organisation; this will ensure they attract and retain high quality talent rather than the potential of roles being otherwise passed over for other opportunities.

Staff engagement

Looking at the data, we can create a picture of how remote working has affected office culture and employee satisfaction. There are multiple survey sources (Gallup, Quantum Workplace** etc.) indicating that remote working during the pandemic increased employee engagement to levels not seen since records began at the turn of the century.

How businesses can maximise employee engagement

With the pandemic having such a significant impact on businesses, their employees and the way staff work, it’s well worth organisations looking at how they can take these lessons and use them to increase engagement.
Here are some ideas you may want to explore:

Hire an occupational psychologist to assess and optimise your business practices
Continue to provide remote and hybrid roles with high levels of support
Update and improve office working practices to encourage staff productivity

Employee wellbeing and then benefits of flexiblity

Statistics show a distinctive change in remote working trends from the perspective of the employee, with the average staff member wanting to work from home for up to fifty percent of their working week (Barrero, Bloom and Davis**). Results from a survey carried out by well-known tech giant HUAWEI*** shows many employees’ mental health improved when given a choice over where they work, with many now opting to take what is being coined a ‘work staycation’ – taking a break away from home where they can work remotely.

Shifting your working practices to accommodate for your employees’ needs can promote their wellbeing in many ways, here are just a few:

Allows them to meet both caring and work responsibilities consecutively
Employees can take staycations without having to request holiday time
By exercising more trust and effective communication through meeting their flexible and remote working requirements, the overall employee/employer relationship improves and flourishes
Employees can opt-out of commuting, providing an increase in leisure time and a reduction in overheads

Technology for remote working

Through their research, Bloom, Davis and Zhestkova** also identified a significant surge in applications for patents on work-from-home technologies since the advent of the pandemic, showing us that more organisations are now focused on facilitating for the remote working trends we’re seeing emerge.

There are several types of technologies that business may want to consider investing in, in order to future-proof themselves remote working inevitably takes a greater hold on general working practices, such as:

Cyber-security
Video conferencing
Storage – server and cloud-based
Project management applications
Productivity tracking

The pandemic has transformed global businesses in a way we’ve never really seen before. Smarter companies will stay ahead of the curve and take advantage of these new and emerging remote working trends, which in turn will incentivise applications from top talent, increase staff retention and boost profit margins.

If you’re interested in seeing how remote working can help improve your next recruitment drive, or to access bespoke advice in regards to your recruitment needs, please contact us for an informal chat.

Sources:
* https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-58160245
** https://www.economist.com/special-report/2021/04/08/the-rise-of-working-from-home
*** https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/how-the-pandemic-gave-rise-to-the-work-staycation_uk_5f3aa872c5b6e054c3fd060e