As a result of the COVID-19 spread, the world remarkably changed. Companies were forced to let the employees work remotely, and many businesses adopted into these circumstances. It might be a tough decision, yet companies keep allowing working remotely, even though the lockdown has ended. It is crucial to consider the consequences of this profound change in people’s lives. I analyzed the opinions of employees and executives to understand why more companies allow remote work.
Criteria
At the beginning of 2020, companies had to move to remote work, yet now they have a choice. The main criteria I used to analyze whether working from home is effective or not is the performance of companies that got back to the office environment, and which allowed employees to keep working remotely. Moreover, many points affected companies after the virus spread, yet the important one is how the employees feel about these changes.
Methodology
During my research, I found many companies that allowed remote work for most of their employees. Twitter can be a bright example as its CEO Jack Dorsey lets the staff work from home forever (Kelly, 2020, para. 5). However, many employees turned against the decision, the overall performance of Twitter lowered, and the network recently faced a massive hacker attack due to its vulnerability.
Recommendations
I recommend companies not allow their employees to work remotely. Although it saves the costs for office space, it harms the company’s performance in general. Employees’ productivity is lower at home, their life-work balance upsets, and the lack of corporate culture severely affects their motivation. The quarantine caused stress, and getting back to normal is a better solution than staying in offbeat life conditions.
Conclusion
By allowing employees to work remotely, executives choose a risky way of managing their businesses. The economic recession many countries discover nowadays should motivate them to work more and better. The remote-work environment will require time to get used to, and this time could be used for bringing the economy of a company back to its pre-quarantine ratings.
I believe that companies allow workers to stay remote because the technological conditions enable them to always be in touch, and using them is cheaper than renting an office. However, it is vital to take care of employees’ mental health and help them keep a work-life balance.
Remote work teams need to be motivated to stay on course regarding the organization’s objectives. McGregor and Doshi (2020) argue that proactively designing benefits for this group of workers, for example, technology perks, such as a laptop upgrade, motivates them. The second strategy is offering tangible and intangible rewards to boost their work morale (Dulebohn & Hoch, 2017). These two are some of the sure ways of motivating remote workers.
Moreover, remote working teams need to be recognized to feel that their efforts are being appreciated. One of the ways is sending a small stipend for home office use to enable them to upgrade their desks and furniture to ensure they are comfortably teleworking. Secondly, sending remote workers timely gifts for their birthdays and other special holidays helps recognize their effort (Maher & Bedawy, 2015). These strategies help recognize remote working teams to keep them glued to the mission of the organization.
Next, remote working teams need to be engaged to ensure they do not drift from organizational targets. One way that Larson et al. (2020) suggest is to host virtual meetings as a way of maintaining regular communication. The second way is to provide an environment allowing peer collaboration to ensure each remote worker takes part in specific tasks. These are effective strategies to ensure remote workers are well engaged.
Lastly, rewarding remote work teams is a crucial way of ensuring they are motivated to complete their tasks in time. One of the strategies to reward remote working employees is to give them a regular workspace allowance to make a comfortable home office once they achieve their targets. The second one is to give them time off, especially on Fridays, to break the monotony of sitting on their computers all week, especially when they get positive comments from clients (Liao, 2017). These strategies will help remote work teams maintain their focus towards achieving the organization’s vision and mission.
References
Dulebohn, J. H., & Hoch, J. E. (2017). Virtual teams in organizations. Human Resource Management Review, 27(4), 569-574.
Liao, C. (2017). Leadership in virtual teams: A multilevel perspective. Human Resource Management Review, 27(4), 648-659.
Maher, A., & Bedawy, R. E. (2015). Core practices for managing virtual employees in public organizations. Journal of Business and Economics, 6(1), 113-120.
Business processes are dynamic as they directly correlate with the current environment. Thus, as the environment changes and evolves, organizations adapt on multiple levels. Digitalization, globalization, social agendas, and cultural shifts all affect for businesses approach their operational strategies. Furthermore, certain events can accelerate the said alterations, such as the high digitalization during the COVID-19 pandemic. Multiple corporations and companies were forced to restructure their workforces. Hence, employees had to adopt a remote working schedule in a relatively short time span. The recent changes allow researchers to examine how remote work impacts businesses and conclude that all industries are moving in the direction of creating more opportunities for workers to operate remotely. This paper will examine the concept, benefits, and limitations of remote employment in correlation with future implications linked to workforce digitalization.
Annotated Bibliography
Al-Habaibeh, Amin, et al. “Challenges and Opportunities of Remotely Working from Home during Covid-19 Pandemic.” Global Transitions, vol. 3, 2021, pp. 99–108.
The research conducted by the authors linked to the Product Innovation Center, Nottingham University, has shared a survey to determine how individuals view remote working based on the COVID-19 limitations of operating in offices. Based on the responses of the 212 respondents, the scope of the study was fulfilled as the researchers highlighted most individuals as fully adapted to the new structure (Al-Habaibeh et al. 99). Moreover, the objective of determining whether remote work is perceived as beneficial was achieved, with most participants mentioning time and cost-effectiveness as benefits while addressing the lack of face-to-face discussions as adverse. The intended audience, namely, individuals looking into the possibilities of working remotely, can find the article informative. Moreover, the article relates to the findings highlighted in the studies that will be mentioned further and are linked to the current topic, as the research goal is to examine remote work as a new wave within the job market.
Beno, Michal. “Analysis of Three Potential Savings in E-Working Expenditure.” Frontiers in Sociology, vol. 6, 2021.
The researcher from the Institute of Technology and Business in Ceske Budejovice has conducted a literature review and content analysis to fulfill the objective of determining the savings opportunities correlating with E-working. It has been highlighted that employees working remotely can save costs on expensive rent and commuting by operating for a company that does not require its employees to be close to the office (Beno). The intended audience, which is remote employees, benefits from the overall scope of the study, namely, identifying cost-effective factors. Moreover, the findings correlate with the conclusions formulated by Al-Habaibeh et al. concerning the benefits of limiting transportation expenses (99). The reliability of the source also derives from the fact that the study was peer-reviewed and published in a reputable scientific journal.
Ingusci, Emanuela, et al. “Development and Validation of the Remote Working Benefits & Disadvantages Scale.” Quality & Quantity, 2022.
The researchers have focused on constructing a scale that measures the advantages and disadvantages correlating with remote working. Furthermore, after the scale was practically applied, the benefits of digitalization include sustainability, the minimization of business trips, cost-effectiveness in material and equipment purchases, and several other positive changes. The objective, which was constructive the scale, was achieved, and the findings correlate with those of Beno’s in relation to cost benefits (Ingusci et al.). The intended audience is the company human resource managers deciding whether a remote schedule benefits the companies they operate in. The authority of the author and the research itself is highlighted in the fact that the study is recent, published in a reputable journal, and reviewed by experts. Moreover, it correlates with the topic by identifying factors linked to remote working that suggest the measure to be more widely applied in the future due to the positive correlations.
Wang, Bin, et al. “Achieving Effective Remote Working during the COVID‐19 Pandemic: A Work Design Perspective.” Applied Psychology, vol. 70, no. 1, 2020, pp. 16–59.
The researchers affiliated with the Australian Research Council have studied the difficulties encountered during the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to work conditions as well as personal limitations. The scope was approached through the conduction of interviews that were later interpreted for the identification of patterns. The authors have fulfilled the objective and illustrated that social support, autonomy, and highly regulated workloads correlate with productivity. In contrast, an imbalanced work-life balance and lack of communication have contrasting results (Wang et al. 16). The findings correlate with those highlighted by Ingusci et al. as both articles highlight both adverse and supportive arguments for remote working. The intended audience, hence, company leaders willing to switch to a remote operational system, can consider the findings due to the study’s validity, peer-reviewed status, and evidence base.
Patanjali, Systla, and N. M. Bhatta. “Work from Home during the Pandemic: The Impact of Organizational Factors on the Productivity of Employees in the IT Industry.” Vision: The Journal of Business Perspective, 2022, p. 097226292210741.
Patanjali and Bhatta have conducted a study with the objective of determining the factors that facilitate productivity for employees working in IT remotely. The analysis of answers from more than 500 employees has helped researchers reach the scope and determine that the workers perceive remote working as more productive due to the lack of need for commuting and increased expectations (Patanjali and Bhatta). The study was published under the affiliation of the Xavier Institute of Management & Entrepreneurship and is reliable due to its theoretical framework, supportive arguments, and peer-reviewed status. Moreover, it can benefit the intended audience, namely, IT employees researching the job market. The article correlates with the aforementioned study conducted by Beno in relation to the argument that commuting hinders time and economic resources. Moreover, it relates to the current topic by highlighting factors linked to current digitalization trends.
Background
The digitalization of business started before the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, organizations were moving toward the direction of relying on remote workers. However, despite the best efforts, it is inevitable that the government restrictions imposed in most countries were a major catalyst for change (Al-Habaibeh et al.). The changes have been generated by the preventative measures installed that prevented individuals from sharing a common space, especially under circumstances where multiple people were involved. Hence, most businesses were forced to either temporarily close or change their strategies in team management. At the time, the only solution was to allow employees to work remotely. This was a sudden and relatively challenging shift due to the lack of adequate training, access to resources, and understanding of a company structure operating digitally. This, however, allowed researchers to examine the topic in-depth as there was never a similar precedent in which so many employees were able to work from home. As a result, multiple companies have the opportunity to assess the benefits of remote operation, which is why more and more businesses have positions that do not require an in-office schedule.
Framework
The shifts within the job market, while being influenced by multiple factors such as social, economic, political, and technological changes, also correlate with intrinsic human motivations. Hence, certain psychological aspects are to be considered as the basis for the current analysis. Moreover, a proposed framework is to fit the narrative of the relatively new conditions of remote employment, namely, psychological circumstances such as loneliness, lack of motivation, and stagnancy. As a result, the framework selected for the topic that will be discussed is the self-determination theory. The theory highlights that individuals seek the fulfillment of three needs: competence, social connections, and individuality (Al-Habaibeh et al. 99). In regards to work-from-home initiatives, companies are able to fulfill the aforementioned needs while progressing in digitalization, providing workers with flexibility, and creating more favorable conditions for themselves and the workforce.
Job Market Shift
As established prior, the shift toward a remote system was sudden and did not imply extensive training in most companies adapting the strategy. However, most jobs that were able to be transferred to a remote framework were directly or indirectly linked to technology in the first place. As a result, researchers determined that most employees were able to adapt easily without major limitations, and more firms have continued to adhere to the system despite the government restrictions being withdrawn (Gifford 105). There are several reasons why the job market has made such a major shift within a limited time. On the one hand, companies that embrace digitalization to the full extent are more likely to advance. On the other hand, such changes correlate with advantages in regard to low resource spending.
Minimizing Spendings
Job market shifts related to automatization are linked to improved production and a reduction in time and monetary resources. According to researchers, one of the largest cost-saving opportunities derived from a shift toward work-at-home strategies is the maintenance of premise expense, namely, the lack thereof (Licite-Kurbe and Leonovica). Organizations are not bound to a lease or rest contract, which, in case the company is a multinational corporation, involves multiple buildings or even infrastructures around said offices. This is a major expense that organizations face and that is not needed for positions that can be fulfilled outside an office environment. The same study mentions other potential savings, such as electrical and internet bills, equipment purchasing and maintenance, and other services or goods needed for in-office operation.
Productivity
The argument often applied to oppose the shift towards remote positions is often associated with the lack of productivity that is considered lower than for in-office employees. However, according to researchers, productivity does not suffer in case the necessary implementations are considered during task delegation and workload management. Namely, individuals working in IT highlight such a strategy to facilitate productivity (Patanjali and Bhatta). The circumstances reported by the participants of the research that generate higher productivity are the lack of need for commuting, which in turn becomes time employees can spend on projects. Moreover, it has been reported that increased expectations correlating with remote work facilitate motivation and effort allocation by the workforce. Thus, the company is able to operate more productively while allowing the employees to be flexible yet digitally monitored based on their performance. Based on the aforementioned information, the digitalization of the workforce does not negatively impact the ability of workers to meet organizational goals, deadlines, and requirements based on the lack of an office environment.
Sustainability
Digitalization is not only effective in maximizing profit for organizations but also assists in sustainability goals prevalent in most agendas within major corporations. Thus, according to researchers, employees who do not have to commute to work and are not required to take business trips create circumstances in which organizations become more sustainable. According to researchers, the reduction in business trips employees was to take facilitated a reduction in pollution, and a similar argument can be highlighted in relation to the car, bus, and train rides to work and home (Ingusci et al.). While the change may appear to be insignificant, the COVID-19 restrictions have been linked to beneficial environmental changes due to the lack of need for transportation on a daily basis.
Employee Perception
The job market changes associated with companies adopting a remote operational system for workers are often perceived as contradictory by employees. On the one hand, digitalization is considered a generator of flexibility, efficiency, and effectiveness. Employees are able to travel and maintain a relatively adequate work schedule, communicate with leaders, and work on tasks similarly to in an office environment. On the other hand, face-to-face social interactions are minimized, communication may be hindered, and finding a work-life balance can be challenging. However, it is essential to consider employee perception in relation to digitalization to address the limitations and maximize beneficial changes correlating with job satisfaction and low worker turnover.
Positive Perceptions
As mentioned prior, employees do not associate remote work with a lack of efficiency. It has been exemplified in the study examining IT specialists that individuals are more productive due to the time saved from commuting, which can then be applied in project finalization (Patanjali and Bhatta). Moreover, it is essential to mention that as companies spend less on office rent, equipment, and bills, teams can be expanded. Thus, the job market is growing as demand for remote employees creates job opportunities (Gifford 105). Certain work processes also become easier to manage, as illustrated in research on digitalization in the medical field. Namely, doctors and nurses were able to work remotely while monitoring implantable cardiac defibrillators, which, in turn, was found to be an effective solution to the need for frequent follow-ups (Bikou et al. 403). Thus, digitalization has facilitated progress in how employees can attend to their daily tasks while minimizing effort without hindering productivity.
Another favorable implication of the job market becoming more centered around remote positions is autonomy. According to researchers, employees who are able to have more opportunities to self-governing are less likely to feel lonely in their profession despite working from home (Wang et al. 16). The concept implies having more power over delegating tasks, managing personal schedules and autonomy in regard to how the corporate objectives are being met. Thus, despite autonomy being considered challenging due to the fact that employees have more responsibilities and less support, studies illustrate the effectiveness of possessing such options.
Limitations
The digitalization of the workspace, namely, the shift towards remote work, correlates with certain limitations that are to be addressed. The negative connotations are associated with the well-being of the employees. It is essential to point out that most workers resorting to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic had few or no experiences with operating from home. Thus, the entirely new environment has never been explored before, which implied that workers met obstacles when shifting to a different system. The aforementioned difficulties have both been related to organizational challenges as well as personal and psychological problems that were nuanced during the lockdown. One of the negative aspects, as exemplified in research, is work-life interference (Wang et al. 16). Employees who were not accustomed to remote work found it challenging to find a balance between their personal and professional lives, which, in turn, affected both concepts. This implies the presence of distractions and the inability to differentiate. However, the mediator, as mentioned in the study, was social support. Employees who were facing similar challenges were sharing their experiences, seeking support, and receiving assistance, which allowed them to adjust to a new way of operating professionally.
It is also vital to highlight the professional challenges correlating with remote working. Namely, the challenge mentioned in current literature is impaired communication among colleagues and with leaders (Licite-Kurbe and Leonovica). Thus, it becomes more challenging to coordinate projects in which multiple individuals are involved due to the limitations when it comes to professional interactions. Managers also mention problems with controlling tasks and employees and maintaining strong and prolific teams that strive to cooperate on all stages (Licite-Kurbe and Leonovica). Researchers concluded that due to such issues, only highly digitalized companies could afford to switch to having a fully remote team. Instead, such positions are to be reserved for part-time workers. However, it is essential to consider the context of fast digitalization in all industries. It is certain that digital technology is not yet fully implemented in all organizations, especially those operating locally, not requiring supply chain relationships with external actors and small businesses. Nonetheless, industries are moving towards automatization and maximization of efficiency through technologies. Thus, the context highlights that all companies will be primarily digitalized in the future, which means remote jobs will be more prevalent.
Digitalization of the Workplace
As technological advancements are becoming more prominent within all industries, workplace digitalization is implemented to maintain high production, maximize profit, and minimize spending. Thus, while employees have more opportunities when it comes to operating remotely, the concept is one of the many factors highlighting the dynamic nature of the process of automatization and technological implementation. Other examples include the appliance of artificial intelligence, drones, and automatic equipment. Such shifts may be attributed to industries willing to invest in reliable substitutes for employees to avoid delays, mistakes, and low production. Nonetheless, it is crucial to acknowledge the ever-changing nature of business operations and workplaces and consider the human factor in relation to the aforementioned alterations. According to researchers, employees are rarely considered as profit, production, and cost reduction are at the core of business initiatives related to technology employment (Trenerry et al.). Nonetheless, remote work is one of the few branches of digitalization that does not correlate with major negative shifts from the perspective of the workforce. Namely, a company willing to allow employees to work remotely encounters both benefits in workforce satisfaction and production level maintenance or advancement.
The main advantages for the employer, as previously discussed, include opportunities to minimize certain expenses. However, productivity is not hindered, which implies that the profit remains while spendings decrease. As a result, employers are able to invest in training current employees, providing them with new communication measures, and improving collaboration despite the workforce not physically having in-office meetings. This may address the current limitations linked to the fact that remote operation is a relatively new approach that is nuanced for most workers. Nonetheless, as the job market is dynamic, employees are also changing, adapting, and altering their ways to fit within the new digital requirements. Hence, researchers highlight that studies show individuals to be able to adhere to the new system in a relatively short time despite meeting difficulties at the initial stages (Al-Habaibeh et al. 99). The finding supports the argument that the economic environment is dynamic in relation to all participants. Companies change by implementing technology, the job market shifts based on organizational preferences, and employees manifest a dynamic nature in adhering to the external environment.
Future Implications
It is certain that as technological advancements are becoming more widely implemented in all organizational concepts, including human resource practices, the concept will only become more prominent. The COVID-19 pandemic has, however, accelerated the change toward a more digitalized workplace (Wang et al. 16). This opportunity allowed multiple companies to acknowledge the benefits of employing remote workers. As a result, it is unlikely that the practice will become redundant. Instead, it is expected that businesses will apply the practice further to maximize the positive implications correlating with the framework. From the perspective of digitalization and atomization to the full extent, it may be possible that remote employees will be the only ones operating. Since the only individuals who cannot adhere to such a schedule are workers whose tasks and responsibilities require a hands-on approach, employing automatic measures may significantly reduce the number of jobs of this particular characteristic. Thus, the only employees remaining in the job market are those required to supervise, monitor, manage, and alter such projects, which can be accomplished digitally.
The escalation of the process related to the lockdown correlates with several limitations that created unfavorable circumstances. Nonetheless, it is unlikely that the same challenges will persist in regard to future implications. For example, the argument that productivity has dropped can be associated with the additional stress related to health risks during the pandemic. Moreover, no adequate training, research, and knowledge on the subject was implemented or acknowledged at the time due to the urgency of the implementation. However, it has been shown that considering social support, communication, and training are tools that can be applied to confront such challenges (Al-Habaibeh et al. 99). Thus, under the condition that switching to a remote system is not rushed and properly applied with the necessary resources allocated, such processes can be much less damaging from a productivity perspective. Based on the aforementioned information, companies are currently moving in the direction of employing a work-from-home agenda, and future implications will only show an increase in such strategies. Moreover, the approach will also move across industries and become more widely employed in education, medicine, research, and additional fields.
Conclusion
The digitalization of the workplace is manifested through various concepts, and one of them is switching to a remote working system for human resources. While the alternative to in-office operations is often portrayed as lacking in productivity and efficiency, in this paper, it has been illustrated that productivity remains high or increases. Moreover, both employees and employers benefit from lower spending and higher profit. Hence, remote working will become a primary objective in the future business environment as it correlates with the dynamic approach to customer needs, employer satisfaction, and overall alteration of the market based on present trends.
Works Cited
Al-Habaibeh, Amin, et al. “Challenges and Opportunities of Remotely Working from Home during Covid-19 Pandemic.” Global Transitions, vol. 3, 2021, pp. 99–108.
Beno, Michal. “Analysis of Three Potential Savings in E-Working Expenditure.” Frontiers in Sociology, vol. 6, 2021.
Bikou, Olympia, et al. “Cost Savings and Safety of ICD Remote Control by Telephone: A Prospective, Observational Study.” Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, vol. 16, no. 7, 2010, pp. 403–408.
Gifford, Jonny. “Remote Working: Unprecedented Increase and a Developing Research Agenda.” Human Resource Development International, vol. 25, no. 2, 2022, pp. 105–113.
Ingusci, Emanuela, et al. “Development and Validation of the Remote Working Benefits & Disadvantages Scale.” Quality & Quantity, 2022.
Licite-Kurbe, Lasma, and Ruta Leonovica. “Economic Benefits of Remote Work from the Employer Perspective.” Economic Science for Rural Development, 2021.
Patanjali, Systla, and N. M. Bhatta. “Work from Home during the Pandemic: The Impact of Organizational Factors on the Productivity of Employees in the IT Industry.” Vision: The Journal of Business Perspective, 2022.
Trenerry, Brigid, et al. “Preparing Workplaces for Digital Transformation: An Integrative Review and Framework of Multi-Level Factors.” Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 12, 2021.
Wang, Bin, et al. “Achieving Effective Remote Working during the COVID‐19 Pandemic: A Work Design Perspective.” Applied Psychology, vol. 70, no. 1, 2020, pp. 16–59.
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the significance of remote working and put both employers and employees in front of multiple challenges. These challenges have created a call for assistance from the confused workers and their managers. Gurchiek (2020) composed a clear and concise list of tips for those who are not confident with managing remote teams. She made ten points based on the opinions of professionals from various spheres, ranging from the CEO of an IT company to a business leadership coach. In my opinion, Gurchiek’s article provides a rather simplistic take on the issue and gives the most general, almost self-evident advice.
One should understand that simple solution are not inherently flawed, especially when an apparent need for them exists. Gurchiek (2020) recommends managers set clear expectations, be flexible, track workers’ progress, listen to employees, build connections with them, avoid micromanaging, and celebrate success like in usual office settings. I find it difficult to disagree with these suggestions since they sound reasonable and come from experienced professionals. The arguments provided by the interviewed professionals seem logical to me, and I cannot find the reasons to oppose them.
Nevertheless, my agreement with the author’s points does not mean that their work is impeccable. The original goal of the article was to provide useful tips for managing remote workers, and in that regard, it does the job quite well. However, at the same time, the text consists almost solely of someone else’s opinions. As a result, it feels devoid of the author’s input, which makes their work somewhat shallow. In addition, a strong emphasis on a handful of expert opinions weakens the article in comparison to works based on empirical data and quantitative research methods. In that regard, a survey among the remote workers with corresponding suggestions on problem-solving from the experts would have made the article stronger.
Writing a quantitative research-based work would require more time and effort than several short interviews; however, it would result in a better research design. As an example, I would like to compare Gurchiek’s article with a paper by Rudnicka et al. (2020). The subject of the study was almost identical — the development of strategies for effective remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the beginning, the researchers recruited 347 participants who had passed an online survey. In addition, twenty-five respondents agreed to have a 1-hour interview for a $20-25 payment (Rudnicka et al., 2020). In the end, the researchers managed to determine the most prevalent challenges of remote working, such as distractions, lack of connection, poor workspace setup, and damage to work-life balance (Rudnicka et al., 2020). The article in HR Magazine does not have this component in the design, which separates the expert’s suggestions from the empirical evidence.
On the other hand, the viewpoints expressed in the second article stem directly from the empirically revealed issues. For example, organizations were recommended to adopt digital boundaries to help remote workers with work-life balance (Rudnicka et al., 2020). The evident problem with remote meetings can be alleviated by implementing remote meeting etiquette within organizations (Rudnicka et al., 2020). This approach provides an important logical transition between the problems and solutions, whereas the article in HR Magazine concentrates solely on the result in the shape of tips.
Conclusion
Gurchiek’s article succeeded at providing the most general recommendations for managers. However, it consisted almost entirely of expert opinions, thus having little to no personal input from the author. In addition, it lacked depth due to the absence of any quantitative base. Overall, even a small-scope survey among the employees or their managers would have made a positive impact and improved the impression from the article published in HR Magazine.
References
Gurchiek, K. (2020). 10 tips for managing remote workers. HR Magazine, 1.
Rudnicka, A., Newbold, J. W., Cook, D., Cecchinato, M. E., Gould, S., & Cox, A. L. (2020). Eworklife: Developing effective strategies for remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Eworklife: Developing effective strategies for remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic. The New Future of Work Online Symposium.
The working environment significantly influences employees’ productivity and desire to work in a specific company. With the advent of new technologies, the staff can work in the office and remotely. As a result, there is a dispute about where work is more convenient – in the office or from home. The various factors influence this aspect, for instance, the convenience of the way to the office or the employee’s ability to concentrate on work in a comfortable home environment. Each option has its advantages and disadvantages, as proven by research.
A remote job is an opportunity to work from anywhere worldwide, contributing to the employee’s freedom and flexibility. According to the Center for the Protection of National Infrastructure (2020), this argument for freedom of movement is essential for retaining employees. Moreover, providing remote work capabilities allows companies to expand the geography of finding talented employees in other countries, increasing the workforce’s diversity. Moreover, in this case, the company saves space and resources by avoiding the need to organize an office. Other studies suggest that working at home makes employees feel more creative (Smith, 2015). Therefore, remote hiring can benefit both employees and hiring companies.
However, it is worth considering the potential risks and disadvantages of remote work compared to offices. Hendricks (n.d.) argues that the traditional office improves employees’ interaction with customers and each other, improving team performance and making the enterprise more productive. This assumption is consistent with Gomez’s (2015) concerns that remote work carries the risk of reducing trust between employees and, as a result, disengages the team. Moreover, the monotonous environment for work and rest with remote hiring does not give the employee a complete feeling of free time and violates the work-life balance (Beauregard et al., 2013). Therefore, people need to be careful when hiring and working remotely.
Thus, businesses and people looking for work need to consider the pros and cons of different recruitment forms before deciding on their work process features. Remote work can give more freedom to employees, make the workforce more diverse, and increase creativity. Work in the office, in turn, can be more coordinated and productive. The choice may depend on the activities of the company and the external circumstances in which it operates.
References
Beauregard, A., Basile, K., & Canonico, E. (2013). Home is where the work is: A new study of homeworking in Acas–and beyond. Acas Research Paper, 10(13), 1-99.
Over the past few months, companies have become participants in a unique experiment in organizing remote work. An IT company Parallel Universe was forced to work remotely due to the rapid spread of the COVID-19. Never before have IT leaders had such a significant impact on the organization’s operations. In fact, the readiness of IT services to ensure the operation of the necessary applications depended, without exaggeration, on the viability of companies.
There were a lot of difficulties in the work, which included providing the necessary amount of equipment for remote work and preparing the company’s servers for increasing workload and voltage. Moreover, this included ensuring the required number of additional licenses, the operability, and compatibility of applications in a remote connection. It considers training employees to work in the new conditions and the security of the IT infrastructure in the new conditions (Lundet et al. 12). However, now there are opportunities and needs for workers to return to full-time activities in the office.
To relocate employees to work in the office, it is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of work during self-isolation. However, in order for employees to be able to visit the office again, it is important to put in as much effort as when they are transferred to remote work. First of all, management should answer the question of how necessary it is now for the return of all employees. If the work proceeded smoothly, the managers could think about the possibility of keeping the option of remote work for colleagues.
However, the management of Parallel Universe noticed a clear decline in employee productivity. In this regard, it was decided to transfer workers back to office visits. The company should consider the fastest possible return to the previous organizational system if business processes have suffered serious losses during the lockdown. The organization was faced with the question of what percentage of employees is necessary for office work. At the same time, the directors came to the conclusion that all the employees of the company should return to their offices.
By the time employees return, management’s expectations of the company’s performance rise. First of all, the possibilities of creating new projects and organizing teams will be discussed. The organization is interested in a wider distribution of its products, which leads to the need to increase the range of IT projects. The next step will be to increase the efficiency of colleagues by creating the necessary and more comfortable conditions. Despite the undoubted convenience of remote work, the company’s practice has shown that the distraction of employees to outside affairs is increasing. The management hopes that the office atmosphere will allow employees to return to work. The company expects employees to be interested in creating and promoting unique IT projects. Moreover, management hopes for a high level of efficiency, in contrast to what employees have demonstrated during the lockdown.
The fact that the world is gradually lifting restrictions on movement does not mean that the danger of infection has completely disappeared. However, a further extension of non-working days or a decrease in productivity will lead to irreversible consequences for the company’s budget, and people need to return. The return of employees requires the organization to create a safe environment. Management should take into account WHO recommendations regarding office work and protective equipment. It is important to purchase protective screens that will be installed between the tables. Managers will need to purchase disinfectants and sanitizers in the required quantity. This requires elaboration and additional investment of time and money, but the safety of employees is vital.
At the same time, the company approves a plan to transfer colleagues to offices. In addition to preparing the space, it is also important to closely monitor the infection situation in order to prevent an outbreak in the organization. Management provided a plan to bring employees back to the office. The return of personnel will be made in stages with monitoring of health and morbidity. The company made the decision to return 15% of its employees in the first phase of the plan. If a favorable trend is noted, 35% of employees will return to office work. The organization aims to have all colleagues return by the end of the fourth quarter.
After returning to the office, special attention should be paid to informal communication, team building, and non-work activities. Informal communication increases productivity, the ability to negotiate and develop a common solution to problems. Now, managers can gather for phone calls on non-working topics and share personal news. Online activities can be effective: group training with a trainer, healthy habits development courses, sports and unifying challenges (Gallacher and Hossain 48). Employees must have confidence in the future and trust in leaders. The management suggests redecorating the office and updating office equipment. Thus, returning to the office, employees will know that they were expected.
When exiting remote work, a company is considering a number of motivational strategies to inspire employees. First of all, in some tasks, management will allow the employee to make decisions independently. The ability to instill self-confidence in an employee is one of the important tasks of a leader. People appreciate when they are trusted, it inspires them, and they will try to grow professionally, realizing that they have a real responsibility.
In addition, the company has considered material payments for employees after leaving remote work. Therefore, each employee will receive a bonus for working in difficult conditions during a pandemic. Moreover, the potential of employees can be fully realized only if their mistakes are tolerated; they are considered an opportunity to learn something. Anyone who gives their employees freedom of action and in every possible way encourages their initiative and responsibility should keep in mind that mistakes are inevitable.
At the same time, management must take into account the difference in character and temperament of all employees of the organization. This is an important pattern to pay attention to when moving from remote work to the office. Organizations need to try to find an individual approach for each employee, as motivation tools that are important for one colleague may not be interesting for another. Some employees require a detailed explanation of the job opportunities and the goals of the project. For management, it is vital to allow employees to make independent decisions in the process of work.
In the event that one of the employees refuses to switch back from remote work, it is possible to discuss part-time employment with periodic visits to the office. In addition, the company may refuse to cooperate in favor of its own benefit. However, for this, it is necessary to assess the value of the employee at work. The decision regarding each employee must be made on an individual basis and considered in relation to the effectiveness of their work.
Works Cited
Gallacher, Guillermo, and Iqbal Hossain. “Remote work and employment dynamics under COVID-19: Evidence from Canada.” Canadian public policy no., 46 vol. 1, 2020. pp. 44-54.
Lund, Susan, et al. “What’s next for remote work: An analysis of 2,000 tasks, 800 jobs, and nine countries.” McKinsey Global Institute, 2020. pp. 1-13.
Remote working is one of the methods that is becoming increasingly popular in many enterprises worldwide. After being heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, many businesses are terrified of losing human workers in another unfathomable pandemic like the COVID-19 pandemic. Firms and organizations suffered massive losses in 2020 and 2021 due to fewer people being authorized to report to work due to government mandates on employers to limit the number of employees to combat COVID-19. As a result, many firms are incorporating telecommuting into their operations to supplement the conventional process in which all employees must report to a central office. Many organizations have learned the hard way despite studies indicating that remote working exists in a few corporations and enterprises. They are now in the process of adopting telecommuting in their system to replace in-office working partially. Remote working, particularly during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, proved to be a crucial method of operation since the company could continue to function despite the pandemic hit.
Purpose of this Paper
It is projected that organizations that were able to implement telecommuting on their system will continue to do so after the COVID-19 recession. This is because enterprises that had previously adopted remote working in their systems benefited more than those that depended only on in-office labour. Many firms have discovered that alternate working arrangements, such as remote working, are necessary and save them money. Based on the lessons learned in the COVID-19 years of 2020 and 2021, enterprises have recognized the benefits of remote working and are investing to diversify their mode of operation. As a result, the primary goal of this article is to examine and identify the possible benefits of remote working for businesses that adopt it. The report also aims to identify and address management difficulties associated with remote working. Finally, the paper will discuss how Spotify.com, a firm most known for telecommuting, deals with remote working challenges.
Expected Benefits of a Formal Telecommuting Program to a Company
Remote working has shown to be advantageous to both the company and its employees. According to Mohammadi et al. (7), telecommuting fosters a cooperative relationship between employers and employees, which is critical to overall effectiveness. Recent research on the subject has found that telecommuting benefits a business. Mohammadi et al. (10) discovered that remote working practices assist employers and enterprises retain skilled employees. Firms and companies are picky about their most valuable personnel. Many firms have reported losing individual employees going through life transitions because they cannot report to the company’s premises to respond to their obligations. As a result, organizations that have adopted telecommuting have minimized such risk because their employees may perform their duties online. Another advantage of accepting telecommuting is reducing the strain on a company’s critical facilities. According to Omoyajowo et al. (270), remote working in an organization saves money. This is because firms would not be pressured to create massive offices and parking lots.
Remote employment is considered less expensive in terms of wage compensation than typical office work. Furthermore, numerous studies concur that telecommuters do not significantly strain firm employee advantages such as free internet. As a result, organizations that have accepted remote working typically operate at a reduced cost since they do not pay gasoline or housing allowances for their employees. Telecommuting has also been related to greater overall productivity. According to Omoyajowo et al. (271), many employers over the decades have struggled with production success challenges due to insufficient resources such as land, which restricts the number of physical offices. As a result, telecommuting has enabled such organizational managers to supervise vast groups of workers, which would not have been feasible if everyone had to report to the organization’s regular offices for work. Finally, it should be highlighted that telecommuting allows businesses to get the most out of their employees. As Mintz-Binder and Allen (154) pointed out, it might be difficult for in-office workers to finish large jobs within the typical working period of eight hours. As a result, remote working allows company personnel to take irregular schedules that would not be conceivable with in-office working.
Issues for the Manager of a Telecommuting Worker
While remote working provides several advantages for a firm, its implementation presents numerous problems that must be overlooked. Mintz-Binder and Allen (156) recognize managerial concerns about remote working. Following the developments during the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic, the pace of telecommuting has already been determined. This indicates that remote working is here to stay, and managers will have to work extra hard to overcome the predicted challenges of remote human force management to keep the organization on track. According to Ma et al. (13), managing remote workers is difficult due to the numerous obstacles associated with supervisory concerns. Face-to-face supervision in conventional forms of working allows supervisors to encourage employees to complete their tasks efficiently. On the other side, it becomes uncertain for managers as to whether a remote worker is delivering as promised. Furthermore, managers face difficulties creating clear expectations for their subordinates with remote working. This is a problem since in-office work allows managers and workers to communicate with one another. However, with telecommuting, the link between managers and employees is only strengthened via online conversations.
Other managerial issues that arise due to deploying remote work to replace in-office labour include a lack of communication and team cohesiveness and coping with social isolation. According to Budnitz et al., the current office environment consists of both onsite and remote workers. As a result, managers frequently find themselves leaning on one side while disregarding the other. This harms a business since success requires a collaborative effort from all personnel. Recent studies have also identified a lack of communication as a critical issue in managing remote workers. This is because there is a loss of the widespread spontaneous face-to-face encounters in the traditional office.
Detailed Real Life Experience of a Company
This section will discuss Spotify.com’s real-life remote working experience. Spotify.com is a worldwide technology and media streaming firm. The corporation is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, with a market capitalization of around $48.4 billion (Denis 86). The organization has implemented a hybrid working paradigm, allowing employees to participate in remote and in-office working programs. Spotify’s implementation of remote working gives people worldwide the possibility to work for the firm. As a result, Spotify’s most significant issue is managing its massive workforce, which is spread around the globe. For example, Spotify may not hold face-to-face meetings with all of its staff. This is true since the corporation’s remote working program allows skilled people worldwide to serve the organization. As a result, face-to-face meetings are out of the question for Spotify. Concerning the organization’s incapacity to attend actual meetings with all of its stakeholders, the corporation is utilizing new technology to reach out to its foreign workforce. These include video-enabled chats using technologies like Zoom, Google Meet, ClickMeeting, Room, and other well-known programs that provide live interactions.
As far as the Spotify firm is concerned, worker competency verification is another obstacle impeding the successful implementation of remote working. According to Denis (87), the firm cannot conduct physical interviews, making it difficult to verify the supplied credentials. This might also be detrimental to the organization, as competencies are essential when interacting with customers, the major stakeholders in any business. Negative consumer and customer comments on Spotify undermine its brand reputation, which is harmful to its health and functioning in the long term. The corporation faces a barrier in resolving this issue since it cannot finance or schedule a physical interview for all its remote personnel.
Conclusion
An organization’s remote working techniques contain benefits and cons that impact a company’s efficiency. According to ongoing discussions on formal employee telecommuting, an organization’s remote working strategy affects employees and employers. Research has highlighted some benefits of remote working in an organization, including employee retention, lower operating costs, less burden on limited company resources, and, eventually, higher total production. However, remote employment raises many administrative challenges, such as ineffective oversight and ambiguous expectations. Furthermore, the lack of communication and cohesion between managers and distant workers has been impaired. To summarize, telecommuting has both advantages and disadvantages in implementation and allows companies to register high productivity through extensive engagement of its workers.
Ma, Guoxin et al. “Telecommuting Adaptation in Malaysia: Demographics, Beliefs and Practices”. Asian Social Science and Humanities Research Journal (ASHREJ), vol 1, no. 1, 2019, pp. 11-18. UCYP Press, University College of Yayasan Pahang. Web.
Omoyajowo, Koleayo et al. “Drivers of Telecommuting Policy in Nigerian Organizations”. International Journal of Business, Technology and Organizational Behavior (IJBTOB), vol 1, no. 4, 2021, pp. 263-275. Garuda Prestasi Nusantara Consulting.
The COVID-19 pandemic led to numerous workplaces switching from office to remote work. The radical increase in the number of companies allowing work from home spurred the discussion on the widespread implementation of this working practice. The topic was selected as it directly relates to my workplace, which allows for remote work. Nevertheless, working from home option should not be offered by more companies due to the overall negative impact on employee well-being and productivity.
Working from home is associated with several advantages and disadvantages for employees and employers. Although not all companies can embrace the remote work model, those that do benefit from more engaged employees enhanced productivity, work control, work-life balance, and higher retention rates (Ipsen et al., 2021; Spruill, 2022). Nevertheless, a larger body of research points to the disadvantages of remote work for employees and, by extension, employers. It is argued that working from home results in job-related uncertainty and loss of knowledge and intellectual productivity due to the lack of interaction with colleagues (Bolisani et al., 2020; Ipsen et al., 2021). Furthermore, isolation and online connection translate into stress, reduced productivity, and damaged interpersonal relationship in the workplace (Bolisani et al., 2020). Home life constraints and the absence of adequate tools for work can adversely impact one’s ability to work from home (Ipsen et al., 2021). Overall, remote work is not a universally sustainable model for different industries.
In summary, remote work is not always a viable option. It should not be offered by companies that are unprepared to mitigate adverse consequences experienced by employees working from home. Business ventures are recommended to carefully research flexible work and the needs of their staff before extending the option. In addition, companies should consider and provide effective measures to contrast any negative experiences of their employees.
Remote working, also known as telecommuting, is a practice in which employees are permitted to work outside of the central offices run by their employers. Companies with such policies allow employees to work from various locations, including their homes, libraries, and other shared spaces. Furthermore, remote workers could attend an organization meeting remotely, which is generally enhanced by technology. Today, remotes and online discussions have taken their course, and many organizations worldwide are transitioning from traditional corporate offices to online methods of holding meetings and managing organizations. As Arunprasad (33) noted, remote working became popular in late 2020 and early 2021, when the COVID-19 global pandemic was a primary concern. Many governments worldwide issued directives to organizations to reduce the number of employees to comply with the social distancing rule. Organizations, for their part, adopted telecommuting as a means of continuing operations despite the COVID-19 strike.
Purpose of this Paper
Although many studies have been conducted on the benefits of employee telecommuting, the practice has challenges and drawbacks for both employers and employees. According to Rajbanshi (25), some of the advantages of telecommuting include reduced commuting, increased efficiency in recruiting and hiring and increased productivity. Recent studies have also looked into the issue and added much more information about telecommuting. According to Hacquard and Justine, the practice relieved organizations of the need to construct large corporate office spaces. This is because virtual teams are more natural and adaptable, which improves business continuity in the long run. However, this paper aims to investigate and conclude the social and professional issues associated with remote working. Furthermore, the report will examine the effects of the problems identified on both individual employees and the organization, citing evidence.
Social Issues for the Individual Telecommuting Employee
Since the start of COVID-19 in late 2020, many organizations have adopted remote working as their preferred working style. However, telecommuting research is educating on the social effects of remote working on individual employees. According to Fan and Moen (171), the concept of remote working existed and was accelerated in 2020 when the global coronavirus pandemic forced organizations to invest in remote working to protect their employees from the pandemic. According to the study, the years 2020 and 2021 were difficult for employees because they were expected to embrace remote working practices unanimously (Fan and Moen 179). Recent telecommuting studies agree that many employees worldwide have embraced the flexibility of remote working while yearning for the social interaction they had while working in a corporate or traditional office setting.
Given that firms are migrating from office to online working, taking into account employees’ voices and well-being is an issue that must be treated seriously. This is because telecommuting poses psychological risks to employees. The main difficulty of remote working with employees, according to Arunprasad et al. (51), is the lack of social interaction. Although many employees have the necessary equipment for remote work, it has been demonstrated that many face behavioral and cultural problems when working from home (Arunprasad et al. 52). According to a recent study by Petrila et al. (60), many firms now have resources for remote working; however, around 33% of employees worldwide cited a lack of social connections with their coworkers and an unsatisfactory relationship with their organization. Another fundamental societal difficulty revealed by the research is that workers struggle to maintain a clear boundary between their personal and professional lives. This is true because employees are not bound by workplace rules such as dress code or posture when doing their duties from home.
Another social concern with remote working is disruptions and diversions. Employees working from home significantly risk distraction and disruption from various sources, including home activities, family members, and other personal difficulties (Delany 8). This is true because employees work from home, where several things require their attention. As a result, employees find it challenging to balance their personal and professional lives while working from home. Long video meetings, increased stress and anxiety, working for long hours, or the inability to shut off at the end of the day are some employees’ social problems associated with remote working. Further studies have identified social isolation, a lack of collaborative communication, and a lack of access to knowledge as other social issues related to remote working.
Social Issues Impact
Remote working indeed causes many social concerns for employees. As mentioned in the preceding paragraph, many employees whose firms have implemented telecommuting have identified a variety of social difficulties that need to be addressed. These societal concerns harm both the company and the individual employees. For example, Delany (9) discovered that a lack of connection between coworkers lowers employees’ working morale, hence their inactivity. This is a problem since less active personnel implies lower production, which impacts the organization’s success. Remote employees have more flexibility since workplace restrictions do not limit them, leading to undesirable behavioral cultures, such as lethargy and unsuitable office dress rules. According to Delany (7), worker sloth and home distraction harm firms in terms of output and brand identity. Employees that are well-mannered and orderly market the company’s brand name, attracting more consumers in a long time. In summary, the social challenges that remote working brings directly harm individual employees while also reflecting low organizational performance.
Career Issues
Career difficulties are contentious in today’s society, as many employees are unsure whether telecommuting would jeopardize their career and profession. Is working remotely detrimental to an employee’s career? Speculations abound on different sites bemoaning telecommuting. According to the charges, remote employment leads to fewer opportunities for advancement and lower pay than in-office work. According to Dujay’s analysis, there is no discernible difference in promotion for remote and in-office staff. However, it was discovered that remote workers were paid less than their in-office counterparts. According to Delany (7), telecommuting increases employee lethargy and causes them to fail to complete their given work. This is highly hazardous to both the corporation and the individual remote workers. For example, a company may fire a non-active remoter worker to improve organizational performance. As a result, the remote workers lose their jobs while, at the same time, the organization suffers from a deficit of talented employees. Although no research has established the effect of remote working on employees’ careers, there is a widespread belief that telecommuting leads to fewer opportunities for advancement and lower compensation. Therefore many people are wary of it.
Career Issues Impact
The unfavorable perceptions of telecommuting are influencing employees’ willingness to take remote working employment. These ideals have bewitched many workers’ minds, and as a result, many are opting for in-office positions to advance and receive other perks quickly. Regardless of the company, employees are typically motivated and encouraged by promotions and incentives (Judge and Robbins 244). Workers who do not receive such perks are less engaged and satisfied with their jobs. As a result of these telecommuting concepts, analysts claim that workers nowadays prefer in-office settings since they appear to have an advantage over remote employees. Because it is assumed that telecommuting provides fewer chances, employees are less motivated to give their all because they believe their efforts will not be appreciated as those in the office. As a result, this influences the organization’s and individual employees’ growth. This is true because distant workers provide more diminutive than their full capacity, affecting total corporate performance.
Conclusion
The ongoing debate over telecommuting, also known as remote working, has defined the phrase as working from home rather than in an office. As mentioned at the outset, the purpose of this study was to research telecommuting while paying particular attention to the social and professional concerns that arise as a result of the deployment of telecommuting in enterprises. It was also discovered that the concept of remote working existed but was expedited and popularized as a result of the effects of COVID-19 on enterprises. The findings of this research show that remote working poses several social issues affecting not just individual employees but also the business. Some recognized social workers’ complaints are lack of interaction, loneliness, diversions, and long working hours. Furthermore, this article has highlighted the prevalent misconceptions about career advancement in the context of remote working. As stated in this study, some employees consider that remote work provides fewer improvement opportunities. In summary, remote working social and career issues impact organizational success by directly affecting the individual employees.
Rajbanshi, Bijendra. “Nepali IT Employees’ Perception Towards Telecommuting: A Qualitative Study”. Journal of Environmental Impact and Management Policy, 2022, pp. 18-26. HM Publishers. Web.
With the concept of remote work having become nearly ubiquitous, its effects on employees and organizations needs to be examined closer. A study by Maria Charalampous sheds light on the subject matter, outlining the challenge associated with the transitioning to the remote work context. Maria Charalampous is a PhD student at Coventry University, Department of Psychology and Behavioural Sciences (“Maria Charalampous” par. 1). She has seven published papers on the subject of e-working and three projects addressing the issue at hand in depth (“Maria Charalampous” par. 1). Therefore, Charalampous has a rather impressive record of exploring the challenges of remote work, which makes her study worth quoting.
Charalampous’s current stance on the concept of remote work is quite balanced. While she acknowledges the challenges of transitioning to the e-work context, she also recognizes the necessity of the described change. In turn, the paper in which the journal was published has a sufficient history in the academia. The European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology was founded in 1991 and has been providing credible, peer-reviewed studies on the subject matter since then (“Journal Information” par. 5). Therefore, the article is worth considering as a credible paper coming from a reliable source.
The research proves that the remote environment has a mostly positive effect on employees’ affective state, as well as different aspects of their professional and social lives. However, the study also outlines that the knowledge of changes in employees’ cognitive functions, as well as their psychosomatic state, are scarce. Specifically, Charalampous confirms that “information about important dimensions and sub-dimensions of remote e-workers’ well-being is absent” (16). The specified statement suggests that further analysis of the challenges encountered by employees in the remote workplace context is required.
Works Cited
Charalampous, Maria, et al. “Systematically Reviewing Remote E-Workers’ Well-Being at Work: A Multidimensional Approach.” European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, vol. 28, no. 1, 2019, pp. 51-73.