The traditional office space has changed exponentially in the last decade. Even in the last five years, more and more workers are getting their job done in what would be considered non-traditional environments. One of the fastest growing spaces for new work environments is actually anywhere outside of the traditional office. That doesn’t just mean working from home, but shared workspaces and libraries as well. This is having an impact on smart office solutions and work expectations as well.
To better understand remote workers and their impact, let’s break down why the trend is favoring remote work, what the impact is of keeping a mobile workforce, and what might happen in the near future. First, breaking down the basics of remote work. Right from using remote collaboration tools like Google Workspace to generating online pay stubs on apps like Paystub, remote working has changed the entire scenario of the traditional mode of working. This is having an impact on smart office solutions and work expectations as well.
Remote Work Is Growing, and Not Stopping
Remote work has exploded in the business world for a few key reasons. First and foremost, it’s been an easy way to hire workers for what might not be full time or even long term work. Projects can be relatively quick and to the point, so rather than utilize their workers in full time capacities, it can be more beneficial to look outside the company. It’s relatively easy to find freelance workers through third part networking or even talent scouts.
There’s also the perk of having your employees working from home to cut down on office costs. If you work in an industry that requires an office space, it’s likely that you have a fairly high percentage of your budget going to things like lights, space rental, equipment and furniture, and every other aspect of a traditional office. If you can work around having your employees being in house and can allow them to work from home or a public space of their choice, you do not have to front costs for a place to work, and can use those funds for another portion of your business plan.
When you see the trends in remote working, they’re hardly ever a full remote staff, but more so a combination of a small traditional office space and contracted remote workers. This adapted work force is a way for employers and business owners to maintain a staff for the essential day to day duties and keep others who are experts in more uncommon parts of the business an email away from being able to assist them. For example, if you need someone who edits videos for a commercial, but you only do 3 commercials a year, hiring a remote video editor for those projects would make much more sense than having a video editor on staff full time and all year round.
Remote work is booming, and it’s not slowing down. As things like health care and budgets begin to put a damper on employer’s abilities to keep full time staff and allow them to work in the office, it becomes more and more convenient no matter your work sector to hire a remote employee. Even if you have employees you need full time, allowing some flexibility with your staff to work remotely could be a game changer for your business.
How to Utilize Remote Workers
There are a number of ways to utilize remote workers for you business. There are a few popular ways that you find in most remote work situations.
Incentive for Hard Work for Full Time Employees
There might be a few different things at your office that can make workers feel stressed and overwhelmed. Offering a once a month remote work day could be a great way to incentivize your employees to work hard to receive a remote work pass can help keep productivity high. You could even offer it to every employee 3 or 4 times a year in order to allow them to have some flexibility. Just make sure to set firm goals of what is expected of them that day, including email updates, a communication availability requirement, and other things that will help you keep them on track.
Hire more Diverse Employees
Something that might not have a monetary benefit to it is taking the steps to hire a more diverse workforce. This can be a few different things, but all help increase the perspective of your company and allow you different insights into the approach your business takes. For starters, it could be a great opportunity to hire someone who is unable to travel to a normal office. That means someone who is physically or mentally handicapped, but clearly able to do the same quality of work. For example, if a woman or man is in a wheelchair and has trouble moving without an aid, hiring them from home can get you a great employee and allow them the opportunity to work in a space they can thrive.
Also consider that remote workers could be from a different country. If you know that you eventually want to reach audiences outside of your home country or continent, it’s likely that someone from that place you desire to impact could help you better understand how to reach them. In that manner, it is ideal to seek them out, so long as they have the qualifications and experience you desire, and hire them. Simultaneously, they can get the job done, as well as give you a personal opinion on how to reach and influence people in their home country.
Is Remote Work More Costly?
Many who have not hired remote workers in the past wonder a few things about the prospect. First and foremost, cost is a big deal to companies, especially small businesses. Remote work does not need to be more costly, and especially if your company requires to offer employees health care and other incentives, you can avoid that cost. This means that even if the remote worker’s salary is the same, you get to remove extra costs from your payroll.
Is now the Time to Hire Remote Workers?
Whether you transition your staff to allow some remote work for their scheduled work days, or hire some new remote workers for your tasks, now is absolutely the time to transition into the growing world of remote work.
Taylor is a freelance SEO copywriter and blogger. His areas of expertise include technology, pop culture, and marketing.
