In an age that relies so much on the digital world, there are a handful of new work trends that have evolved. One of them being remote employment or Work From Home (WFH). Not only are there more freelancers jumping on the remote employment train but also a handful of tech startups and established companies who are doing the same thing too. And if they’re not completely remote, they are still offering a lot of perks that resemble the remote type of work. Some of these perks include telecommuting, flexi-hours or a flexible schedule, part-time freelance opportunities, and many more.
There’s a handful of successful companies out there who have adopted the remote work method across their entire teams. Maybe 10 years ago, we would’ve thought a company doing this would be crazy. But today, it’s more common than ever.
Here are a few successful companies out there who have nailed the remote industry. Ironically, many of which happen to be in tech.
The challenge of communication can be seen whether working remotely or even when there is only a floor dividing the team. If you have a good communication strategy (weekly Skype meetings, utilising communication tools, etc.) and a foundation in place, adding remote workers to your team should be your only challenge.
Even in a physical office, communicating with your team is never an easy thing to do. Add a few thousand miles between you and your employees and communication may seem like an even bigger issue. Luckily, with today’s booming tech industry, we have more than enough web applications to choose from that make this type of communicating simple. Try out a few — Slack, Asana, Trello, etc. — and make sure it’s a right fit for you and your remote team.
With the physical distance between the employee and their manager, it’s important managers and employees have a clear understanding of specific goals and expectations. This will help establish a successful remote working relationship.
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Contemplating joining a remote team? Or the remote world for instance? Not to worry. We’ve put together a few challenges and strengths you may face along the way so nothing comes as a surprise.— Challenges of Remote —
Employment
Communication is More Important Than Ever:
The challenge of communication can be seen whether working remotely or even when there is only a floor dividing the team. If you have a good communication strategy (weekly Skype meetings, utilising communication tools, etc.) and a foundation in place, adding remote workers to your team should be your only challenge.
Even in a physical office, communicating with your team is never an easy thing to do. Add a few thousand miles between you and your employees and communication may seem like an even bigger issue. Luckily, with today’s booming tech industry, we have more than enough web applications to choose from that make this type of communicating simple. Try out a few — Slack, Asana, Trello, etc. — and make sure it’s a right fit for you and your remote team.
Establishing Clarity When it Comes to Employee’s Goals & Objectives:
With the physical distance between the employee and their manager, it’s important managers and employees have a clear understanding of specific goals and expectations. This will help establish a successful remote working relationship.
Building A Company Culture:
When you have a 100% remote team, a true company culture and interpersonal relationships can take a lot longer time to build up. Skilled remote workers are aware of this and will work hard to adapt, whether it’s weekly Skype catch-up meetings, chat sessions or making an effort to get to know the other employees.Higher Travel Costs:
When one part of the team is in one location and the other part is on the other side of the world, travel costs (accommodation, food, etc.) can run a high bill when it comes to company ‘get togethers.’
Timezones:
You may have curated a fabulous and talented team from all over the world but one thing you can’t seem to work out is how to stay connected with everyone in multiple time zones. How best to schedule group meetings without keeping a few of your remote team members up past midnight? When it comes to setting deadlines for projects, it helps to make sure everyone is aware of the time differences and to set ‘deadlines’ before the actual deadline. Find out what your employee’s ‘working hours’ are and see if they overlap with other team members’ to create a sense of ‘office hours.’ It will be better to have some form of overlap rather than nothing.— Strengths of Remote Employment —
Employees Feel More Valued:
Although they may not have as much of a social interaction with other employees, the times they do have conversations and meetings, are much more meaningful than the day-to-day interaction one gets while in a physical office. Giving an employee the freedom to work remotely shows that you trust them and you’re giving them the opportunity to do things in their life that are important to them too. Whether it’s spending time with family, friends, or taking time for yourself.More Productive:
Believe it or not, remote workers tend to be more productive. Yes, they may have more flexibility when it comes to getting their work done but this allows them to make up their own schedule for them when they are most productive. According to Remote.co, “86% of those surveyed said they preferred to work alone to ‘hit maximum productivity.”Low Stress = High Morale:
“Telecommuting workers were 48% more likely to rank their job a 10 — the highest level — on the happiness scale.” — Flex Jobs. Who doesn’t love being able to make up their own schedule? Employees who work remotely don’t have the stresses of scheduling personal appointments around their 9 to 5. This, in turn, causes employees to have a higher morale with their overall work experience and interaction with managers, co-workers, etc. This is a big plus.
