According to Forbes, an estimated 70% of the population will be working remotely at least five days a week by 2025. While 2020 may be considered the year of remote work, it is just the beginning as we see the trend continuing in 2021.
In light of the growing threat of COVID-19, many companies globally are adopting remote work, asking employees to work from home, in a bid to flatten the curve and avoid as much social interaction as possible. While the idea of remote work may seem new to other spaces, it isn’t new to the technology space, as software engineers and other flexible technology roles have been carrying out their duties remotely. So the transition has been fairly seamless within the tech space, although, it’s better appreciated and tagged the new normal.
While being remote for an extended period of time sounds great, you get to spend more time with the family, avoid spending a lot of hours during commute, work in your sweatshirts and pants if you please, however, it comes with its own challenges that seriously hinders collaboration and even productivity.
For many companies, this new development means less office space, for example, Salesforce implemented its work-from-anywhere policy, with plans to reconfigure its workplaces into hubs with fewer desks and more breakout and collaboration spaces.
How To Work Remotely and Maintain Productivity
It is necessary to ensure both the job and employee are suitably adaptable for telecommuting(an employment arrangement in which the employee works outside of the employer’s office).
Ensuring that the employees have the correct equipment to carry out their job is vital, and collaboration software like Slack, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams, video and presentation solutions like Skype or Zoom, along with security, as company protocol, still insists that some items remain confidential irrespective of location.
‘‘Tools should be familiar, easy-to-use and mobile-friendly,” said Julien Codorniou, Vice President of Workplace at Facebook. “With the widespread use of communication platforms, employees should be able to message, call and video chat to meaningfully engage with their peers and company leaders”.
It is also important to ensure that managers and leaders are comfortable with any arrangement. Also, reliable internet connection, with high connection speed, especially in third-world countries.
As an employee working from home,
1. Maintain regular work hours: have a schedule and stick to it. Assume you are working from the office, get up at the appropriate time and be seated at your work desk at the required time.
2. Take breaks: staying seated for long periods of time is injurious to health and can damage body posture, move around as you normally would in the office. Do not miss out on the customary lunch hour break.
3. Socialize with colleagues: Use the chat channels to talk about common interests, and have video conferencing frequently. It helps foster team spirit, interaction, and connection.
4. Maintain a work-life balance: Your work shouldn’t take up your time or life in its entirety, find time for other activities, albeit indoors.
5. Be Positive: maintain a healthy, happy mindset, otherwise, you might end up frustrated. Cheer up!
The world has fully embraced digital, and there’s no backing down. Companies and employees would rather work from home, even as the COVID-19 restrictions are relaxed. So far, it has not affected productivity, so the transition may be permanent.
Above all, figure out what works best for you, carry out your best work with maximum cooperation.
