This guide is for anyone looking to understand how to work remotely in 2022. The remote workforce is growing, and it’s now estimated that over 3 million people in the U.K. work remotely regularly, with that number set to grow by 10% in the next five years
Working remotely is increasingly popular around the world. A survey by GlobalWorkplaceAnalytics in 2017 discovered that 42% of U.S. employees worked at least some of the time remotely. This guide covers tips and tricks I’ve learned over a decade of working remotely.
Types of Remote Work
Now that we’ve discussed the benefits of remote work, let’s delve into the types of remote work.
Fully-Remote Team
While working at home is becoming more common, it isn’t for everyone. However, the benefits of a fully remote team seem to be outweighing the challenges, and we can expect to see more small companies adapting to this in the future.
Distributed Teams
Distributed teams exist worldwide, and they can be an excellent resource for boosting productivity, improving workflows, and increasing company profitability. However, managing these teams requires that you adapt to an entirely new set of business challenges.
Flexible Option to Work-from-Home
According to remote work statistics, the number of people working from home has increased in the last decade. Therefore, businesses are beginning to understand that flexibility in workstations can help them keep their valuable employees and boost productivity.
Remote Work Stats 2022
A survey found that 81% of respondents said they would be more loyal to their employer if they had flexible work options. A report from Statista suggests that 82% of remote workers experience less work-related stress. The same report indicates that by the end of 2021, 51% of knowledge workers will work remotely—up from 27% in 2019. And according to Business Insider, 22% of remote workers struggle with unplugging from their work. According to another study by Buffer, companies with optional remote work have a 25% lower turnover rate than those without. In a Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) poll, only 76% of new hires agreed they had everything they needed to do their job from home.
A report by Workforce Futures predicted that by 2025, at least 70% of the workforce would work at least five days remotely a month.56% of workers under 35 would work from shared offices and working spaces. 89% of people believe that working remotely should be the default mode of doing work.
Remote Work is the Future of Employment
Many organizations are beginning to hire employees who work remotely to overcome the constraints of distance. These organizations benefit from productivity, profitability, loyalty, and flexibility for employees who work from home.
Today, people are seeking flexible and alternative working arrangements more than ever. This demand has spawned a new industry: coworking spaces. These shared working spaces allow members to work in a place outside of the traditional office and offer many other benefits.
Remote Work: Myths vs. Facts
We’ve compiled a list of three common myths we hear about working remotely and the facts that debunked them.
1. Remote employees are lazy and barely do work
Over time, there have been many instances where telecommuting has been effectively debunked. Many remote workers insist that they work longer hours than office employees who have hard stops at the end of the day.
2. You’ll have a way better work-life balance
When people envision you working remotely, they might imagine you distracted by other aspects of your home life. However, you still have an essential job to do, and everyone else around you assumes you have more time to complete that job. Sometimes that’s not the case. How do you fix this? Say, “I’m sorry, I’m at work right now. Can we discuss this when I’m not working?”
3. You can’t be a people manager if you’re remote
From a Springworks perspective, the biggest myth is that remote employees cannot be good managers, and one of our largest groups of remote workers is mid to upper-level managers.
Remote workers can actually be better managers than in-person managers. Paul Mikhaylenko, CEO of Bloom.io, a CRM for small businesses says “automation and remote work causes managers to re-evaluate the quantity and quality of their roles. Instead of managing tasks, managers working remotely have more bandwidth to manage employee experiences. Since working remotely, I’ve grown closer relationships with every employee on my team since I have automation taking care of my usual administrative tasks, and I can fully focus on connecting with each employee.”
Remote Work Challenges (and Solutions)
While it might seem like a dream to work remotely, the stereotype of working on a laptop on the beach is a misleading image. Many people who work remotely have to convert spaces in their homes into office-like environments.
While remote working can solve many employees’ issues — such as commuting, high office rents, and poor air quality — it may not work for everyone. The decision to work remotely should be carefully considered, and the use of tools that can help people stay focused and motivated while they work remotely.
In the past year, we’ve seen an introduction of various virtual office platforms that can help bring your remote team together, boost collaboration and keep them motivated. Platforms like Teamflow can provide a space for talent to stay organized and have a hub where they can work alongside their coworkers virtually.
How to Manage Remote Teams (Tips for Employers)
Currently, remote work has become more than a trend; it’s now a necessity for organizations worldwide. As a result, thousands of team leaders and managers suddenly manage completely remote teams. As a manager, you must ensure that remote employees are engaged in your organization apart from delivering projects and tasks on time. To manage remote teams successfully, you should be aware of the various ways to motivate them and keep them engaged.
- Offer 1:1 check-ins with your employees, whether the camera is off, on zoom, or on a virtual office platform. Get their feedback and establish that time for them to be able to communicate and express their needs.
- Offer virtual office hours or forums on a monthly cadence so the team as a whole feels heard and supported in the way that they need it.
How to Help Remote Employees to Get Work-Life Balance
Your work-life balance depends on the people you surround yourself with. A successful life requires an even mix of fulfilling one’s professional responsibilities and personal pursuits. According to several studies, money, recognition, and high levels of autonomy are not as important as a solid personal life that meets one’s needs. The changing nature of the workplace leads many employees to struggle to maintain a healthy balance between their professional lives and personal lives.
Some employers have started to house their remote employees, yet having a work-at-home employee can be a double-edged sword. While working from home may increase flexibility and give an employee control over the work hours she puts in. It can also allow an employer to constantly pester her employees with work-related matters, even when she’s out of the office. As an employer, you need to set a healthy work-life balance by example and encourage hours employees can have to themselves and post the regularly scheduled workday hours.
Remote Work Tips for Employees
Some people enjoy working from home, and others prefer an office space. For example, some people find that working from home helps them focus because they feel less distracted. Others, particularly those who work in teams or like to collaborate with other workers, find working from home difficult because it isolates them from their colleagues.
Staying productive at home can become a big challenge if you turn your 5-minute breaks into a three-hour Netflix and chill time. Moreover, if you find yourself sitting comfortably in your joggers until late afternoon, you’re not alone. Most people working from home fail to stick to a strict schedule and balance work with life.
Remote Team Building
During remote work, your business culture might be different. Add an element of fun into workplace communication. This can help you connect with your team better and keep them motivated. Have fun activities and conversations with your employees once or twice a week. This will improve engagement, productivity, and more!
Why is virtual team building important?
Because you are not interacting with people on a personal level, feelings of loneliness, emotional distance, and isolation can easily crop up. Communication issues and misunderstandings can make you uncomfortable working with your colleagues, and it is crucial to create a comfortable work environment for your teams to combat this issue.
Virtual team building can also play a significant role in this regard. It can allow your workers to feel safe and rely on one another when the pressure is on. From several carefully designed strategies, games, and fitness activities to a variety of ideas to drive more human interaction and let people get to know each other better, it can let you create a more substantial workplace community. You can also make sure that you arrange virtual coffee meetings for your teammates.
How to Take Care of Remote Employees’ Mental Health
Some of your employees’ mental health may deteriorate even as they work from home.
While it’s essential to foster a close relationship with your employees, it’s even more important to be attuned to their well-being. Employees who take advantage of flexible working arrangements—including working from home—may not be taking care of themselves. This can lead to feelings of isolation, affecting their mental health, turning the happiest of workers into tired and irritable toads.
What are the psychological effects of remote working?
While there can be many challenges associated with working remotely, remote workers face the main psychological issues: Working from home breaks the barrier between office and personal life. Employees might miss coworkers and watercooler conversations, and Similarly, they might miss celebrating events together.
