How the pandemic has changed Remote Working <br> 5 Top Trends for the Next Decade

Remote Work & The Pandemic

Working from home has now become a mandatory requirement in 2020 vs an option, thanks to the Coronavirus pandemic. In the past, working from home as an alternative provided to a few employees of a company for a few occasions, while working from an established office was considered to be the norm. However, this year, the pandemic has shown us proof that it is possible for small, medium, and large organizations to work efficiently, even with all employees operating remotely.

An increasing number of employees have begun embracing work from home and are actively seeking employment opportunities that offer this option, and several employers, too, have found the work-from-home system beneficial.

Statistics:

In the past decade, instances of working from home have increased by 400%. However surprising this statistic may look, there are many more that have shown how remote working is picking up and is here to stay. Gartner has predicted that by 2021, at least 41% of a company’s employees will be working from home even post-COVID-19 pandemic. Let’s look at several statistics & predictions pertaining to remote work and the industry mentioned below:

1. Preferred Mode of Work: In a study conducted by Buffer.com about the state of remote work in 2019, 99% of the interviewees have admitted that they prefer to be able to work remotely at least once in the span of their professional lifetime. This whopping majority not just shows us how remote working is extremely favored and popular, but also will become a standard criterion among candidates seeking jobs in the current decade.
2. Priority to Flexibility: According to LinkedIn research, 72% of talent acquisition experts concur that working location and time flexibility will be an essential factors in the fast-approaching future of Human Resources and recruitment.
3. Increased Productivity: As per CoSo Cloud’s study, 77% of remotely working employees have reported that they have been more productive while working from home instead of working from an office space. Sales in the U.S. of employee tracking software like Time Doctor increased by 55% in June 2020 compared to pre-COVID sales. 
4. Bigger Savings: According to CoSo, 30% of remote workers have been saving more than $5,000 yearly.

Obstacles To Remote Work:

With encouraging figures and stats listed above for remote working for both employers and employees, it is time to look at some of the obstacles that this style of work brings along.

Please Note: Below are statistics from the latest research and studies conducted about remote work and the challenges they face.

1. Communication: As a challenge working remotely, 20% of remote workers find communication a big obstacle, which can also be seen overlapping with group coordination and isolation as issues faced while working from home
2. Security Concerns: 54% of IT professionals have the opinion that remote workers don’t feel secure enough. Despite being aware of such metrics, only 60% of employers equip their personnel with data security training, leaving a whopping 40% of the workforce sans information about data security and how to secure their operations.
3. Lack of Socialising: According to Buffer, 19% of employees working remotely have reported loneliness as the biggest challenge they have to deal with.

Trends in Remote Work To Watch Out For:

1. Increase in Diversity and Online Team Building Practices:

   There will be more inclusion in the workforce, given the conditions of remote working eliminating the constraint of geographic proximity.  Apart from full-time employees, we expect to find more and more freelancers joining the fold of organizations to contribute their remote working expertise from various sectors and inclusive backgrounds.

2. The decline of Co-Working Spaces:

   Co-working stations will see a decline in their utility around the globe as remote working will entail working from employees’ workspace for most of the time. To cope with an impending loss and possible shutdown, such co-working spaces will have to formulate extensive subscription plans with mega savings for people to find working from their offices more budget-friendly.

3. Potential To Hire Highly Talented Workforce:

   The 2020s will see 123 million people working remotely by the year 2025, which will work as an advantage for recruiters since they will be able to choose highly talented personnel from across the globe without worrying about additional costs. This opportunity also presents itself with more savings for employers when it comes to paying for corporate office and utilities among other expenditures.

4. It will Become a Top Skill Requirement for Candidates:

   To adapt to the current situation and trends of working, employers will set a preference for candidates who already have experience working remotely as an employee or freelancer on a part or full-time basis. This will save the organization remote training costs. Not only that, they can also shift such funds into data security training and remote employee welfare programs.

5. Organizations will shift to remote working even post-pandemic:

   A Gartner survey reveals that 74% of the CFOs intend to shift a portion of their employees to remote work permanently. 82% of the business leaders will permit and encourage their employees to work remotely for a portion of their time, while 47% revealed that they will allow a scenario of permanent work from home.