5 min
What are the challenges of remote work and how should companies address them during COVID-19? And after the crisis? Is teleworking here to stay?
The coronavirus pandemic has forced companies to switch to remote work very quickly. Although this migration has gone reasonably well for a short period of time, there are a few drawbacks that business leaders should be aware of. After all, the implementation of teleworking is broader and deeper than most organizations believe. To be successful in the long term, a structured approach is needed, along with significant investment to change the corporate culture.
The Challenges In Implementing Remote Work
The COVID-19 crisis confronts companies with a host of short-term challenges. To maintain productivity, it has been imperative to quickly adopt remote work. However, this also brings with it some difficulties. The three main obstacles in the implementation of teleworking are:
1) Implement Remote Work Structurally
Providing the necessary infrastructure and tools to employees is not enough. In fact, some companies already had the telecommuting infrastructure and solutions available at the start of the crisis, but are now realizing their full potential. The tools are important, but a successful migration also requires leadership, clear guidelines, and real commitment.
2) Secure Infrastructure For Remote Work
Where companies used to centrally manage everything, they now have to remotely organize everything. This requires security changes and structural adjustments. Therefore, the commitment of employees is necessary to navigate safely with their tools and work devices.
3) Balance The Work And Personal Life Of Employees
At first, when teleworking was implemented, employees not used to it could experience a blurring of the border between work and personal life. However, workers have shown that this has not affected productivity, but represents a threat to collaboration and communication if it is not properly planned.
Leaders Need To Define A Goal
When implementing remote work, business leaders must first define a goal. COVID-19 is not an objective in itself. Company leaders must ask themselves why they want to implement teleworking beyond the demands of the current crisis. Is the goal to reduce office space? Can it be used to optimize travel or introduce more flexibility into corporate culture?
Once the objective is defined, the first step begins with adapting leadership to the new way of working. Business leaders need to establish a set of practices to communicate with employees and stakeholders. For example, by actively contacting your teams frequently, optimizing calendars, planning comment sessions… Internal communication should be faster and much more frequent. This enhances collaboration and creates the confidence necessary to successfully implement new ways of working.
A clear set of guidelines is needed to help employees deal with this new way of working: why, what, and how. This guide should also be reflected in a tight human resources policy. Remote work is here to stay, so it’s not enough to focus on short-term solutions. Successful companies also plan for the long term and consequently adapt their corporate culture to a changing environment.
What Are The Right Tools For A Good Migration?
To choose the appropriate tools, it is important to first know what is already available. If your business needs to act quickly, having your own solutions can help move you down the path to full teleworking adoption. Keep in mind that every business culture is different and therefore each organization may need different tools to keep productivity high.
Once the adoption process has begun, it is necessary to organize training moments for the employees, distribute them over several days, define tasks, and adapt shifts and schedules… This form of structural implementation is essential. Remote work is an investment.
Why Is It Important To Maintain The Emotional Well-being Of Employees For A Good Collaboration?
It is important for companies to monitor the emotional well-being of employees during the implementation of teleworking. Company leaders must pay attention to the impact that lack of physical contact has on people. Only when employees work remotely do they realize the added value of physical contact.
Companies need to stimulate cooperation between colleagues and monitor the union. Consciously planned free moments, such as virtual cafes or joint work sessions, offer teams the opportunity to connect with each other.
The Value Of Remote Work, Now And After The Crisis
Remote work is an opportunity for companies to change the way they work in a sustainable way: less office space, less commuting, less business trips, shorter breaks and more focus for employees. Market comments seem to indicate that remote workers are also less likely to be absent due to illness.
It can also have a positive impact on the remuneration system of companies and provide information on human resource opportunities. Larger scale telework also gives companies the flexibility to deal with unexpected events in the future, such as the COVID-19 crisis. Finally, remote work can give a renewed impetus to cooperation and cohesion.
Investing in telecommuting will have far-reaching consequences for how we will work after the crisis. It is too early to predict to what extent we will return to the old way of working, but business leaders should already think about the potential of these investments:
1) A new operating model based on greater flexibility and more agile and remote ways of working.
2) A corporate culture more internally and externally connected and where collaborative analytics can provide valuable data.
3) An alignment of business objectives with the new cultural standard and the expectations of employees.
4) Data-based analysis methods to obtain more detailed information about new learning patterns, feelings of employees, etc.
In conclusion, it seems that teleworking is here to stay and can become an integral part of our way of working. The time has come for companies to prepare for this “return to the new normal.”
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