Member Article

Where’s your office? The rise of the remote worker

Around 70% of university graduates and young professionals believe an office is no longer necessary, according to a survey by Cisco. Even employers are starting to agree – in fact studies show that 45% of the US workforce now have a job that could be carried out via telecommuting.

A new study by software company Wrike shows that 83% of employees work remotely for at least part of the day and businesses are beginning to embrace remote working as a model because the level of flexibility it allows not only makes your employees happier, it can also help you to better meet the needs of your business in our 24/7 world.

Advances in video conferencing, multiple communications devices, social media and other technologies can all be used to create an effective remote working environment that can more than accommodate the need to be in touch on a regular basis and provide the essential network connectivity needed to be productive anywhere, anytime.

Unfortunately though, even when all the studies and trends tell us it’s the way forward, remote workers still worry that they might be viewed as less productive when working away from the office and that a lack of face to face interaction could prevent them getting ahead.

Here are our top tips to keep productivity visual in the remote world:

• Organisation. Meeting deadlines, producing quality work and being on time are easy ways you can show your commitment. Plan your schedule (or if you’re an employer, perhaps plan schedules with your employee).
• Regular contact. Having regular communication between employee and employer is still important to keep track of project deadlines, understanding of priorities and quality of work.
• Use collaboration tools. Tools like Google Docs, Zoho and Approver means that an employee’s work can be seen in real time – real time edits, comments and projects – which is just one more way of demonstrating productivity.
• Respond promptly. As a remote worker, one of the best things you can do to demonstrate you are productively working in the company’s best interests and not asleep is to respond quickly to your managers emails. A simple tip, but an important and very visual one. If you are self-employed why not consider a virtual assistant, in order to maintain a timely and professional front for your business.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Alastair Yong .