5 Reasons Why Your Team Should Support Flexible Work
Transitioning to Working Remotely is Easy When You Collaborate with Achurch Consulting
If your company still isn’t supporting a hybrid work or remote work model of any kind, then you’re already falling behind the curve of the rest of the world. Don’t just take it from us – the proof is in the headlines:
- “Netherlands Poised to Make Work-From-Home a Legal Right” (Wall Street Journal)
- “64% of workers would consider quitting if asked to return to the office full-time” (CNBC)
- “Why employees are leaving—and the culture that makes them stay” (Fortune).
Perhaps you’re already facing a disconcerting amount of attrition. Maybe you’re finding that employee morale has dropped since returning to the office after the heaviest of the pandemic. You aren’t sure what to do.
If the solution was something as simple as allowing your employees more flexibility, wouldn’t you embrace it?
Ask any outspoken member of your team, and they’ll likely confide in you that they want the flexibility of at least a hybrid work environment. And while their reasons for wanting it may not coincide with business reasons to make the transition, all of them are very good ones that promote strong outcomes for all parties.
Keep reading to discover five of the most compelling reasons why the future of work is flexibility – and how you can successfully manage your digital transformation.
Working Remotely Allows You to Hire the Best Talent
When you drop geographic limitations, your applicant pool grows, and you get to choose the best employees from all over the world. Not only will you find the talent you need and want, you will position yourself as the people-focused, forward-thinking culture that employees want to work for, and they’ll find you, too.
Online interviews and flexible work schedules to accommodate time zones are a must in this case, which can be difficult to adopt at first. But with such a talented remote workforce and a suite of flexible perks, you’ll stand out among your competition, making your digital transformation worthwhile.
Employee Retention Is More Likely to Increase
A healthy work-life balance is a key player in preventing employee attrition. Working remotely improves this balance.
Employees spend less time commuting (starting their day more charged from a longer night’s sleep or a morning workout, while some even use that commuting time to slip in extra work).
They can work from anywhere, which means they can see new sights and visit family with little interruption to their work schedule.
Employees feel a greater sense of control over their days with the opportunity to spend more time with loved ones.
With 41 percent of global businesses (and counting) offering remote work or hybrid work schedules to some extent, if your business doesn’t, you may soon find it difficult to attract and retain qualified workers.
If You Do It Right, Communication Can Improve in a Remote/Hybrid Office
Let’s quash the rumor that working remotely means poor communication and difficult collaboration. The latest project management software and communication technology is designed to support remote work, even more so than at the beginning of the pandemic that prompted this global shift.
Not only are the tools in place to make it happen, the need for more asynchronous and documented communication in a remote space can actually improve alignment, accountability and action.
Think about it. Much of the way we communicate in the remote or hybrid office is over instant chat and collaborative documents, and unlike hallway conversations, these verbal transactions have a record for team members to refer back to.
Start researching now, and implement one of the many low or no-cost technologies for instant chat, video meetings, and more while your team is still in the “transition mindset” amidst the world’s changing state of work.
Remote Workers are More Productive Than In-Office Teams
It shouldn’t be a shock to you that in allowing your employees to work where and how they want to work (i.e., work remotely) you can actually increase how productive they are. Why? Remote work eliminates distractions (even simple ones like people walking down the aisle between cubicles) and improves engagement via increased autonomy..
Multiple recent surveys reveal that employees are more productive when they’re working remotely – and if they’re allowed a flexible work schedule that matches their personality type and lifestyle, they can increase productivity even more.
A Remote Office Saves Company Overhead
The cost to operate a large office space is unnecessary with a remote work model because your team members are not on-site.
Consider your operations budget without bills for an office lease, utilities, cleaning, and basic supplies. How much money could you save? In a recent article in Forbes, American Express revealed their organization saved up to $15 million in annual real estate costs alone when they implemented their remote work model.
It’s important to note, while this may be a top reason for transitioning remote, it shouldn’t be your only reason. Transforming your workforce model with only money in mind is a slippery slope to poor planning. Particularly when it comes to making operational decisions that work for and with your most important asset – people. While funds may be saved overall, money needs to be reallocated to the needs (and new needs) of your remote and hybrid workers (e.g., proper home office set-up, occasional travel to staff on-sites, etc.).
Don’t Make the Change By Yourself!
With fewer expenses related to operations, increased engagement and morale, and a larger recruiting pool to pull from, remote and hybrid work offers value to every aspect of your business. While it doesn’t come without hurdles, the benefits far outweigh the challenges.
How you choose to use your restructured budget and your new views on business is ultimately up to you.
Your organization’s digital transformation requires expert change management and meticulous and intentional training. Achurch Consulting is a master at implementing a new workforce model, and our team can guide you from preparation, to start, to finish.
Start with a remote workforce assessment, or attend one of our free monthly webinars to learn more. Contact us when you’re ready to begin your journey toward the future of business.