What COVID 19 has taught employers about remote working
As we have all adapted to remote working in the last few months the working population has been on a steep learning curve on the impact of working from home on efficiency, motivation and mental health.
Whilst this impact is felt keenly by the individuals working from home, employers with a responsibility towards their employees are also trying to strike the right balance between the good of the business and the good of their staff.
A recent report released by Microsoft has highlighted a number of ways in which we have been affected both personally and as a business community.
The full report is here but we have pulled together some of the most interesting points we came across.
“The 9 – 5 day may be fading away”
The report found that our working hours are moving well outside of the previous norm. As we work around others in the home there is more work being done in the evenings and weekends.
Whilst some may welcome this and are able to flex and take more breaks during the day, many have stated that their working days have just got longer. Rather than being a sign of better flexibility does it just mean that the distractions and commitments of homeworking have put more pressure on people?
Coworking spaces can be the perfect middle ground for those who do not want to travel into an office but are finding it harder to fit their working hours into a normal day from home. Most people can find a coworking space near their home and use it to maximise efficiency with no distractions during the working day ensuring their evenings and weekends remain for them and not work.
“Physical offices will not disappear in the future of work”
Although the report says that 82% of managers expect to have more flexible work from home policies, it also stated that 60% of people felt less connected to their colleagues since working remotely more often. In addition, only 35% of respondents had a home office.
This means that going forward there will be a much higher mix of office and remote based working. People feel the need to connect physically with their team every now and then to avoid loneliness. However, this is certainly no longer wished for on a full-time basis and most people still want to work remotely for a better quality of life and often more efficiency.
Working remotely from home for the majority of time comes with distractions, connection issues and ergonomic problems.
Coworking spaces again provide a service to beat those challenges. Allowing remote working for employees but within an environment that can offer fast internet, no distractions, properly designed desk space and most importantly other people to bounce ideas off is a great middle ground for employers.
Whilst the UK continues to fight COVID for the foreseeable future employers need to put into place the right policies for their staff.
Whilst social distancing is in place many are unable to bring back staff full time, many of those employed are just not willing to do this full time either.
For employers a good coworking space is the perfect solution to this problem.
A socially distanced and safe but also productive and inspiring environment to work
Other interesting people to stimulate the brain and prevent feelings of loneliness
No need to commute
Super-fast Wi-Fi so no connection issues
Pretty much the perfect solution to keeping your staff happy, safe, motivated and productive.
Get in touch with us to find out more about the range of hotdesking and satellite office solutions we can offer you or your team.
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