By Wayne Berger
The demand for flexible working has increased across the globe, and 2016 will continue to see rapid growth in flexible and remote working. Today more than ever before, smart HR leaders are helping their companies embrace this new way of working.
We’ve heard it before, and we’ll hear it again – flexible work is one of the top ways to attract and retain talent. According to the latest research by global workspace provider, Regus, 61 per cent of firms use flexible working as a way to attract and retain staff, highlighting the important role that flexible working has in boosting productivity and motivating or rewarding talented staff.
The research also revealed that worldwide, 54 per cent of senior managers believe companies like theirs are looking to increase the number of remote workers, and 76 per cent believe that senior management can actually become more productive if they work flexibly.
It may come as no surprise then that the majority of firms are shifting their focus to measuring employee outputs with results-based assessments, rather than simply focusing on time spent in the office. This signals that remote working is becoming the norm and that firms have no interest in rewarding “unproductive presenteeism.”
Unfortunately, there are still managers who measure success based on how much time is spent in the office, but they are quickly becoming outnumbered as the new remote working approach takes over. And while measuring outputs is clearly a more suitable method of gauging remote worker performance, it is also a way for remote-based managers to effectively measure their team’s productivity wherever they are.
Well over half of senior-level staff manage a remote worker at least part of the time, but in spite of this, it is alarming that less than half of firms are putting special training in place for the management of a remote workforce. With more businesses embracing flexible working, implementing successful remote management processes is absolutely essential to ensuring top workers are recognized, nurtured and developed.
For leaders to excel in remote management, it’s integral to foster employee relations, motivation and loyalty, yet too few firms are putting a strategy in place to help managers set their team up for success. Special training for remote management should be high on the agenda for HR professionals, or they risk that performance may suffer.
These findings emphasize the need for remote management training investment to ensure the transition from a fixed to mobile workforce is a smooth one. With the amount of modern technology at our fingertips, a key piece to ensuring success for the remote workforce is having a professional and properly equipped remote work location as an extension of the workplace.
The full benefits of flexible working are unlikely to be reached if the alternative location offered is not conducive to productivity and are ill-equipped, noisy or distracting, such as a coffee shop or home office. And employers should not assume their remote staff want to work from home due to distractions and feeling lonely when working from home. Most professionals do not want to encroach on their home life, and many are more productive when working from a professional environment – closer to home or their customers.
Given the significant surge in flexible working, it is positive news that more and more firms are adapting their performance analysis to measuring real outputs regardless of location. A major caveat for managers remains, however: firms need to invest in remote management strategy and training to get the best out of their workforce.
Wayne Berger is the vice president of Regus Canada