What Is Remote Work & How To Implement It Successfully In Your Company

What is remote work, and why is it worth it for companies? Find out more about the different forms of remote work and how you can implement it in your organization.

What is Remote Work?

Remote work is a term that is not used uniformly and for which there are many synonyms. Basically, remote work means that an employee does not perform his or her work in the office, but rather remotely and exclusively online. How this looks in practice is defined by each company itself, for example, whether there are specific working hours or not.

Synonyms and similar terms for remote work:

• Distance work
• Home Office
• Telecommuting
• Teleworking
• Location-independent work
• Working from home
• E-work

When asking "What is Remote Work?" there are several types to consider.

Completely remote work

If you have never been to the company you work for, then you are working completely remotely. A physical workstation is not provided for you, and you can work from anywhere – for example, from home or while traveling.

Partial remote working

Nowadays, many companies offer their employees the option to work from home one, two, or three days out of the five days they work per week. There is a responsibility to be present in the company as agreed. This type of remote work is also called alternate work.

Mobile working

Have you ever opened your laptop on a plane or train? Then you have been mobile working, which is also a form of remote work. After all, you are location-independent and only need a device as well as an internet connection to fulfill your responsibilities.

Remote work at a customer

If you are at a customer appointment outside the company, this is in principle a form of remote work. However, here the work location cannot be freely chosen unless customer appointments take place online.

Remote working in neighborhood offices

Do all of a company's employees really have to be bundled together in one location at all times? Wouldn't it be much more efficient to provide employees with office space close to home, especially if most of their work is done on the computer or by phone anyway?

That's exactly the idea behind neighborhood offices, which have become especially popular in Scandinavia.

And then there's whether permanent or freelance employees are better suited to working remotely in your company.

Companies need at least the following three fundamentals to successfully implement this way of working.

Openness to new ways of working

Since the start of the pandemic, many have gotten a liking for remote work. Prejudices against the home office were thus partially eliminated, and the benefits came to the front.

If you want to implement this new way of working permanently in your company, you need a lot of openness as a company, because remote work will certainly bring many changes.

Technical infrastructure

For remote working to be a success, both hardware and software are needed. Employees must be provided with the programs they need. In addition, solutions such as SaaS software are an important foundation to ensure consistent and efficient communication.

Cloud services are well suited for storing data such as documents, artworks, or images to minimize the risk of data loss.

Security

When employees travel around the world with internal company information on their laptops, security should play a major role. After all, you don't know how secure the Internet connection will be that your programmer uses to dial into Thailand. So at the very least, make sure your data transfer is encrypted.

It is not possible to work from anywhere in every profession. In nursing, retail, as a production worker, pilot, or in the hotel industry, it is necessary for the staff to be present. In addition, in production, it is usually not possible to mobilize all the necessary work equipment.

On the opposite, there are professions and activities that can be done mainly on a computer, laptop, or by telephone. A good Internet connection is then sufficient to work from anywhere and communicate with colleagues or customers.

Suitable occupations for remote working are:

• Office Worker
• CAD Designer
• Software Developer
• Programmer
• Graphic Designer
• Customer Service Employee
• Online Marketer
• Project Manager
• Copywriter
• Blogger
• Translator
• Virtual Assistant
• Online Business Manager
• Web Designer
• Online Teacher
• Consultant
• Therapist
• Telemarketer

Remote work is becoming more and more popular, especially in service professions. Even doctors are already conducting consultations online, and this is likely to become even more prevalent in the future.

Remote work has many advantages for both employees and companies.

Companies

• Cost savings (rent of office space, electricity, etc.)
• Increased attractiveness for employees
• Reduction of location disadvantages
• Access to talents worldwide
• In some cases, freelance employees are a possibility
• Sustainability bonus points through reduction of work trips

Employees

• Good conditions for a healthy work-life balance
• Increased flexibility
• Reduction of work travel (cost and time advantages)
• Higher productivity
• Stress reduction
• Higher level of location independence
• Family-friendly working conditions

However, working remotely has also some disadvantages.

Companies

• Less control
• Higher effort for technical support
• Technical issues such as weak internet connections
• Different time zones can become a challenge

Employees

• Isolated work environment and no personal contact with colleagues
• Workplace in the home office can be distracting
• Separation of personal and professional life is more difficult
• Career development opportunities may be fewer
• High level of personal responsibility and self-management required
• Fewer exchanges with colleagues (e.g., short door-to-door coordination)

Do you also think that the advantages of remote work outweigh the disadvantages, and would you like to implement this new way of working in your company? Then we have a few tips for you!

Your definition of remote work

Remember our opening question, "What is Remote Work?". Define what remote work should look like in your company, and design appropriate rules.

A suitable infrastructure

Create the technical prerequisites for a functioning IT infrastructure now and decide on SaaS solutions, cloud systems, and tools that enable team video calls, for example.

Better safe than sorry

While transitioning to a home office during the pandemic, everything had to happen overnight. Take the time now to consider the security aspects. VPN, encrypted communications, and protected private laptops make the work environment safe from unwanted access.

Those who work with cloud systems must also be concerned about the rights of each individual employee. Who is allowed to view, edit or delete documents?

Find remote employees

With the introduction of remote work, talents are available to you all over the world. When looking for new employees, you should definitely keep this in mind. We have also helpful tips for you on how to hire remote developers.

You can find a lot of talents on TieTalent, spread all over the world, working remotely and appreciated by companies for their work.

Contact us or create a free profile, and we'll help you find the right talents for your organization. If you're open to different forms of remote work, you'll be amazed at how quickly you can fill your open positions.