Hiring employees should be quite straight forward. Right?

All you need to do is write a job description, post it online and start interviewing. While this sounds quite simple, attracting and retaining the right people is hard. In an ideal world, you’ll find someone quickly who is:

• Qualified
• Experienced
• A good fit with your team

But this is challenging. Flexible working is one of the things being used by businesses to draw in the best people.

In the UK 84% of businesses are using flexible workplace policies to attract and retain top talents. The global average is 77%. According to the IWG Global Workplace Report, businesses believe flexible working plays a critical role in widening the talent pool. And workers confirm that having a choice of work environment plays a key role in evaluating work opportunities (70%).

Organisations of all sizes take advantage of remote working and no longer need to be restricted by location. Businesses don’t have to wave goodbye when a talented employee needs to relocate for personal reasons or turn down an applicant because she lives somewhere else.

Having said that, remote working can con with some challenges.

I’m worried that remote working will impact on our company culture

Will the business end up with a team of people who just don’t know each other? Should the business be worried that remote workers won’t work as hard? A lot of this comes down to how the team is managed. It is important regularly to bring remote workers into the main office. Scheduling recurring skype meetings ensure remote workers aren’t strangers to everyone else. If there are concerns about home distractions impacting on work output, then working in a co-working space ensures an ‘office environment’.

Using technology to enable remote working.

Remote working can be more expensive initially. The business will need to supply a company computer/laptop and possibly a phone. There is the need to ensure a good, robust and reliable internet connection. It may also be necessary to set up VPN connectivity or access to individually used bandwidth.

Ensuring security for remote working

Depending on the work, security may be a concern.  Do employees need access to secure printing and sensitive documents? This is harder to manage when working outside the office. 45% of workers report business concerns about data security and 19% are concerned about a lack of remote cybersecurity systems.

Informal remote working for example from a coffee shop may give rise to issues to do with physical possessions (what do you do with a laptop when the loo calls?)

Are remote workers motivated and productive?

Let’s face it, working from home can be distracting. Whether it’s the housework, family or door-to-door sales calls, you can be surrounded by distractions. But businesses have deadlines which must be managed and performances and behaviours which are appraised. There is little evidence to suggest that remote workers perform less well than others. Well managed people are productive whether they’re working 20 meters away or 20 kilometres away.

A high turn over of staff will cost businesses time and money. Allowing employees to work remotely where appropriate will help a business stand out from the crowd and show their team that they are trusted.  So while the initial setup may take some getting used to, we believe that remote working can be beneficial to businesses of all shapes and sizes.

Get in touch to find out how The Racquets Court can support companies or individuals interested in remote working.