The COVID epidemic has changed how modern business is structured and how many workers and companies approach their daily tasks. Remote or telework is becoming more widespread and accepted and this has lead to the restructuring of many companies’ work structures. Long-tern industry experts such as Eyal Gutentag have researched these changing trends in this article and what it means for the future. While telework has changed the way many companies do business the long-term rewards are well worth the effort to implement this change in the attendance policy.
Eyal Gutentag on Lessons Learned: Team Leadership After COVID https://t.co/tfevszJ2BH
— Eyal Gutentag (@eyalgutentag) March 19, 2021
Ways Telework is Beneficial
If you’ve been making use of telework during the pandemic here are five reasons to make this change a permanent one.
- Happier Staff: many employees greatly enjoy telework once they get used to it. There is a learning period as your staff adjusts to this shift in daily work activity and their environment however, with time many employees enjoy work more and have increased productivity. This is because telework removes a lot of the parts of employment a lot of people do not enjoy such as long commuting, traffic, finding a parking spot, and having to wake up early in the morning.
- Less Absenteeism: with the ability to work from home employee attendance tends to improve. Naturally, this is very beneficial to your business it can also be beneficial to employees. Many employees miss work because they have matters to attend to at home or personal issues that make commuting difficult. Teleworking allows them to easily access work without leaving home and can allow the flexibility needed to address any at-home matters that need their attention.
- Reduced Overhead: with fewer workers in your offices and other business locations you can reduce overhead costs. There are several ways to do this. You can reduce the number of offices, close down remote offices, move to smaller locations for essential onsite staff, and end leases for properties that are no longer needed.
- Ability to Streamline Locations: many companies have locations spread across the country or multiple locations in their sales territory. However, many of these regional locations only exist for local employees to have an office location and not necessarily for company needs. These offices can be removed without affecting any business need and being able to telework removes the need for a local office for employees.
- Remove Costly Locations: when streamlining your company locations you also have the opportunity to remove locations that are a net negative on company balance sheets. Long-established companies often have locations that were designed for a much larger staff and changes in demographics and business can leave these large offices half-empty driving up unneeded expenses and rental costs. With more telework, these locations can be removed safely without losing staff.
Final Thoughts
The changing business world offers many unique opportunities and to stay ahead of the competition you have to be open to change. Businesses that are willing to embrace the flexibility that telework brings will be well-positioned to handle future challenges. In addition, the decrease in company expenses and the increase in employee satisfaction and productivity are advantages that can help your business right now.
