Remote Working

Remote working means staff do their job away from the organisation's premises, using technology such as a laptop, a web-based platform and an internet connection to reach the organisation's systems. The work still belongs to the employer; only the location changes.

Benefits to the organisation

If fewer people need desks, an organisation can give up part of its building — a small agency might hand back the top floor of its office and keep two rooms for the days when people do come in — so its rent and energy bills fall, and the saving comes back every month. It can also recruit from a wider pool of skills: a publisher in Sheffield can take on a specialist proofreader who lives two hundred miles away, choosing the best applicant rather than the nearest one. Staff who are mildly unwell can work from home instead of taking the day off, so sickness absence falls, and many find they have fewer interruptions, so productivity rises and profit follows. Staff spread across time zones also keep work moving round the clock: a support team in Manchester can hand open tickets to colleagues in Auckland at the end of the British day, so customers get answers overnight instead of waiting until morning.

Drawbacks

Everything depends on reliable devices, internet and collaboration platforms. If the platform goes down or an employee's broadband drops out, the work stops. Data accessed outside the premises creates security risks: a laptop left on a train or a home network with weak passwords can expose customer records, so organisations protect data using encryption, multi-factor login and clear rules about what may be stored locally. Managing staff is harder too, because a manager cannot see who is struggling and misunderstandings take longer to clear up. Collaboration — staff working together, not just working remotely — suffers when colleagues are in different locations or time zones, when suitable tools have not been provided, or when staff have never been trained to use them.