news, tips and stories
FOR REMOTE WORKERS AND DIGITAL NOMADS
There’s plenty of science to suggest flexible work schedules are critical for happier, more productive employees, and a more successful company overall. I’m willing to bet we’ve all had those afternoons when we’ve felt entirely unproductive, but still sat at our desks until five p.m. anyway just to clock in the hours. Or, we’ve wished we could have the mornings free to run errands and spend time with family, but a traditional work schedule doesn’t leave us the option to meet those demands. Ultimately, we’ve all been in situations where our rigid work schedule has been a hinderance to our productivity in the office, and our priorities outside of it. A flexible work schedule could allow you to work when you’re most productive, and give you the autonomy you need to create an ideal work-life balance, however that looks to you. There are pros and cons to flexible schedules, just like there are pros and cons to a rigid nine-to-five job. But, as the Jabra study indicates, flexible schedules are becoming more typical nowadays, so we’ve compiled a list of everything good, bad, and surprising about implementing flexible work hours at your office. Flexible Schedules: The Good1. You can adapt your schedule to fit family needs.If you make your own hours, you can ensure those hours adapt to your family and social life demands. For instance, we have parents at HubSpot who make their hours fit around their children’s daycare schedules: they work early in the morning, take a break in the afternoon to pick up their kids, and then resume work later in the evening. Or perhaps your flex schedule is less rigid than that -- maybe you just want time to see your son’s soccer games, or your sister’s graduation, and you need flexibility to manipulate your work schedule without taking time off. Emily MacIntyre, HubSpot’s Marketing Team Development Manager, agrees that there are pros and cons to flexible schedules in regards to parenting: “There are often in-office events after work that I have to miss out on, because I need to be home. But I get to see my daughter, and spend time with her each night, so it’s a trade-off.” Ultimately, a flexible schedule can go a long way towards maintaining a healthy work-life balance and protecting important relationships in your life. 2. You can indulge in self-care.It might sound strange, but having the option to occasionally put your personal needs before work can help you find more joy throughout your day. Plus, in a University of Warwick study, happiness made people approximately 12% more productive. Self-care can be anything from a noon cycling class to finding time to meditate in the park -- anything that makes you feel better able to tackle your responsibilities with a clear mind. 3. Your employees can pursue passions outside of work.Unfortunately, your employee’s passions can’t always fit outside a nine-to-five work schedule. Sometimes that poetry class starts at four, and other times your hiking group leaves at noon on a Friday. There are a few reasons it’s important to give employees the freedom to pursue other passions. First, passion can encourage innovative ideas. The more well-rounded your employees are, the more likely they are to apply unconventional solutions to your company’s problems. Also, as previously mentioned, happier employees are more productive. And, third, if your employees can find outlets outside of work to pursue their passions, they’re less likely to feel unsatisfied in their current role. 4. Your employees can work whenever they’re most productive.For me personally, this is the single most important benefit to flexible schedules: I work insanely well in the mornings. On some mornings, it feels like I can finish two-weeks worth of work before noon. But then, around three or four p.m., it becomes a struggle to even write a grocery list. My brain just doesn’t seem to function past that time. On the other hand, one of my coworkers does best when he can come into the office around 10 a.m., and then work, head-down, later into the night. Tony Schwartz, author of The Way We're Working Isn't Working, writes about the importance of working like a sprinter. He says it’s important to work intensely and distraction-free for a period of time, but equally critical to take regular renewal breaks to recover from that intense work period. Ultimately, your employees aren’t all going to be productive at the exact same time. Flexibility allows them to become better workers -- they will get everything accomplished during the hours they want, and they won’t feel burnt out from sitting at their desks during times they are unproductive. 5. Your employees can avoid rush hour.This might seem trivial, but it’s not -- in 2017 in Boston alone, a rush hour commuter wasted approximately two and a half full days out of a year sitting in a car. That’s almost a full 60 wasted hours where they could have been spending time mentally preparing for their day. A truly painful commute could even eventually drive employees to search for companies closer to home or with different hours. An easy way to improve employee satisfaction is to allow commuters the option to avoid traffic by leaving even just thirty minutes later. One study by McGill University’s Charis Loong and colleagues found that “satisfaction with travel mode is associated with higher odds of feeling energized and being punctual,” and “the strain of the daily commute can negatively impact performance at work.” Unfortunately, a terrible commute can interfere with your employee’s levels of energy and productivity, so it’s important to consider alternative options. 6. You give employees a sense of autonomy.People like control over their schedules -- it enables them to feel fully in charge of their work and personal lives, and makes them feel like their company trusts them. HubSpot’s Culture Code recognizes the importance of autonomy, saying, “Results matter more than the number of hours we work. Results matter more than where we produce them.” And, referring to the Economist graph we mentioned earlier, we can see it’s true -- people are more productive even when they work fewer hours, so why not let people choose whichever time they need to commit to deliver the best results? Siobhán McGinty, a Campaign Marketing Manager in HubSpot's Dublin office, says her flexible schedule gives her the opportunity to “live my best life. I enjoy getting up at 7 a.m., clearing my emails, enjoying my coffee and getting some work out of the way early on in the day. I also enjoy taking two hours off in the middle of the day to go to the gym, or do yoga, or -- if it’s pay day -- get a massage. 7. You can recruit and retain better talent.Flexible schedules have been shown to increase employee productivity and overall morale. Ultimately, you can use the benefits of a flexible schedule as a selling point for hiring better talent. The Creative Group surveyed marketing and advertising executives, and found 33% are offered flexible schedules and remote options. Offering flexible schedules is a good way for your company to attract talent and stand out from competitors in the industry, particularly as flex hours and remote work rise in popularity and employees begin to expect it from their next job. Flexible Schedules: The BadWe’ve covered seven different ways flexible schedules can benefit both employers and employees. But like any work arrangement, there are also some downsides to consider before committing to becoming a flexible workplace. Here are a few risks associated with flexible schedules. 1. It’s more difficult for you to arrange meetings with your team.If everyone has different schedules, figuring out everyone’s availability can get tricky -- for instance, perhaps you can’t have any nine a.m. meetings because three people on your team don’t arrive until 10 a.m. This gets even harder if your team works around the globe, or if you need to schedule meetings with clients who work the traditional nine-to-five. 2. Lines between work and life blur more drastically.Maybe you’re working from home and your roommate asks you to go to a cycling class at noon, and suddenly it’s three p.m. and you’ve still got a ton of work to do. Or maybe your kids interrupt meetings and calls with pleas for trips to the pool. Whatever the case, life intervenes more drastically when you’re working flexible hours, particularly if you’re working remote. Plus, if all the people in your life work nine-to-five, they might try to pressure you into plans that are inconvenient for your schedule, since you “make your own schedule anyway.” Drawing boundaries between personal life and work can get difficult. Besides having a tough time getting into work mode when you’re tempted by your personal life, it’s also often challenging to shut off “work mode” when you can technically work whenever you want. Maybe it’s eight p.m. and you simply can’t relax when your desk, and all those piles of work, is within view. During those instances, it’s important you separate work from the rest of your life as much as possible, even creating a separate office space and closing the door when you leave. 3. You won’t find much structure at home.If you’re working remote, there’s very little structure. With that freedom to take breaks, you might suddenly find you’re getting very little done. Working remotely often requires more focus and discipline than working in an office. You’ll need to set your own rigid structure and stick to it, or you might risk your performance sliding as you take more TV breaks or spend precious productivity hours folding laundry. 4. It can be difficult to create a bonded team.If you’ve got a team that works from wherever, whenever, it can be hard to pencil in time to develop organic, authentic relationships between your team members. It just doesn’t happen as naturally as it would if everyone sat beside one another 9 to 5 and digressed into talks about the latest Bachelorette episode. One way to counteract this is to plan fun corporate team-building activities, but you might still need to work with everyone’s flex hours or remote time. Siobhán McGinty admits remote work in particular can get lonely, so, “to overcome that, I set up virtual “water cooler chats” with people on the team if I have 15-30 mins between meetings. It also helps to maintain rapport.” She also says she “practiced” going remote by initially working from home a few days a week, and eventually working her way up to full-time remote, and admits while rewarding, it’s also difficult. Flexible Schedules: The SurprisingWe’ve explored some pros and cons of a flexible schedule for employees and employers, but there are some additional surprising facts you should know when deciding if flexible schedules is right for you and your company 1. The more flexible your employees' schedules are, the longer they’ll work.If you’re worried about employees taking advantage of flexible hours and working an hour a day before hitting the beach, don’t be -- Heejung Chung, a senior lecturer at University of Kent in the UK, conducted research with her colleague Yvonne Lott, and found there’s a tendency for people with more autonomy over their schedules to work longer hours, regardless of level of influence or job type. In fact, “this increase in working hours was greatest when workers had full atonomy over their working hours.” One explanation for this is known as the gift exchange theory, which is the idea that you’re grateful when your employer gives you a flexible schedule and you see it as a gift, which you feel obligated to repay by working harder and longer. You want to prove you deserve the flexible schedule, so you push yourself to work over eight hours a day. 2. Flex hours make your employees happier -- and their children A study conducted by the American Sociological Review found workers with flex hours slept better, felt healthier, and were less stressed than their nine-to-five counterparts. Overall, the group with flex hours felt happier than the group with a rigid schedule. But, most surprisingly, as noted by the New York Times, is “the effects even cascaded down to employees’ children, who reported less volatility around their own daily stresses; adolescents saw the quality of their sleep improve.” Happiness is contagious, and so is stress, so it makes sense parents with lower levels of stress and higher levels of happiness were able to spread those emotions to their children. 3. It might be harder to get flexible hours if you’re a woman.A 2014 experiment by Furman University sociologist Christin Munsch showed 600 participants a transcript of a conversation between an employee asking for flexible hours and an HR representative. Shockingly, when participants assumed it was a man asking for flexible time, almost 70% said they’d be likely or very likely to approve the request, compared to 56% when they believed it was a woman making the request. There are other studies supporting the same hypothesis -- that it’s harder for a woman to receive flex time than a man -- here. Munsch speculated the study’s results come from inherent gender biases when it comes to childcare: the participants might’ve felt impressed by a man’s desire to spend more time at home with children, while they might’ve felt a woman should find a better way to balance her home and work obligations. Of course, this varies immensely company to company and even country to country, but it’s important for employers to keep it in mind if they’re in charge of approving flexible work schedules for employees So what now?Ultimately, providing flexible schedules for employees won’t work for every company or every department. For instance, if your employees work in the services industry and often speak both on the phone and in-person with clients, perhaps you need them to maintain a nine-to-five schedule. Hopefully, weighing these pros and cons will help you make the best decision for your team, or even brainstorm alternative ways to combat some of the negative consequences of a traditional work schedule.
0 Comments
Setting boundaries when working from home is a real concern for many workers during the pandemic. How do you best manage workloads and personal life? This article will show you how. As a majority of the workforce changes to a working-from-home mode, it becomes more important than ever to pay attention to physical mental wellbeing. This is a top priority because workers now face twice the pressure from their personal and professional life. So ways to separate work from home is of course gaining attention for many. Most companies are changing their policies to help their employees manage their workload while avoiding burnouts. Below are our observations as more conscious workers set boundaries when working from home. Are you using one of these techniques to improve your work-from-home period? Why you need to set boundaries when working from homeWhen we work at a physical office, the place not only acts as a tangible barrier but it also provides us with a mental shield from personal concerns. Offices are designed and optimized for work productivity, with all the tools you might need and spaces to relax, brainstorm, or attend meetings. Meanwhile, a home setting can fall short of these social functions. That being said, whether you’re an IT worker or Marketing professional working from the comfort of your house, you need to breathe some working life into it with a bit of transformation. HOW TO SEPARATE WORK FROM HOME DURING COVIDBuild and stick to your habitsThis scientific method is simple: Create a to-do list of things you need to do every day to give you a fresh and ready mind. Include the activities that help to boost your moods or relax your muscles. For example, your daily habits during lockdown can look like this: - Water my plants - Make my morning coffee - Journal my day - Jog or do yoga at home There is no secret recipe for this. The goal of creating habits is to keep you grounded and be ready for what you do. Follow the same working schedule The problem with working at home without a schedule is blurring the line between life and work, making you shoulder both responsibilities with no end. A consistent working schedule to follow everyday can optimize your working time considerably. You should definitely choose the hours that overlap the most with the rest of your office members. This enables faster and more effective communication to get work done. Most companies also use technologies to improve interdepartmental communication and collaboration to help their employees get the most out of their working time. Also, after this schedule, you can totally rest and enjoy another portion of the day the way you like it. Set up your home office to separate work from personal life Remember the times when you browsed Pinterest and saved inspirations to use later? Now is the time to apply your aesthetic taste. Customizing a home office can be fun, too. But most importantly, this workstation cultivates a sense of belonging in the workforce, to contribute to, learn, and grow your career. This is why personalizing the workspace is an effective way to set boundaries when working from home. It can deter distractions from all corners of your house now that you’re in a kind of semi-office. It is truly the personification of “Let’s work and deliver the best results! Giving a personal touch to your home space can improve work-life balance that many remote workers and digital nomads keep in mind. Therefore, if you’re working from home during this period, follow these tried-and-true methods to stay afloat! Take breaks to focus entirely on yourselfOne step closer to self-care, this can help you achieve inner peace and let your mind rest after all the work before.
Working incessantly can take a toll on your mental health. To avoid fatigue and burnouts, it’s best that you also take into account how your mind and body are doing. Once you’ve noticed restorative breaks can no longer accommodate your needs, you will have to switch to a longer break time to heal. Though it’s harder to communicate our feelings and perceive coworkers’ emotions virtually, the consequences of ignoring EI are too great to neglect. Here’re four tips you can apply to improve your emotional intelligence even when working remotely. The way we work has changed forever. An astonishing 94 percent of respondents in a 2020 study by the Whitaker Institute at NUI Galway stated they would prefer to continue working remotely once the crisis ended. This creates more chances for professionals to leverage their new skills, especially when it comes to remote communications. The non-verbal parts of our conversations, which can provide so much information about others’ emotions, are often missing altogether. Look for the feelings of othersEmpathy is the strongest trait, especially during this chaotic time. Empathy enables you to build stronger relationships, develop mutual respect, and openness so you can work more effectively with others. Remote teams are often expected to work harder than normal ones to maintain a sense of connectedness. To be effective, you may need to improve your listening and observing abilities so you don't lose out on opportunities to connect with and engage others. We must pay close attention and take the time to check-in in order to pick up on the subtle cues provided by our team members via:
Practice consideration before commentaryEveryone has different backgrounds and experiences, especially after COVID-19 and the remote work transition. Being empathic entails taking into account all scenarios before engaging in conversation or delivering a response. Maybe your colleagues who have not answered you right away are having kids at home crying. Make sure you consider all situations before engaging in commenting or offering a response. If you are in a leadership position that requires effective remote team management, it is suggested that you should make proactive calls to employees on many levels down your organizational chart to check in and offer help. Ask your staff what they require, and then provide them with the greatest tools possible to thrive while working from home. TREAT EVERY CRITICISM AS A LEARNING OPPORTUNITYCriticism is everywhere when it comes to daily work. It is not easy to accept criticism from others, especially if the negative feedback was provided in an unprofessional manner.
However, criticism can be a good chance for reflection. Reflection can only get you so far, no matter which position you are in. If you are serious about taking your EQ to the next level, ask trusted friends, colleagues, or family about how you come across social situations. Try not to go into defensive mode. Rather, consider it as a positive change for you to grow your skills and experiences, which are much more important than positions and roles. Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been on the rise in recent years. It has been taking human responsibilities to the next level. In this article, let’s discover AI’s potential and answer the question “Will AI replace humans in the future?” What is AI?AI, in simple words, are smart machines that can perform a wide range of human activities. AI is used in many industries to help from repetitive to more advanced tasks. The goal of using AI is to cut down costs of employment, improve work productivity, and maximize human potential where it’s needed. Contrary to popular beliefs, AI won’t replace human workers at least for the time being. The technology is still in developmental phases despite its many impressive achievements. So in this article, we’ll focus on the strengths that AI has that support and facilitate humans rather than threaten us. How AI will help with remote work is the question we aim to answer. TOP THREE WAYS HOW AI WILL HELP WITH REMOTE WORKTask automationThe first relationship between AI and remote work is clear: AI can help with repetitive processes to save human power. For example, the chatbots that automatically answer when visitors have questions related to the service. This is superior because it is highly accurate (already learned from the service owners) and timely. When potential users visit your website, they’ll value immediate and clear answers to their questions. Chatbots using AI can do exactly that. Internal training purposes When it comes to deep learning and AI, there are virtually no problems for predictable tasks. This is where the HR department can hugely benefit: They can apply AI technology to create training materials, with a human-like voice to instruct. The dynamic features of some advanced AI make it more engaging to watch. In addition, these videos can add on to the organization’s training resources, without having real professionals carry out every time. CV screening A familiar feature to most job-seekers, AI has been extensively used in CV screening to find the right candidates. An AI-powered system called Application Tracking System (ATS) collects CVs and cover letters, analyzes these documents, and screens for industry keywords. The more keywords related to the job, the higher chance this can pass the screening round. AI works to detect these keywords with higher accuracy levels compared to a human’s doing. By allowing AI to spot and analyze applications, HR professionals can focus their energy on more important tasks. This show how AI will help with remote work in the future of digital transformation. Will AI replace humans in the future? The short answer is no.
With the assistance AI provides, it can work best side-by-side with human experts. Any processes done by AI must be closely monitored to minimize errors as much as possible. And not every sector comes down to data work. There are still plenty of positions where direct human interaction is a must, such as psychologists or C-suite leaders. AI can take on my jobs that are predictable, not those requiring high levels of complexity like human emotions. The start of a new year is usually a good time to focus on professional and personal development. Here’re the top 5 in-demand hard skills you’ll need for 2022. The COVID-19 epidemic has accelerated the workplace process by changing how we work and live. Businesses have had to adapt their operations in order to survive. As a result, a large portion of their personnel has had to be reskilled to supply them with in-demand skill sets. Some good news from the US Department of Labor stated that the economy is rebounding, leading to an increase in different types of jobs and skills to adapt to the “New Normal”. Waw Asia has identified five skills that will make you a more valued professional in 2022, especially for your remote jobs. Data ScienceIt's difficult to imagine today's work market without Data Scientists. Data scientists organize and analyze structured and unstructured data sources in order to create actionable strategies that organizations can use to improve their performance. These experts use their programming, machine learning, risk analysis, and research abilities to make the world of data understandable for the rest of the team. Being in the top 10 best jobs in the world, they're in high demand in nearly every industry, including healthcare, banking, shipping, and e-commerce. Organizations are set to considerably boost their data science personnel this year, as the answer to COVID-19 recovery and the increase of big data and innovations like 5G. UX DesignDesign jobs are also one of the most sought-after skills by employers. If you have a flair for beautiful designs, social psychology, and structure, UI/UX Design might be the next step for you. The demand for UX designers to grow by 18% from 2015-2025, according to CNN. And, since the outbreak of Covid-19, an increasing number of businesses have increased their online operations to handle unanticipated shifts (like working remotely, ordering more services for delivery, etc.). The need for UI/UX design will skyrocket in the next years as people spend more and more of their waking hours on websites and applications. There are around 30 billion IoT (Internet of Things) devices on the planet, with that figure expected to rise to 75 billion by 2025. Artificial Intelligence and Machine LearningThe use of artificial intelligence (AI) is increasing as a result of ubiquitous computing (including the Internet of Things). Machine learning jobs are in high demand and show no signs of slowing down. By 2025, 97 million new professions will have emerged that are better suited to the new division of labor between people, robots, and algorithms. This means those who can execute AI and ML technologies are better equipped to deliver customized experiences and innovative products. While these advancements may appear to be unavoidable, the progress is being fueled by professionals' efforts in the disciplines of AI and Machine Learning engineering. For forward-thinking IT experts, machine learning technologies like computer vision swiftly open doors to some of today's most intriguing job options. Data and IT SecurityOrganizations are becoming increasingly vulnerable to harmful cyberattacks as more public and private enterprises digitize their operations, while many companies are working remotely. According to a study published recently by nonprofit cybersecurity group (ISC)2, 63 percent of polled organizations in North America said they lack cyber security-savvy IT workers. This makes make data & IT security become one of the top skills and job demands for 2022. Blockchain Technology With blockchain technology, data is stored securely, which makes it appealing technology in businesses that deal with sensitive data, such as healthcare, banking, and government. To start the blockchain world, you should have a thorough understanding of data structures, cryptography, smart contracts, and, of course, blockchain.
The financial effect of blockchain is expected to be enormous. By 2027, the World Economic Forum predicts that 10% of global GDP would be kept on the blockchain. Skills in blockchain will continue to be in high demand. According to Deloitte's 2020 Blockchain Survey, blockchain is a strategic goal. Cryptocurrency and banking, data transmission, integrity and security, and payments are the top three priority areas. There are many benefits to working remotely that are fantastic but not particularly unexpected. It makes sense, for example, that working from home can be easier on the environment. And that having fewer workers in a traditional office can lower overhead costs for employers. We’ve flipped the script, though, and rounded up a few surprising facts about remote work. We’ve visited the topic before in a broader post looking at stats about remote work. This time, we’ve gone through our previous list and added new data to compile an updated list, with a focus on stats about remote work that are genuinely surprising. Some of the fresh data in the list below comes from a newly released report, the 2017 State of Telecommuting in the U.S. Employee Workforce. This is a comprehensive and exclusive analysis that’s the result of a partnership between our sister site FlexJobs and Global Workplace Analytics, which offers independent research and services to help organizations and communities navigate flexibility and emerging workplace issues. READ ON FOR SEVEN SURPRISING FACTS ABOUT REMOTE WORK:1. On average, remote workers are in their mid-40s and older.There’s a popular conception among some in the job marketplace that millennials are driving employee demands for work flexibility, including virtual jobs. But new data from the FlexJobs and Global Workforce Analytics research shows “half of telecommuters are 45 years of age or older, compared to just 41% of the overall workforce.” Like their younger counterparts, seasoned workers (along with parents and other caregivers) value work flexibility. 2. Remote workers tend to be more educated.To be sure, there are many at-home jobs that don’t require a college degree. However, the research from the Global Workforce Analytics report indicates that, on average, telecommuters are more highly educated. About 53% of virtual workers have at least an undergraduate degree; the rate for non-telecommuters is 37%. 3. Remote employees are more engagedThe belief that remote workers are disengaged from their colleagues and from day-to-day functions of their employer has been largely debunked. Fact is, studies by Gallup and others show that telecommuting is linked to increased employee engagement, particularly if remote employees are given the right training and technological tools to help them stay connected. 4. Remote work is the fastest-growing commute option.Workers in more than half of the nation’s major metropolitan areas list telecommuting as their top “commute choice,” edging out public transportation, the Global Workplace Analytics data shows. As a mode of commuting, working remotely has grown faster than any other means of accessing work and the workplace, the report concluded. 5. Working remotely boosts worker productivity.Close physical proximity to a supervisor and work colleagues is no guarantee that the work is actually getting done. To the contrary, office distractions often slow down the work pace. A separate FlexJobs survey from 2016 found that only 7% of those surveyed felt they could be at their most productive while working in the office 6. The median salary for remote workers is higher than that of in-office workers.Evidence has been building for some time now that working from home doesn’t necessarily mean taking a pay cut. That evidence was reinforced by fresh data from FlexJobs/Global Workforce Analytics research data showing that, on average, the annual income for most telecommuters is $4,000 more than the income of traditional workers. Job seekers who are convinced that telecommuting jobs really pay less may want to reassess their career prospects. 7. Remote work keeps older people in the workforce longer.Many workers are pushing to retire earlier in order to enjoy a second-act career while they’re relatively young; remote work can facilitate such aspirations. And it’s not just the retirees among older workers who are taking advantage of remote options. In some instances, a virtual job can enable an employer to hold on to a valued team member—for example, if that older worker has a spouse who’s already retired and is ready to move to their dream location. In those instances, remote work works because geography isn’t an issue.
When most people think of the benefits of remote work, they tend to equate them with the employees, not the employers. And while there are certainly numerous advantages of telecommuting for your staff, as it turns out, having a remote workforce will greatly benefit you as the employer, too. Here are just 8 of the many interesting benefits of having a remote and virtual workplace:1. Your Staff Will Be More ProductiveIf you let an employee work from home, he’s sure to slack all day and miss his deadlines. And, even if he gets some work done, it’s not going to be up to snuff because he probably had Netflix on in the background all day, right? Wrong. Study after study after study has shown that employees who work from home are more productive than in-office employees. For example, a Harvard Business School study measured employee productivity of employees at the US Patent Office who were allowed to live anywhere. Staff allowed to work from anywhere were 4.4% more productive than their in-office counterparts. And a Stanford study found that work-from-home employees are more productive — by nearly a full day’s worth of work! 2. They Won’t Have to CommuteYou’d be hard-pressed to find an employee who actually enjoys his daily trek into an office. It’s no fun starting your workday with a lengthy commute, crushed into a train car, smushed on a bus, or being jostled on a busy city sidewalk. No matter the reason or how long someone has to commute, commuting contributes to workplace absences and decreased employee productivity. If that weren’t enough, employees who end up in an extreme commute (longer than 90 minutes each way) are more likely to quit their jobs. Allowing employees to work from home helps boost employee retention, which means less time and money you have to spend recruiting and training replacements. 3. They Can Handle the UnexpectedSpeaking of employee absences, what happens to workplace productivity when several people are unexpectedly absent on the same day? Sure, everyone else picks up the slack, but then what? Are there lingering resentments? Is the entire office playing catch-up for a week? Allowing staff to work from home means they are working, even when they can’t make it into the office. Whether that’s due to an unexpected weather event, long commutes thanks to sudden road closures, or even a personal emergency, allowing staff to work from home lets them balance work and personal, letting them be better (and happier) employees. 4. Your Staff Will Be in Better HealthWith more time in their workday, remote workers often incorporate more physical exercise into their day than office workers, who are either stuck in the office or commuting to and from their homes. Why does this matter? Well, a healthy workforce means a more productive one, with fewer personal days taken off to go to doctors’ appointments, or worse, an employee who might need to take medical leave or even quit because he can’t make it into the office anymore. Even if your staff aren’t the exercising type, there are other ways your staff will stay healthy. Without that commute, people will improve their health without even trying. For example, when someone commutes more than 10 miles one way, they’re likely to have higher cholesterol levels, more likely to be depressed, and they increase their risk of a heart attack! When you allow remote work, sick people won’t come into the office because “this has to get done,” or “it’s not that bad.” Letting people work at home when they are sick (and possibly contagious) but able to work means productivity doesn’t drop, because employees get work done without infecting the rest of the staff. 5. It’s More Eco-FriendlyHaving a brick-and-mortar office does not an eco-friendly office make. If you calculate all of the electricity being used to run the office, along with energy-guzzling office equipment, and money spent on office supplies like paper and ink cartridges, it’s actually the opposite of being environmentally friendly. Employee commuting is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA. And, a study conducted by Global Workplace Analytics and FlexJobs found that the nearly 3.9 million remote workers saved 3 million tons of greenhouse gases from entering the environment. Don’t forget that running an office contributes to pollution, too. Nearly 11.6% of greenhouse emissions come from office spaces. After all, you’ve got to keep the lights on, the computers running, and the coffee flowing. All of that requires electricity, and most companies can’t buy their energy from a green supplier. 6. It’s Much CheaperSure, you’d like to have your entire staff centrally located in one office, where you can watch them work, collaborate, and have face-to-face time with them whenever you want it. But all of that comes at a price, in the form of office space costs, office supplies, and equipment. Having a virtual staff virtually reduces all of those expenses to zero! Consider this: in 2015, Xerox, which has allowed remote work for 30 years, found that allowing work-from-home saves nearly $10 million in costs a year. And, the Harvard study found that the Patent Office saved $38.2 million on office expenses. If saving money on rent and overhead isn’t enough, why not add in salary savings, too. Another Global Workplace Analytics study found that 36% of employees would choose working from home over a pay raise and that 37% of technology professionals would take a 10% pay cut if they could work from home. 7. You Can Hire the Best No Matter Where They AreOne often overlooked benefit of remote work is that you aren’t bound by geography. In general, you can hire someone no matter where they live, which means you can choose from among the best employees in the world. And when you do find that perfect match, allowing remote work means you don’t have to pay for relocation expenses! 8. They’ll Be More LoyalFlexJobs’ 2019 Super Survey found that 80% of employees would be more loyal if they had more flexible work options, including work-from-home options. When you give your employees the ability to customize their schedule so that they can better balance their professional life and their personal life, an interesting thing happens: they become grateful. In turn, their gratitude manifests itself in the form of loyalty towards the company. A loyal staff equals great productivity and decreased turnover, which, as any employer knows, is a great cost saver.
For many reasons, a remote job might be the right choice for you. However, if you’ve never had a remote job before, you may be wondering how to showcase your experience. Even before the pandemic ushered remote work into the spotlight, you likely had more remote work experience than you realize. And highlighting this remote-relevant experience is what can help you land interviews. It’s something you can and should do on your resume, but don’t stop there. Take advantage of your cover letter to highlight even more of your remote work skills. Your Remote-Relevant ExperienceWhile many workers are gaining remote work experience during the pandemic, think back to before the pandemic. What are all the ways you gained remote work experience then? Did you volunteer for an organization but conduct all the fundraising from home? Did you do some freelance work for a far-flung client? What about in your job? Did you coordinate meetings with colleagues in other cities? Did you manage accounts for clients based in other time zones? Work collaboratively using only cloud-based tools? All of this—and more—counts as remote work experience, even if you worked in an office setting. It demonstrates that you’ve got relevant remote work experience, so make sure to shine a spotlight on it in your remote job cover letter. Your Remote-Relevant Skill Working from home requires many skills that not every employee possesses. When you don’t have a boss popping into your cubicle, you need to be motivated and organized to make sure you get the work done as efficiently as possible. Remote employers look for certain skills in every applicant, such as:
Your PersonalityOne of the advantages of in-person work is that you get a chance to meet your coworkers and your boss face-to-face and bond with them professionally and socially. These casual encounters give everyone a chance to know each other as more than employees. While it is possible to know your remote coworkers the same way, it does take more time and effort. So, inject a little bit of your personality into your remote job cover letter, so your future employer has a better understanding of who you are. One or two simple sentences about why you like doing what you do or how you discovered your professional career path should do the trick. Remote Job Cover Letter SampleThe specifics of your cover letter will be unique to you, as will how you highlight your remote work experience. Here’s a sample cover letter for a remote job to help get you started. When I read your job posting for a Director of Remote Operations, I was immediately struck by how much the position sounded “like me,” and I am thrilled to apply. I find myself becoming more energized the more I read about your company and this particular role, and I’d like to tell you more specifically why I feel we’re a great fit for each other. To be clear, I am not seeking another “job”—I am seeking an opportunity that will allow me to combine my passion for the remote operations space with my deep operations experience in leading, growing, and mentoring high-performing teams. Knowing the overarching goals of the organization, as well as its values and culture, I’m confident I have the skills you seek in policy creation, process improvement, metrics defining and tracking, risk monitoring and management, and vendor contract management. For example, as Operations Manager at [Company Name], the operations team I oversaw was responsible for reducing shipping costs by 20% in one year while supporting revenue growth of 100% year over year. Much of this work was done in a distributed way over phone, email, web and video conferencing, and document sharing, and I enjoyed the remote nature of the job immensely. Learning new tools and technology is consistently part of my personal and professional growth. Underpinning my success? I possess a unique combination of digital and traditional business operations experience, and I’ve collaborated with teams of all sizes, experience levels, and generations. I welcome the opportunity to discuss the role and my qualifications with you further. Thank you for your time and consideration. Showcase Your Remote SkillsSome job seekers simply regurgitate their resume in their cover letter, but that’s wasting a golden opportunity to truly convince an employer of why you’d be a great remote employee. So use this opportunity to show all the relevant remote skills you have that make you an ideal candidate for the job, and the position could be as good as yours.
Technology jobs have long been ripe for remote workers. With many positions done solely using the Internet and computer programs, performing these jobs from home can easily be done. Today we’re taking a look at the world of QA by going over what QA jobs are and how to land a position doing this type of work. What Are QA Jobs? QA, which stands for quality assurance, is a position that tests and assures the quality of software, websites, programs, and more. QA testers or analysts typically dive deep into a program or service to uncover bugs and issues. Their goal is to help fix and improve items before releasing to a customer or company. QA workers often use automated programs and test scenarios to find problems and ensure a good user experience. You can find remote QA jobs with titles like manual QA tester, quality assurance tester, penetration testing advisor, technical quality manager, and more. How to Land Remote QA JobsFAMILIARIZE YOURSELF WITH THE TOOLS.QA testers often use automated tools to help with the testing process. If you’ve never had a QA job before, familiarize yourself with some of these tools to give yourself a leg up on the competition. QTP, SoapUI, Appium, and Selenium are some common programs used. Try running these programs on the product or service of the company you’re interested in working with to see if you can uncover any bugs. A company may be impressed if you come to the interview with ways to improve their product. Become an expert on the program.Having a thorough understanding of the program, website, or service you’ll potentially be testing in a new QA job can be immensely helpful. If you go into an interview already knowing the ins and outs, the more likely you are to excel at improving and testing the program or service. Impress the interviewer with your vast knowledge of their software and convey your passion for the product. Know how to work remotely.Preparing yourself to work remotely, especially if you’ve never done so, can help you land a remote QA job. Start by setting up a home office with a dedicated place to work. Ensure you have a good computer and high-speed Internet access. Read up on the many benefits of working remotely. A potential employer will like to see that you’re prepared and understand the intricacies of working from home. Looking for a remote job in quality assurance? Check out these remote QA jobs hiring now!Part-time jobs serve different purposes for different people. High school students use them to earn gas money. Career changers use them to gain experience in their new field. And sometimes, people take on part-time jobs for a little extra cash! But when people think of part-time jobs, they usually think of working in a brick-and-mortar retail setting or taking orders at the fast-food counter. However, there are many remote, part-time jobs in a variety of fields that can help you earn extra cash—and you’ll never have to wear a paper hat! Below are some of the categories on our site that commonly have remote, part-time jobs, including some sample job titles. 7 Part-Time, Remote Jobs for Extra Cash1. TeachingTeachers help students master the subject matter. From kindergarten through adults, online teachers may create lesson plans for live or asynchronous learning and often provide individualized tutoring. Recent part-time, remote jobs:
2. Customer ServiceMany companies across an array of industries hire customer service representatives to work directly with customers, answering their questions and solving their concerns. Remote customer service representatives may communicate with customers by phone, email, or live chat. Recent part-time, remote jobs:
3. WritingWriters create different types of written materials for various audiences. They may create written content for websites, write scripts for videos, or create copy for advertisements, marketing materials, or print publications. Recent part-time, remote jobs:
4. EditingSpeaking of writing, editing is often the final step of the writing process. Editors review and make changes to written content before publication. Often, editors help decide what topics will be covered and assign projects to writers. Recent part-time, remote jobs:
5. Accounting & FinanceAccountants help companies stay on top of their financial data. They often oversee accounts payable and receivable, organize company records, and help prepare tax documents and returns. Recent part-time, remote jobs:
6. Data EntryWorking in data entry is more than pressing numbers on a keypad. Data entry professionals ensure the efficient and accurate processing of large amounts of information and data. Recent part-time, remote jobs:
7. Virtual AssistantVirtual assistants provide administrative support to individuals, agencies, or companies. This could include anything from sorting and replying to emails to scheduling travel or posting on social media. Recent part-time, remote jobs:
Earn Some Extra CashOne of the best parts of a part-time, remote job is that you can do it from the comfort of your home. And in many cases, you get to set your schedule, giving you the flexibility to work whenever it’s most convenient for you.
Check out more part-time, remote jobs that can help you earn extra cash. |
AuthorThe Remote Worker Archives
January 2022
Categories |