Although some companies are insisting that employees return to their pre-pandemic workplace, there is no question that remote work is a continuing practice. Tech companies in particular are continuing remote work permanently, while others (mine included) have adopted a hybrid with specified days in office and work from home in the remainder.
A post on the Remote Desk website (https://www.remotedesk.com) lists the reasons remote work is here to stay:
- It allows companies to hire from a wider geographic area.
- It lowers operating costs for businesses while reducing commuting costs (and stress) for employees.
- Technology enables employees to connect remotely, and balance work and home responsibilities.
On the negative side, remote work presents a challenge to supervisors. Managers need to learn how to maintain productivity, compliance and security in a remote setup. On balance, while Remote Desk may be too extreme in stating "remote work has become an integral part of every organization" it will be interesting to see how companies who are resisting this trend will fare against their competitors who are embracing it.