The idea of working from home is one of the greatest innovations in any industry. The COVID-19 pandemic taught the world that organizations could continue to function by working remotely. It is thus essential for employers to consider mechanisms that allow their staff to work from home permanently (Goldstein, 2017). During the pandemic, remote working or working from home improved efficiency in communication between employees and their company using various project management solutions. Companies can use multiple technological solutions that ensure all the communication, files, and approvals are easily accessible to eliminate time lost through the needless taxing processes and email chains. Working from home has seen improved collaboration with customer profiles, and employees can now update reports on a real-time basis. Working from home also improved productivity, where telecommuting employees were proven more productive than their counterparts. As much as one might be close to their family, there are few social interruptions. Employees can take necessary breaks when required, which helps in overall performance, creativity, and motivation (Schmitt, 2012).
In terms of work culture, companies may end up with two types of culture. One is based on remote office culture using digital tools. The other is based on physical interaction, especially when employees must be physically present at work, similar to those in the manufacturing, construction and production industries. Companies will also have to learn to integrate these two types of working styles by considering employees scope of work. Organizations will need to incorporate new technologies that make it easy for employees to connect, interact and deliver according to their job requirements, in order to take the most out of both the technologies and the employee’s potential.
References
Goldstein, H. (2017). The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of the Psychology of Recruitment, Selection and Employee Retention. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons.
Schmitt, N. (2012). The Oxford handbook of personnel assessment and selection [electronic resource] / edited by Neal Schmitt. Oxford library of psychology.