Remote Work Can be an Advantage for a Company
A few years ago there was no doubt about the clear boundary between work and personal life. She stood in the middle of our lives like the Great Wall of China, and we every day try to swing over it without unnecessary scraps.
I’m going to work, I’ll see you tonight
Family, interests, rest, personal needs, traveling … all of this had to be subject to the time most of us had to spend in the office, at our desk, or at major meetings that mostly did not fulfill their purpose. The most important thing about this is: That the boss saw us.
Motivation or desire to work has faded away. Effectiveness lagged. And so it usually ends up looking for another, more interesting and inspirational work. Well yes, we simplify it a little to render the atmosphere, that’s a fact. But do you think to stay in the office, even if it’s „cool“, is really that important?
„Well designed offices will not save efficiency.“
By the time we started inventing and building Freelo, the situation began to change dramatically. The imaginary scepter in business relationships was taken over by freelancers, independent and freelance professionals, start-ups, and innovative companies. The word REMOTE WORK was entered into the word. What had been the prerogative of some of the elected had suddenly become a trend.
We are working remotely and we are okay
We currently four in the team and we all have besides Freelo other work activities – webdesing, marketing, other company management, programming. That’s why no one is surprised that it is not really about regular working hours and classical office. Everyone has a different day mode set. We have other hobbies and family backgrounds, we do not even live in the same city (and sometimes we are not in the same state). But it works. And when we all think about it, we have agreed that remote work is a huge benefit not only for us personally but also for the company.
Geographical borders cease to exist
If you are looking for a capable people to the team and you don´t care if they work from Prague, sunken villages in the Beskydy Mountains, or Singapore, suddenly you are opening up completely different possibilities. You have a great opportunity to meet interesting, experienced and excited people you would not otherwise have come to contact with. Talents can be found everywhere.
„The company’s success is not measured by the number of people in one office.“
And when we are in people working remotely, their nature and mindset will be a great benefit (although there are, of course, exceptions). They are independent, often unconventional. They finish things to the end without anyone standing over and checking them. And they motivate themselves quickly and easily.
No office = smaller business costs
Of course, it’s about money. Therefore, this advantage usually sounds first when talking to someone on the subject of remotely working. Important existence is mainly for smaller and start-up companies. What we are going to talk about and we praise it, given that one job usually comes from a regular employer to tens of thousands of dollars per year.
You have to cancel your office every day because you just decided to have a „remote-work friendly“ company, but it’s a bit exaggerated. Will the company continue to grow? Does he no longer need backgrounds for certain professions?
Communication is key to everything
Because communication with other team colleagues is mostly remote at a distance with the help of a variety tools such as Slack, Skype and, of course, Freelo, we see it as one of the most important pillars of good cooperation. First, we must always reconcile the time when we are all available, and we can fully devote ourselves to what is currently needed to fine-tune or agree.
Before you start using an application or a team communication tool, choose one that will fit you and your colleagues and consider whether you need to see or just hear or write, on what occasion and how often. Long pauses in communication, for example, only raise doubts and uncertainties.
Meetings, teambuilding, retreats
Knowing all the people in the team is something you can fight a little. But something can be done. We, in Freelo, are organizing several daily hackathons (still rather irregularly). These are events where we all meet in one place, of course, most of the time we intensively working, but we also have time to talk to each other, we go for a beer, cook together, or play a football.
In other companies, teammates are teamed up with teambuilding or so-called retreats. Only the intensity and proportion of work and leisure activities change. The universal company rules, however, does not exist, everyone has to design themselves.
The ability to work in an environment that suits us most, whether it’s a living room, a popular café, a hipster co-work, or a grandmother’s garden, and in a pleasant time is simply what makes the quality and efficiency of work activities far farther.
Further Reading: The Toptal Playbook for Remote Work
After publishing this article, we came across a playbook for sustaining an enterprise-grade remote work environment from the team at Toptal. Learn all about how to create and manage your remote team. It includes everything from recruiting remote workers to building team culture and tooling. Check it out to learn how you can help your team adapt their roles for the remote workspace.
How do you perceive work remotely? Positive or negative? And do you think it can be applied to large companies?
