Remote working affects productivity in many ways. Remote working is the most preferred way of working now in a pandemic situation. It ensures safety and avoids unnecessary outside contact. Remote working allows people to work in the comfort of their homes. Many companies now prefer this for their employees. Twitter, Facebook, etc., have in fact encouraged this and reported a rise in productivity.
While the pros seem very comforting and quite dramatic, are there drawbacks to this? Here we discuss both aspects of how remote working affects productivity in the following sections.
How Remote Working affects productivity? – Good Impacts
Remote working increases the quality of family life. Working parents who have found it hard bonding with their families now get ample time with them. Many people staying far away from their workplaces won’t lose time during the commute.
There will not be strict times to adhere to routines and this de-stresses them. Many people found it very convenient and stress-free. They report that it increased their work efficiency. Their diet and routines were healthier and this boosted their overall well-being.
In a state of remote work survey by Hubstaff Blog, 84.5% of companies are expected to offer remote work options after the pandemic. The sick and break times taken were less as they were at home. Many people found time to rediscover their hobbies.
Introverts fully extended support for this venture. Remote working inhibited white noise of the office and distractions. People also didn’t mind performing overtime work as it just meant logging in for more hours. Many found it a respite from their toxic work environment.
All these positive aspects boosted productivity.
Remote Working Affects Productivity: Bad Impacts
In a world with people cutting back on social contact, work isolation might be detrimental. Many cases of anxiety, isolation, and loneliness arose during the pandemic. Remote working further pushes them to more loneliness and this can negatively affect productivity.
Many people with huge families found their home atmosphere distracting. They couldn’t concentrate on their work easily and this cut back their efficiency. Their familial responsibilities often stressed them out and creating a distinction between work and the home was tough.
Remote working affects teamwork as there are no social interactions. Physical interactions are key to good unity and team-building. Psychologists maintain that face-to-face conversation is important in building trust. Certain jobs involving science required practical work and remote working didn’t help. Apart from this, the locations of certain employees may not be feasible owing to unstable network connections.
Conclusion
Keeping all these in mind, remote working has both upsides and downsides. Both remote working and working in office spaces don’t have 100% productivity.
Companies offering remote working to employees found it a success and now have two work options. This mode of working should be an option for employees. If they find themselves most productive at home, offer them that.
If they prefer the work environment, give that option to them after the pandemic. We conclude that remote working affects productivity. Whether it is in a good way or bad, it depends entirely on the companies.