If there are two things that can be said about the work culture of the future with any certainty, they are: it will be need to be flexible, and work from home or work from anywhere will be a salient part of it. Market studies corroborate this assertion.
As per a recent Forrester Consulting survey commissioned by LogMeIn, more than half (53 percent) of HR or IT decision makers reported that they are purchasing more technology to enable remote workers, with nearly three-quarters of workers saying they want to work more remotely in the future.
Two key factors are driving this paradigm shift. The first involves the viral outbreak pushing the momentum of the digital transformation across organisations past the inflection point. The second factor tilting the balance in favor of the continued relevance of the remote work paradigm is the benefits that a flexible work culture affords to both, an organisation and its employees.
Benefits of a flexible work culture
The global ecosystem switched to working remotely almost overnight following the viral outbreak. While the accelerated digital transformation was borne out of necessity than any other factor, the organisations who did enforce WFH – either for the first time or at an unprecedented scale – discovered that the ‘new normal’ had something more to offer them than just the sense of novelty.
Contrary to less-than-optimistic expectations engendered in the face of an economy in the process of being ‘locked down,’ businesses found themselves tapping into certain financial benefits. How? By saving on real estate rental costs, housekeeping and maintenance, operational costs, overhead expenses, travel subsidies, and more.
Beyond the finances, the WFH culture has also been observed to promote emotional and mental well-being among remote workers.
According to the aforementioned report, 62 percent of surveyed employees claimed that they were happier when working remotely, and 61 percent saying they can get more done during an eight-hour workday when working remotely.
The need for business collaboration platforms
Against this backdrop, companies the world over have embarked on their digital journeys. This is where new-age SaaS innovators step in to help businesses to enable a fully remote or hybrid model of the workplace. How? By offering a comprehensive range of digital connectivity and communication solutions.
Organisations need various tools and resources not only to sustain a remotely-enabled workplace but also to augment their daily operations. These include a virtual meeting platform to help stakeholders connect with each other, an online event management software to create, conduct, and promote virtual seminars and conferences, and an advanced solution to empower sysadmins to remotely manage, diagnose, and repair the employee devices connected to the enterprise network, among others.
In the post-2020 business ecosphere, remote working has evolved from being an exception to the rule. To survive, and indeed thrive, in the coming years, businesses will need to tap into the power of advanced tech infrastructure to streamline their operations.
And only those organisations that can ensure seamless connectivity between all stakeholders across functions and verticals will stand to gain a competitive edge over their peers in the highly volatile, increasingly digital-first marketplace of the future.
(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YS.)
