2020 has seen life change drastically for the vast majority of us. The rapid and unprecedented spread of coronavirus has taken us all by surprise and forced governments around the world to implement social distancing and social isolation measures to slow its spread.

This has impacted our personal lives. But it has also impacted our professional lives. If you run a business, you’ll be well aware of this.

Over the past four months, all non-essential businesses have had to change the way that they work. Those that have a workforce who can work from home have encouraged all employees to do so.

Four months down the line, and most governments are now reducing restrictions and allowing places of commerce to reopen.

While some companies, such as restaurants, cafes, bars and sports facilities, can’t wait to get back and start earning money again, some businesses have found that remote working has either not had a negative impact on their profits or has actually proven a better option for them so far.

If you’ve found yourself in this position, you may now be wondering whether you actually want to get your employees back into commercial premises, or whether permanently switching to a remote workforce could actually be a preferable option, and how best to manage your team remotely on a permanent basis. Indeed, working from home can be effective in just about any industry, even the real estate sector.

Here’s some more information on the subject that could help you to come to the best conclusion for your business!

The Perks of Remote Working

Remote working may take some getting used to, but if your employees have settled into this way of working, you could start to benefit from the many perks of operating a remote workforce. Here are a few that you should be aware of.

Access to a Larger Pool of Talent

If you’re looking to expand your staff base and focus on recruitment in the near future, you’ll find that you can access a much larger pool of talent if you stick with remote working. When you recruit for an in-house role, you’ll only be able to select individuals who are able to commute to the workplace each day.

This means you’re limited to people within your local area. When you recruit for a role where the applicant can work from home, you can employ anyone with a right to work in your country - no matter where they may live! This gives you a lot more variety and you really can pick the cream of the crop for each position that needs to be filled.

Higher Levels of Productivity

Don’t judge productivity levels associated with remote working solely on your experience with remote working so far.

The coronavirus pandemic won’t provide an accurate representation of employee productivity on any level - people may be ill and taking time off work, people may have to take more time off if they’re caring for ill loved ones and most children have been off school, meaning that a lot of people have been having to juggle remote work and childcare simultaneously each day.

As things begin to get back to normal, with infection rates dropping, kids getting back to school and life slowly returning to its usual course, you may notice that remote workers are actually more productive than they were in the office during usual times. Remote workers tend to be happier than workers who have to commute.

They get more time to do the things they want to do when they’re not having to travel during rush hour or catch public transport. They are also often in more comfortable environments, can take more relaxing lunch breaks and won’t be distracted by others in their workspace.

Less Absences

Remote workers are much less likely to take time off work than employees who have to travel to work. There are a number of reasons behind this. Sometimes, people are capable of working but simply can’t face the commute and spending hours behind a desk in a communal environment.

Often, people will work if they can work from home in a comfortable environment that they can control (for example, being able to work in silence or dim the lights if they have a minor headache), but would call in sick if they had to work in a brightly lit, noisy office all day.

There also won’t be any absences over public transport delays or cancellations, or difficulties with cars and other modes of transport.

You Save on Commercial Premises

Renting commercial premises isn’t cheap. You have to pay rent, overheads and other bills. By switching to a remote workforce, you completely eliminate these costs from your budget. This money can then be funnelled into other, more productive and profitable areas!

Ensuring Staff Can Work to the Best of Their Ability

Of course, when staff are in an office, it tends to be easier to pick up on difficulties they are having, or to spur them on when they’re not working to standard. But there are various things you can do to get the most from your workers when they’re working from home too!

Manage Your IT

All remote staff rely on tech and IT to complete their work. So, you need to make sure that your IT is fully taken care of with it management and it security services. This will ensure that their devices are up and running and that they don’t breach data regulations while operating from their own space.

Invest in Communication Software

In an office environment, staff can simply walk to one another’s desks to communicate. Remote staff can’t do this. So, invest in communication software that will allow them to ask one another questions and hold meetings virtually. Microsoft Teams is great for this. It offers instant messaging, voice calls, video calls and more.

If you feel that remote working could work for your company and the past four months have given you confidence in this venture, don’t hesitate to opt for this as a permanent means of operation. There are so many perks that you could benefit from.