Two major Fortune 500 employers have made headlines recently by announcing that they are eliminating or significantly reducing opportunities for their employees to work remotely. This new ebook authored by Linda Stuit is covering the topic of working remotely and what it means for employers and employees.
The 2013 Kelly Global Workforce Index (KGWI)
brings work and workplace insights sourced from
more than 120,000 respondents from 31 countries
across the Americas, EMEA and APAC regions.
This fourth installment, on the topic of Social
Media and Technology examines the way that
social media is impacting on job selection, career
choice and recruitment in general. Just as social
media has changed the nature of communications
across communities, it is breaking down barriers
in the workplace. Employees are more social
and more connected, and want access to the
technologies and platforms that will enable them
to share their working lives with a wider audience.
In this ebook, you will learn what innovative colleges, students, and employers are doing with their experiential practical learning to succeed in the 21st century.
The 2013 Kelly Global Workforce Index (KGWI)
brings work and workplace insights sourced from
more than 120,000 respondents from 31 countries
across the Americas, EMEA and APAC regions.
This fourth installment, on the topic of Social
Media and Technology examines the way that
social media is impacting on job selection, career
choice and recruitment in general. Just as social
media has changed the nature of communications
across communities, it is breaking down barriers
in the workplace. Employees are more social
and more connected, and want access to the
technologies and platforms that will enable them
to share their working lives with a wider audience.
In this ebook, you will learn what innovative colleges, students, and employers are doing with their experiential practical learning to succeed in the 21st century.
We provide a broad range of executive and management search services throughout the US and worldwide. We represent Network Recruiters and its 1,000 worldwide offices. Whether you require a single search or a global project, you still have a single point of contact with a track record of success.
Today, Asia-Pacific—and in particular the fast-emerging
nations in its midst—is once again taking centrestage in
the worldwide marketplace. This is the Asian century, and the region’s organisations—
as well as the talented individuals that lead them—
are going to need to adapt, fast.
This report, conducted by an independent research firm and commissioned by Upwork, uses data from two surveys of U.S. hiring managers: one fielded in November 2019 prior to the COVID-19 crisis, and the other fielded during the crisis in April 2020. The surveys polled a combined 1,500 U.S. hiring managers to provide a holistic picture of workforce trends impacting business organizations. Find out how companies are building for the future.
Hays Journal 20 - Seven things we learnt from McAfee’s President EMEAHays
Hays Journal 20 - Seven things we learnt from McAfee’s President EMEA
In this Hays Journal article, Adam Philpott, EMEA President of cybersecurity business McAfee, discusses how his organisation is adapting its talent strategy to new technologies in order to adapt to the future of work.
Read the Hays Journal to find out more: www.hays-journal.com
Across employers and industries, we have heard stories about the value young people bring to the workplace. Employers in manufacturing cited the need for serious hand-eye coordination and reported positive experiences with young people filling these roles. Others cited the benefit of having youth in their companies who can use evolving technologies. For others, especially firms that need a lot of entry-level employees, young workers are their lifeblood.
Youth Hold the Key: Building Your Workforce Today and in the Future focuses on the role that youth can play in helping employers meet some of their current and looming workforce challenges, and how companies can improve how they hire and retain youth. The findings are based on a recent survey of 350 employers, more than 80 interviews with employers and workforce experts conducted during 2014 by The Bridgespan Group and Bain & Company, as well as a review of published literature. Much of this work focused on the potential of the millions of young people—referred to here as "opportunity youth"—who are disconnected from both work and school, and lack a college degree, to address the needs of employers.
This Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data Readiness Report
provides an analysis of a global survey of public relations
practitioners and academics and video/written evidence from
senior practitioners concerning the profession’s knowledge,
skills, adoption of and attitudes towards AI, and to a lesser
extent, Big Data. Its aim is to provide an overview of current AI
understanding and preparedness, but most importantly, provide
pointers to how the profession should equip itself to exploit the
potential and guard against the possible dangers of AI.
Is remote working a blessing or a burden for companiesshubhamjain1340
COVID-19 has had an impact on almost every aspect of our daily lives, including overall productivity. The most significant change has been the concept of working from home. It is currently practised by roughly half of the country's population. This kind of exercise has never been done before on the planet. Will work from home in its current form be temporary or permanent? Can organisations see that as a viable option, especially with people claiming that the boundaries between work and life have almost vanished? We see changes in operational levels, changes in daily routines, and how workers stay on top of things outside of the use of work and productivity tools. Many major technology companies have announced plans to allow their employees to work from home for the majority of 2020. Others are making the transition more permanent. Some businesses have taken the following actions: Twitter announced that jobs would be able to be operated remotely "forever." Facebook Inc has announced that it will allow its employees to work from home until July of next year, while Google has extended remote working time for employees who do not need to be in the office until June of next year.
Visit at-: insellers.com
We provide a broad range of executive and management search services throughout the US and worldwide. We represent Network Recruiters and its 1,000 worldwide offices. Whether you require a single search or a global project, you still have a single point of contact with a track record of success.
Today, Asia-Pacific—and in particular the fast-emerging
nations in its midst—is once again taking centrestage in
the worldwide marketplace. This is the Asian century, and the region’s organisations—
as well as the talented individuals that lead them—
are going to need to adapt, fast.
This report, conducted by an independent research firm and commissioned by Upwork, uses data from two surveys of U.S. hiring managers: one fielded in November 2019 prior to the COVID-19 crisis, and the other fielded during the crisis in April 2020. The surveys polled a combined 1,500 U.S. hiring managers to provide a holistic picture of workforce trends impacting business organizations. Find out how companies are building for the future.
Hays Journal 20 - Seven things we learnt from McAfee’s President EMEAHays
Hays Journal 20 - Seven things we learnt from McAfee’s President EMEA
In this Hays Journal article, Adam Philpott, EMEA President of cybersecurity business McAfee, discusses how his organisation is adapting its talent strategy to new technologies in order to adapt to the future of work.
Read the Hays Journal to find out more: www.hays-journal.com
Across employers and industries, we have heard stories about the value young people bring to the workplace. Employers in manufacturing cited the need for serious hand-eye coordination and reported positive experiences with young people filling these roles. Others cited the benefit of having youth in their companies who can use evolving technologies. For others, especially firms that need a lot of entry-level employees, young workers are their lifeblood.
Youth Hold the Key: Building Your Workforce Today and in the Future focuses on the role that youth can play in helping employers meet some of their current and looming workforce challenges, and how companies can improve how they hire and retain youth. The findings are based on a recent survey of 350 employers, more than 80 interviews with employers and workforce experts conducted during 2014 by The Bridgespan Group and Bain & Company, as well as a review of published literature. Much of this work focused on the potential of the millions of young people—referred to here as "opportunity youth"—who are disconnected from both work and school, and lack a college degree, to address the needs of employers.
This Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data Readiness Report
provides an analysis of a global survey of public relations
practitioners and academics and video/written evidence from
senior practitioners concerning the profession’s knowledge,
skills, adoption of and attitudes towards AI, and to a lesser
extent, Big Data. Its aim is to provide an overview of current AI
understanding and preparedness, but most importantly, provide
pointers to how the profession should equip itself to exploit the
potential and guard against the possible dangers of AI.
Is remote working a blessing or a burden for companiesshubhamjain1340
COVID-19 has had an impact on almost every aspect of our daily lives, including overall productivity. The most significant change has been the concept of working from home. It is currently practised by roughly half of the country's population. This kind of exercise has never been done before on the planet. Will work from home in its current form be temporary or permanent? Can organisations see that as a viable option, especially with people claiming that the boundaries between work and life have almost vanished? We see changes in operational levels, changes in daily routines, and how workers stay on top of things outside of the use of work and productivity tools. Many major technology companies have announced plans to allow their employees to work from home for the majority of 2020. Others are making the transition more permanent. Some businesses have taken the following actions: Twitter announced that jobs would be able to be operated remotely "forever." Facebook Inc has announced that it will allow its employees to work from home until July of next year, while Google has extended remote working time for employees who do not need to be in the office until June of next year.
Visit at-: insellers.com
The new world of work is coming. Today, employees can make new choices regarding work flexibility and balance as they carry the task remotely.
There's been an increased demand for remote employment on a global scale. This opened the job market for businesses that want to go all-in on distributed teams or use the hybrid approach, especially now that people connect with coworkers outside their area. The epidemic creates a chance for enterprises to expand globally while bringing more inclusion and diversity.
For companies who plan to start their international expansion, the simplicity of working from home will be giving rise to operational complexity. In that matter, dealing with global HR consultants that can facilitate a smooth transition to a new order at work can be beneficial. Like Employer of Record Services (EOR) providers that offer international payroll solutions, employment permit, and immigration services. Most of them have local expertise that ensures full compliance with taxation and labor laws. Get started today and embrace the change coming.
IWG plc research report: the future of workAlyceTyler
We delve into what the new world of work
will look like for firms, from startups to
multinationals, and examine how a flexible,
mobile series of workplace options can
ensure business success.
Download and share the report
By valuing deliverables, collaboration, and innovation through a focus on a shared work culture of Excellence from Anywhere, you can instill in your employees a focus on deliverables. The core idea is to get all of your workforce to pull together to achieve business outcomes: The location doesn’t matter.
J U N E 8 , 2 0 1 7!3 Trends That Will Disrupt Your .docxchristiandean12115
J U N E 8 , 2 0 1 7
!
3 Trends That Will Disrupt Your Workplace
Forever
by Andrew Dugan and Bailey Nelson
Story Highlights
Many millennials don't stay with their company for the long term
The AI revolution is here, and leaders are unprepared for it
Amid many changes, workplace planning and forecasting are increasingly vital
The "future of work" has become a much-hyped topic as change permeates the U.S. workplace.
Millennials view work in markedly different ways than the generations before them did, and
technology and artificial intelligence (AI) are rewriting workflows.
Understandably, these rapid changes leave leaders wondering: What will workplaces look like in the
future, and how are those differences affecting my workplace now?
Leaders are smart to ask these questions because with change comes the need to adapt -- and
leaders don't want to find out the hard way that their workplace management strategies are no
longer effective.
Gallup has been studying the American workplace for decades. Our recent research has uncovered
three disruptive workplace trends that demand leaders' focus and innovative strategies sooner
rather than later:
1. Millennials now represent the largest generation in the U.S. workforce -- and many don't
stay with their company for the long term.
For most employers, millennials now outnumber employees from the Generation X and baby
boomer generations. Millennial workers have a lot to offer, including more diversity, tech savviness
and a fresh perspective. The trick is getting them to stay with your company.
Gallup's 2016 How Millennials Want to Work and Live report revealed that 21% of millennials -- more
than three times the number of non-millennials -- switched jobs in the last year. Gallup also found
that only half of millennials strongly agree that they plan to be working at their current company in
one year.
But compared with those from other generations, millennials are as satisfied or more satisfied with
nearly all aspects of their job. Gallup uncovered this trend in a recent analysis of three overarching
job aspects: the tangible rewards a job brings, the demands a job imposes on a person and the
opportunities a job offers.
Satisfaction With Aspects of Job, by Generation
% saying "completely satisfied" with aspect of job
Gen Xers and baby boomers Millennials
% %
TANGIBLE REWARDS
Vacation time 61 52
Health insurance benefits 40 44
Retirement plan company offers 39 43
Amount of money you earn 32 34
DEMANDS JOB REQUIRES
On-the-job stress 30 28
Amount of work required of you 53 56
Flexibility of your hours 65 59
OPPORTUNITY JOB OFFERS
Chances for promotion 43 40
http://www.gallup.com/reports/199961/state-american-workplace-report-2017.aspx?utm_source=gbj&utm_medium=copy&utm_content=20170608-gbj
http://www.gallup.com/businessjournal/194204/millennials-job-hoppers-not.aspx?&utm_source=link_newsv9&utm_campaign=item_211799&utm_medium=copy
http://www.gallup.com/reports/189830/millennials-work-liv.
How the current environment has redefined 3 key aspects of work and how you can adapt and prepare for it. With the rapidly advancing severity of the COVID-19 pandemic, much of the world has been strong-armed into having to work from home. And with that what has long been an experiment by a few, popular with a small percentage of working professionals, has become a reality for most. This sudden change in the way we work has quite possibly changed the future of work for good.
White paper employee engagement img zineKelly Verdonk
06
KellyNo ResponsePermalink
White paper: How a mobile first strategy can increase employee engagement
In this white paper imgZine analyzed two of its internal enterprise apps to determine the engagement level of employees. It shows that engaging internal enterprise apps can help enterprises achieve their desired business outcomes.
Today, engaged employees are more important than ever. They understand what it takes for a company to be successful and want to be involved in the organization’s everyday affairs. While internal enterprise apps offer a great opportunity to promote productivity and engagement, only a small number of companies have started to leverage their benefits.
Download the white paper here: http://imgzine.com/how-a-mobile-first-strategy-can-increase-employee-engagement/
Latest trends in hr 2020 - pexitics (people excellence indicator analytics)Subhashini S Tripathi
Top Trends in HR and People Management 2020 – The Surge of the Gig economy
2020 is set to be a momentous year. We , at Pexitics (People Excellence Indicator Analytics) bring to you the important trends in the way People Management will evolve in the near future.
Three Key Strategies for Retaining IT Talent in Hybrid Environment.pdfEnterprise Insider
By far, the most substantial changes in the corporate world since the COVID-19 pandemic first struck has been the drastic shift to a remote work model, which has persisted more than 18 months later. As the pandemic fades, it’s clear that working styles have shifted, with most personnel seeking more workplace flexibility.
There are too many candidates out there. Social networking platforms. Referrals. Job fairs. Mobile apps. Where do you even begin?
With all of the different options to choose from, what’s best for your team? What strategies are the top brands leveraging across these channels? We tapped experts from various industries to get their take on upcoming HR trends in 2018.
As a pioneer in the staffing industry, and in the study of workforce preferences, Kelly takes a high-level look at collaboration as it pertains to the global worker today. In addition to analyzing worker preferences and psychographic insights based on survey data from the 2015 and 2014 Kelly Global Workforce Index™ (KGWI), this report pulls insights from Kelly Free Agent research (2015) survey data and other research sources. Unless otherwise noted, all statistics come from recent Kelly workforce research data.
Maßnahmen gegen den Fachkräftemangel in Europa in den Bereichen Mathematik, Informatik, Naturwissenschaft und Technik: Warum eine Strategie der Inklusion entscheidend ist.
Wenn wir den massiven Fachkräftemangel in den MINT-Berufen (Mathematik, Informatik, Naturwissenschaft und Technik) in Europa lindern wollen, müssen wir schleunigst damit beginnen, mehr Frauen einzustellen. Und wir müssen dabei an einem Strang ziehen. Zur Optimierung des MINT-Talentepools durch größere Diversität bedarf es jedoch mehr als nur ein wenig zusätzlicher Mühe bei der Personalanwerbung. Vor allem gilt es, ein Klima der Inklusion zu schaffen, das die Einstellung und Bindung von Frauen in der MINT-Branche begünstigt. Gleichzeitig müssen Unternehmen die Beseitigung von Vorurteilen und Barrieren zur Priorität erheben und zur Chefsache erklären; Führungskräfte müssen aktive Unterstützung leisten und institutionelle Verantwortung übernehmen. Des Weiteren ist es von wesentlicher Bedeutung, Frauen in diesen Berufen ein besseres Mentoring zu bieten und die Diversität weiter zu erhöhen. Denn es steht eine ganze Menge auf dem Spiel – und das betrifft nicht nur Ihr Unternehmen, sondern die Zukunft der Branche in ganz Europa.
Als Pionier auf dem Gebiet der Personaldienstleistungen und der Erforschung von Arbeitnehmervorlieben bietet Kelly Services eine umfassende Analyse, die verdeutlicht, weshalb es so wichtig ist, gegen die Unterrepräsentation von Frauen in Europas MINT-Branche anzugehen. Dabei untersuchen wir auch, welche Faktoren Unternehmen berücksichtigen müssen, um diese Spezialistinnen langfristig zu binden.
Neben der Analyse von Arbeitnehmervorlieben und psychographischen Einblicken auf Grundlage der Umfrageergebnisse aus dem Kelly Global Workforce Index von 2014 und 2015 werden in diesem Bericht auch Erkenntnisse aus der Kelly Free Agent Research-Studie von 2015 und sekundären Quellen berücksichtigt. Sofern nicht anders angegeben, stammen alle Statistiken aus aktuellen Arbeitsmarktstudien von Kelly.
The Kelly Global Workforce Index (KGWI) is an annual global survey that is the largest study of its kind. In 2015, Kelly collected feedback from 164,000 workers across 28 countries across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC regions and a multitude of industries and occupations.
This study is taking a high level look at:
- Work-Life Design as it pertains to the global worker today.
- Women in STEM Talent Gap - a study that at the gap of women talent in STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering and Math – fields.
- Career Management – specifically the emerging trend of do-it-yourself (“DIY”) career development – as it pertains to the global worker seeking to be as resilient as possible in today’s uncertain environment
- Collaborative Work Environment as it pertains to the global worker today.
Here is our second global report on the topic Women in STEM.
Want to move your career forward? Looking to build your leadership skills while helping others learn, grow, and improve their skills? Seeking someone who can guide you in achieving these goals?
You can accomplish this through a mentoring partnership. Learn more about the PMISSC Mentoring Program, where you’ll discover the incredible benefits of becoming a mentor or mentee. This program is designed to foster professional growth, enhance skills, and build a strong network within the project management community. Whether you're looking to share your expertise or seeking guidance to advance your career, the PMI Mentoring Program offers valuable opportunities for personal and professional development.
Watch this to learn:
* Overview of the PMISSC Mentoring Program: Mission, vision, and objectives.
* Benefits for Volunteer Mentors: Professional development, networking, personal satisfaction, and recognition.
* Advantages for Mentees: Career advancement, skill development, networking, and confidence building.
* Program Structure and Expectations: Mentor-mentee matching process, program phases, and time commitment.
* Success Stories and Testimonials: Inspiring examples from past participants.
* How to Get Involved: Steps to participate and resources available for support throughout the program.
Learn how you can make a difference in the project management community and take the next step in your professional journey.
About Hector Del Castillo
Hector is VP of Professional Development at the PMI Silver Spring Chapter, and CEO of Bold PM. He's a mid-market growth product executive and changemaker. He works with mid-market product-driven software executives to solve their biggest growth problems. He scales product growth, optimizes ops and builds loyal customers. He has reduced customer churn 33%, and boosted sales 47% for clients. He makes a significant impact by building and launching world-changing AI-powered products. If you're looking for an engaging and inspiring speaker to spark creativity and innovation within your organization, set up an appointment to discuss your specific needs and identify a suitable topic to inspire your audience at your next corporate conference, symposium, executive summit, or planning retreat.
About PMI Silver Spring Chapter
We are a branch of the Project Management Institute. We offer a platform for project management professionals in Silver Spring, MD, and the DC/Baltimore metro area. Monthly meetings facilitate networking, knowledge sharing, and professional development. For event details, visit pmissc.org.
New Explore Careers and College Majors 2024.pdfDr. Mary Askew
Explore Careers and College Majors is a new online, interactive, self-guided career, major and college planning system.
The career system works on all devices!
For more Information, go to https://bit.ly/3SW5w8W
NIDM (National Institute Of Digital Marketing) Bangalore Is One Of The Leading & best Digital Marketing Institute In Bangalore, India And We Have Brand Value For The Quality Of Education Which We Provide.
www.nidmindia.com
2. Introduction
2 | remote work under the microscope
Two major Fortune 500 employers have
made headlines recently by announcing
that they are eliminating or significantly
reducing opportunities for their
employees to work remotely. Response
to the announcements came quickly from
business analysts and the mainstream media,
speculating about the effect these decisions
would have on the companies and their
employees and how those effects might
eventually impact the workforce in general.
Yahoo!®
led the charge in February when
CEO Marissa Mayer instructed her HR
department to have all remote employees
return to working in company offices. The
reason given for the major policy change
was that the company believes face-to-face
employee interaction fosters a collaborative
culture that can’t be developed among
remote workers. A statement from the
company said that they are not offering any
broad industry view on working from home,
but rather making a decision based on what
is right for Yahoo!.
Just a few weeks later, electronics retailer
Best Buy®
also announced changes to its
policies about telecommuting. The company
isn’t eliminating remote work across the
board, but instead of it being an option that
employees can decide for themselves, they
must consult with their managers to discuss
whether the arrangement is working.
These policy shifts in high-profile corporate
America have ignited a national debate
about workplace flexibility. Some employees
at both companies have hailed the changes
as positive, saying that more in-person
collaboration and innovation will boost
morale and nurture the company culture
that is essential to maintaining a strong
corporate brand. But many workers believe
working remotely allows them to be more
productive, because they can concentrate
on their work without the distractions of an
office. While Yahoo! and Best Buy wait to see
how their changes play out, the discussion
and examination of remote work continues
to heat up.
3. For years, there has been a growing trend
toward permitting and even encouraging
employees to work remotely. A recent report
by the U.S. Census Bureau showed that
since 1997, there has been a 35% increase
in the number of workers in the United
States who work at least one day a week
at home. More than half of those workers
are private company employees, and the
rest are self-employed and government
workers. According to data gathered by
TeleworkResearchNetwork.com, in 2012
there were more than three million
employees in the United States—2.5%
of the total workforce—who were
telecommuting at least part time. The
teleworker population has grown by an
estimated 73% since 2005. Clearly this is an
3 | remote work under the microscope
Looking at the Office
in the Rearview
increasingly popular option to the traditional
daily commute to an office.
Technology and today’s bustling global
marketplace are two key drivers for the
popularity of remote work. Collaboration
has always been essential for fostering
creativity and innovation, but collaboration
no longer requires team members to sit in
cubicles and meet in conference rooms.
Complex systems that let employees
choose their own computers, smartphones,
tablets, and operating systems have brought
together a large, geographically distributed
workforce like never before. VoIP phones
and Skype enable communications around
the globe, meetings can be streamed live on
video, and shared PowerPoint presentations
on universal storage systems in the cloud
have taken the place of whiteboards and
dry erase markers. The team-oriented
corporate culture today’s businesses are
striving for no longer requires everyone
to be together in the same place at any
given time.
A few industry observers have suggested
that the decisions by Yahoo! and Best Buy
may signal the beginning of a reversal in the
telecommuting trend. But the concept of
working remotely or from home has become
deeply rooted in the workplace, with an
ever-growing body of research showing that
remote work benefits employees, employers,
and the bottom line.
The teleworker
population has
grown by an
estimated
since 2005.
73%
4. 4 | remote work under the microscope
In early 2013, more than 122,000 people
from 31 countries in the Americas, EMEA,
and the Asia Pacific regions responded
to a workplace survey developed by
Kelly Services®
to assess employees’ views
of work and the workplace. The Kelly Global
Workforce Index (KGWI) asked respondents
for their opinions about career development,
employee engagement and retention, social
media and technology, global mobility, and
workplace changes.
Results of the survey showed that the
workplace has undergone dramatic
changes that have spurred workers to
become more self-reliant and proactive in
controlling their professional development.
Workers are looking toward the future,
Taking Stock of the Workforce
both within and outside of their current
career paths. They are open to considering
changing jobs not only for better pay, but
also for better benefits, new opportunities,
and personal fulfillment, all of which help
workers to achieve balance between their
work and their personal lives.
One factor that contributes to a better
work/life balance for many employees is
the ability to work remotely. Among the
respondents to the KGWI study, 29% work
remotely for at least part of the work week.
Significantly more APAC workers (12%)
spend one work day at home than workers
in the Americas (5%) and EMEA (7%). More
younger workers telecommute than older
generations, and significantly more (11%)
Professional/Technical workers spend one
day working from home versus only 4% of
non-Professional/Technical workers. In IT
jobs, 15% of workers work remotely one day
per week.
Studies show that the number of employers
offering remote work options grows every
year, so the assumption is that employees
value this flexibility. These recent reversals
in telecommuting policies are surprising,
but may not be indicating an overall shift in
the general outlook. There are positives and
negatives associated with every company
policy, but remote work is firmly entrenched
in our global economy, and it’s here to stay.
29%work remotely for
at least part of
the work week.
5. 5 | remote work under the microscope
Advantages and Disadvantages
of Working Remotely
The advantages of remote work are
indisputable for both sides of the issue. For
employers, numerous studies have found
that telecommuting can increase productivity
and lower costs for companies. A study
co-sponsored by Stanford University and
Beijing University found that remote
workers for a Chinese call center worked
more efficiently and took fewer breaks.
IBM estimates it has cut real estate expenses
by $50 million by offering remote work
options, and Nortel estimates a savings of
$100,000 per employee in relocation costs.
For employees, the biggest advantage in
remote working (noted in the KGWI by
69% of US respondents, 69% of EMEA
workers, and 63% of APAC respondents)
was the fact that not having to go to
an office every day minimizes the time
and money they spend commuting.
An advantage of fewer interruptions was
recognized by 49% of remote workers in the
Americas, 48% of EMEA remote workers, and
44% of APAC remote workers. An average of
45% of all remote workers globally said that
working at home gives them greater flexibility
to deal with unexpected personal incidents.
The challenges of managing a family,
particularly for parents of young children, can
be lessened by one or both parents being
able to work from home.
On the disadvantages side of the issue,
some employers believe that remote work
interferes with the flashes of insight and
innovation that happen spontaneously in
unplanned meetings in hallways and break
rooms. Results from the KGWI indicate that
many workers share similar concerns, with
54% of respondents in the Americas (55%
in the EMEA and 57% in the APAC) saying
they lose opportunities for collaboration
and networking by not being in an
office with other employees. Difficulty
in establishing boundaries to separate
their work life from their personal life was
noted as a disadvantage by 32% of remote
workers in the Americas (39% of both EMEA
and APAC workers). Nearly as many (37%
Americas, 32% EMEA, and 40% APAC) said
that working remotely reduces their access
to company information and involvement in
team activities.
All parties involved in a remote work
arrangement will realize their own advantages
and disadvantages that result from it. These
recent policy changes by major companies
have surely stirred up a lot of discussion
and people are watching closely. But
cutting out remote work may have a negative
effect on morale, hiring, and retention.
It remains to be seen whether there will
be enough benefits in terms of increased
innovation and collaboration to outweigh
the costs in terms of employee loyalty and
job referrals.
6. 6 | remote work under the microscope
The Importance of a
Strong Employer Brand
With the proliferation of social networking
in recent years, employees have a global
forum for telling job candidates exactly
what they can expect by working for
a particular company. Social media has
become an important platform for job
seekers to receive referrals from friends about
open positions. These personal referrals are
often accompanied by opinions about the
company and its employer brand, including
how interesting or challenging the work is,
how flexible their work schedule is, and what
options are available for telecommuting.
According to the KGWI, 22% of workers
are likely to recommend their employer to
a friend or colleague as an employment
opportunity, and 65% of workers are
interested in receiving job referrals from
friends in their social media network. Nearly
one-fifth of full-time Professional/Technical
workers responding to the KGWI secured
a new job opportunity that originated via a
social media or networking site.
A positive company culture can present
an attractive employer brand to a world
of job seekers, but a negative company
culture can destroy a company from within.
In fact, that was one of the cited factors that
contributed to Yahoo! ending remote working
options. The company was struggling in the
face of online competition from nimble rivals,
and motivation and morale were decreasing.
This change to remote work policies is a
response designed to foster innovation,
reinvigorate morale, and revitalize the
company culture by bringing the workforce
back into the office. The CEO is expecting
the resulting positive energy to work its way
outward to the brand that Yahoo! portrays as
an employer.
The new remote work policy is the first
unpopular decision Mayer has made since
taking over. Workers have applauded other
changes, such as introducing free cafeteria
food and having Friday idea-swapping
meetings for all employees. The boost to
Yahoo!’s employer brand was evidenced
by the arrival of resumes from employees
at Google®
and Facebook®
, which rarely
happened in the past. A recent internal
survey of employees found that nearly all are
optimistic about Yahoo!’s future, an increase
of 32% from the previous survey. But it
remains to be seen whether this optimism will
translate to employees being happy in spite
of their remote work arrangements ending.
Employees who have the flexibility to work
at home at least part of the time are more
satisfied with their jobs and more fulfilled
in their personal lives, and in today’s fast-
paced business arena, work/life balance is
more important than ever. The KGWI survey
showed that work/life balance was the most
important factor for 38% of all workers in
deciding whether or not to accept a position.
Workers who are offered a job can afford
to consider information they have picked
up from social media about what type of
employer a company is and how the job will
affect their ability to balance their jobs with
the demands of their lives. And remote work
is a big part of that.
7. 7 | remote work under the microscope
conclusion.
References:
“Costs and Benefits: Advantages of Telecommuting for Companies.” Telework Research
Network. http://www.teleworkresearchnetwork.com/resources/costs-benefits
Kim, Susanna. “Best Buy Follows Yahoo!’s Lead, Takes a Look at Employees
Working from Home.” ABC News, March 6, 2013.
Laskowski, Amy. “Abolishing Work-at-Home Policies.” Boston University Today, March 12, 2013.
Miller, Claire Cain. “Yahoo! Says New Policy is Meant to Raise Morale.” The New York Times, March 5, 2013.
Companies across all industries are watching to see how the policy changes by Yahoo! and Best Buy
will play out in the end for both employers and employees. None of us knows what kind of general
impact this is going to have, if there even is one, and it may take many years to find out. Employers
have to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of remote work within their organization, and decide
for themselves what the proper balance is for their own company. In the meantime companies should
continue to get input from employees about what they want from an employer so they can develop an
attractive employer brand. If offering remote work strengthens that brand, attracts top talent, satisfies
workers, and increases productivity and efficiency as a result, then everyone wins.