Lessons in making a success of remote working

Our latest survey found that the vast majority of working dads did not work from home before the pandemic hit. 78% never or only occasionally worked from home previously. The latest Official for National Statistics figures found more people working from home than ever before.

So how do we make a success of it? A new report looks at the experience of those who’ve done remote working for sometime. Often folk with hard to find skillsets who were able to carve out their own path. Or sometimes people who needed remote working in order to balance other domestic or caring demands. How did they ensure they weren’t out of mind while out of sight away from the office, for example?

Skills

The report is called, Full Remote Skills: What Skills Does An Effective Teleworker Need?, It focuses on the key skills that high-performing remote workers have developed to ensure they don’t fall behind when out of sight: self awareness, an ability to resolve complex problems, an ability to identify who they could turn to in times of need and an ability to understand their organisation.

The report is based on a study by EM Normandie which analyses the career paths, performances and behavioural skills of a group of 317 French remote workers between 2009 and 2019. It says high-performing remote workers tend to be autonomous and self-motivated. They have a good understanding of their resources and those of their organisation. And they are comfortable with complexity.

Innovation

They don’t have to constantly go through their line manager and know how to promote their achievements. The report says: “This skill means that other workers can visualise their output despite not being able to see it with their own eyes. It means that they are not forgotten and that their actions form part of the company’s day-to-day operations.”

They can also remain visible despite their physical absence so that their achievements are acknowledged. However, the report says that because they focus on being intelligible, they are  more likely to emphasise respect for processes and conformity than innovation. Innovation can, however, be encouraged – especially now with more employees working remotely. Key is creating project teams and tools and testing ideas with remote workers.

Managers

The report says the main disadvantage remote workers face is invisibility and how other colleagues see them. They can compensate by telling colleagues about their working day through sharing their schedule and what they have been doing through both work-related and personal anecdotes. The report says not everyone finds this easy so managers need to ensure that everyone is given the time and means to express themselves.

The report concludes: “As teleworking becomes more widespread, ensuring the success of these workers from home will be crucial and managers will need to make sure that their skills are closely aligned with those needed for effective performance. Failing that, such skills will need to be developed.”

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