Remote working can benefit companies and employees alike

Effective remote working relationships rely on mutual trust and needs based satisfaction, says Brad Hunn, senior IT recruitment consultant, BH & Co Consulting

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Brad Hunn, BH & Co Consulting

In association with BH & Co Consulting

I remember going to a seminar a few years’ ago about the slow but steady movement being made by large technology companies to incorporate more social diversity and work flexibility into their teams. Given the pandemic and the huge need for remote working, I’ve been thinking a lot about the basic premise of that seminar, where it highlighted the areas of advantage for both companies and employees to start to introduce a more relaxed, less-corporate approach to work while also producing higher productivity.

The study was done across six companies, four SMEs and two large companies all within the technology sector with a focus on their development teams. In total we had around 100 participants and the studied spanned a six-month period.

From my notes at the time, the study found that 78% of employees preferred working outside the hours of 9am-5pm. From that number, a massive 84% gave increased productivity once these needs were met.

It also highlighted that 92% felt current technology could support more remote working, to allow for more work-life balance (saving time and money on daily commutes, childcare, school runs etc.). This was trialled on a three-day remote working week.

In this, a staggering 98% of participants not only increased productivity, but put more hours in than their previous office bound working weeks. A further 67% went on to say that given this flexibility full-time, the saving on time and money in commuting daily and the overall better mental health they experienced, that they would be open to a lower wage for a work-from-home role.

Now more than ever this can be applied to the current challenges companies and employees are facing today within the technology sector. This study dates around four years’ ago, in which time we have seen huge improvement on the corporate view to remote working. However, a lot of companies still seem to be obsessed with building plans to get all staff back to the office once we are able to do so safely.

It’s important then to highlight some areas where the simple facts and benefits of remote working to the employer (and employee) are being ignored for whatever reason. A large factor in this is evidently trust, begging the question – why employ those you cannot trust to do their job properly and in full?

Effective remote working relationships of any kind with longevity have all followed the pattern of mutual trust and needs based satisfaction. Mutually rewarding arrangements where both parties get what they want and feel fulfilled. This needs to be applied now more than ever in our hiring strategy moving forward, as well as incorporated for existing teams. By realising that most of the technology professionals we hire work in a very production centric environment, it is a no brainer that anyone not performing will be found out very quickly based on work review of their peers and seniors. Remote working takes self-discipline and high organisation skills, something we will always aim to define within candidates we are working with.

Since remote working in some capacity, whether forced or chosen, is evidently here to stay for some time longer. To make sure you are getting the right hire, a person with the best skills and self-drive to be a trusted remote worker, BH & Co Consulting have reinforced our hiring process to ensure we can allay any doubts to the employer and minimise all and every risk. Inclusive of technical tests, advanced reference checks, personality assessments and much more.

Get in touch with Brad Hunn on 01 524 2401 or brad.hunn@b-hcc.com for more information on hiring processes or support.