With the emergence of new technologies that allow most people to work remotely from wherever they are, more and more companies are starting to let their current employees work from home, and at the same time hire freelancers that live in different countries and even different continents. Other companies are also toying with the idea of letting a few of their employees work from wherever they are as they know remote workers can actually boost the overall productivity of the company.
Also read: Output Over Hours: How to Think About Remote Workers
While some other companies are still in doubt whether hiring remote workers is a good idea or not, here are a few points how remote workers boost a company’s productivity.
Remote workers are willing to go the extra mile
Working remotely doesn’t mean staying at home in your pajamas, doing absolutely nothing and get your paycheck at the end of every month. Remote workers are in fact more productive than their colleagues working from the office. Why so? Because they love the flexibility the hob offers them, and they are ready to not only finish their tasks in a timely manner but are also willing to go the extra mile because they want to “prove” that the company they work for made the right decision by hiring them.
Plus they are decided to do what it takes to show great results at the end of the day. Unlike most of their colleagues at the office who get paid most of the time just because they showed off at work, remote workers get work done no matter how much time it takes them to complete it.
According to a poll by Inc. Magazine, 79% of employees prefer to work from home, be it full time or part-time. The poll also found out that 53% of remote workers are willing to work over 40 hours per week, while only 28% or non-telecommuter are willing to put in more than 40 hours per week.
Remote workers know time is money and they live by this motto
A busy employee at work doesn’t necessarily mean that employee is being productive. Many companies and managers confuse “busy looking” employees as the ones that are actually getting work done. If you look closely, in most cases, these kind of employees are just putting a show and looking forward to the time they can be “free” from work that day.
Also read: 9 Tools For Engaging and Managing Remote Employees
Remote workers, on the other hand, understand time is money. They are more efficient, productive, they work smarter, and make sure to get the wanted results at a shorter time compared to non-telecommuters. They don’t have to put on a show, pretend to be busy, or keep distracting themselves with useless tasks until they leave work.
Many studies have shown how freelancers and remote workers get more work done than the entire team at the office in any given day. Moreover, they don’t have to spend time commuting to and from work, so they can use that time to focus on their daily tasks.
Less gossip, more work
Remote workers are also less distracted when working in a quiet place where people don’t keep talking and disturbing them most of the time. For most employees, the workplace gives them a chance to catch up with their colleagues, discuss different topics, celebrate a birthday or something special, and so on. All these things take a lot of employees’ time, leaving them with reduced hours to get their work done.
According to a study by CareerBuilder, 39% of employees say that gossip is one of the top distracters at work. Meetings and noisy coworkers are also part of the list with 24% and 20% respectively.
Remote workers, on the other hand, are free to get distracted or watch a TV series between tasks if they want as long as they get the work done correctly. Thanks to their flexibility, they are also less stressed, and more inspired to do the work from a place of their choice.
Less time and money spent on searching for top talent
HR managers always have a hard time when trying to find top talents in a limited geographical area due to the main requirement for candidates to be available to work at their offices. Sometimes companies spend a lot of time, money, and energy in a dead-end road. But when companies are open to hiring remote workers, they can speed up the hiring process, and be more productive as a result.
These are just a few reasons why remote workers are a right choice for many companies worldwide, but they don’t apply to every remote worker and every type of company. Usually, a company can hire remote workers when these employees are able to get their work done from anywhere as long as they have a good internet connection, a laptop, and a mobile phone. Furthermore, not all employees are the right choice for remote positions. It takes responsibility and willingness to go the extra mile to become a great remote worker and boost the productivity of any company you work for.
Image via Pixabay.com
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