How a Distributed Workforce Makes Employees Work Smarter

Work smarter by granting your employees flexible work options and you will achieve your business goals in 2020 with greater ease despite the impact of COVID-19 and the prevailing global economic problems. Many businesses are currently adopting highly flexible work environments due to the emergence of advanced technology. For many employers, however, the pandemic is making working from home relevant today than ever. 

A study that was conducted before medics discovered coronavirus suggests that at least 70% of employees consider that there are better ways to work smarter than the traditional office environment. 

The strong demand for more than flexible working hours has boosted the popularity of the distributed workforce. Over 23% of workers say their organizations are fully distributed. The number might be much higher due to the current global climate. 

What is a distributed workforce?

This popular phrase “distributed workforce” refers to personnel that is geographically distributed over large areas and make the best use of advanced technology to go beyond the limitations of the traditional working model. 

As you can see, unlike virtual business, a distributed workforce uses a networking infrastructure to remain fully connected and powered to access all the essential corporate resources, including email, data, applications, and the rest that are available within the confines of the traditional office environment.

How distributed workforce benefits companies

1. Increased productivity

The distributed workforce can increase the productivity of your company, especially if you provide the required office accessories and chairs. Remote teams can have more done within a short time and are prepared to go the extra mile when they are granted the privilege to work remotely. With a positive attitude and the ability to keep things interesting while working from home, they work smarter in exchange for the opportunity to operate from home without restrictions. 

A recent study discovered that 53% of remote employees say they are interested in working overtime. On the other hand, only 28% of on-site employees are willing to do the same. The report indicates that:

• 45% of remote employees believe they can work smarter (deliver much more within fewer resources)

• 44% of them say they encounter fewer disruptions at home

• 99% of managers say their employees who are given flexible work options are more productive

For that matter, with the right office accessories, companies can save many resources but remain productive.

2. Increased wellness

The Distributed workforce enables your company to breeze through the COVID-19 season without any worries. Remember that when you are using the various office accessories to collaborate, you have nothing to fear about whenever one of your members sneezes or coughs. The truth is that there is zero chance of community infections whenever that happens.

Presently, the government is encouraging companies to embrace telecommunication to stop the spread of different types of colds and flu.

Other than the prevention of deadly diseases, a distributed workforce ensures that employees enjoy a healthy work-life balance as well as reduced levels of stress.

Research shows that:

• 75% of distributed employees are happy that they can carry on with their jobs in the event of pandemics, weather-related problems, terrorisms, and other similar problems. 
• 28% of on-site workers think the same.
• Companies with flexible work options report 63% less unscheduled absences.

Without a doubt, this has a positive impact on their ability to work smarter.

3. Reduced turnover

Companies with flexible work options are also happy that they can keep their employees for several years to come. They use it as a desirable perk that significantly increases their chances of retaining top talent for a long period.

A recent survey recently discovered that companies that allow remote working register 25% less employee turnover than those that do not use this mode. This shows that many remote workers are highly contented with their current jobs.

4. Increased access to talent

When all your employees must operate from a physical location, you are likely to lose some highly skilled individuals. The case is different if you can up the game and allow your employees to access the tools they want to work smarter. 

You can hire anybody who lives in any part of the world, provided they are competent enough to help you to achieve your corporate goals. All they need to do to be able to work smarter is to get and use the required chair, desk, and other office accessories. As such, this new mode of operation means that companies have an option to stop facing any restrictions when they want to recruit candidates living in the same or different cities or towns. 

5. Increased savings

When you empower your workers with all the resources that they need to operate as if they are in your traditional office environment, you enable both your company and employee to save a substantial amount of money. Savings for companies come in the form of reduced expenditure on office accessories, electricity, rent, janitor services, and much more. 

At the same time, you can reduce your expenditure on some vital resources like technology. If you choose, you can ask your employees to rely on their own devices. They can download appropriate open-source software and use it to manage the projects and collaborate with their colleagues in real-time. Many video conferencing solutions, such as Hirefive, can help them to work smarter by creating dynamic and interactive experiences remotely.

Other than these direct ways, the company can save by investing in productive employees. When you buy for them the ideal office accessories, such as an ergonomic chair and LED desk lamp, which they need to set up their home office, for example, and you cannot say you lost the money. In a way, the saving has dividends. 

At the same time, your employees also save, which also has a direct benefit to the company. Remote employees save a lot of money on child-care, clothes, transportation, and food. Global Workplace Analytics approximates that if at least 50% of the workforce in the United States had flexible work options, businesses would save more than $700 billion per year. 

In other words, if they only worked remotely half of the time, the following would happen:

• Businesses save about $11,000 per employees every year (total is $500 billion annually)
• National productivity increase to approximately $270 billion
• Reduced fuel consumption save 2 billion gallons of gas

Conclusion

If you are a business owner and are looking for the best model to enhance your work pattern, consider a distributed team strongly. This is not a new concept for entrepreneurs. However, our present circumstances are making it incredibly indispensable today. Flexible work options empower your employees to work smarter. 

While many people still do not believe that the distributed workforce model benefits companies, plenty of credible studies that we have cited here suggest otherwise. If your employees have the right office accessories, it guarantees you increased productivity, better health, reduced turnover, and much more. Since it is easy to work with an empowered and happy workforce, you have a reason to turn to a distributed workforce to remain competitive despite the present global economic and healthcare challenges.

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