Why Bosses are fed up with Remote Work (and Why They're Not So Wrong)
Is remote work under attack, or are we failing to meet its challenges? Discover how we can turn the tide by embracing a new mindset and possibly, a certification for remote-first companies and workers
Hi remote leader 👋
You may have seen an article on Fortune.com that reads "Bosses are fed up with remote work for 4 main reasons. Some of them are undeniable."
Now, before you start thinking, "Oh, here we go again, another attack on remote work”, let's dive a little deeper into this.
It's Not About the Where; It's About the How
At the heart of this debate lies one little word: productivity.
According to the Fortune.com piece, companies are starting to think that working from home isn't as effective as office work.
But what if I told you it's not the location that's the issue?
The approach we're taking to remote work is causing the problems.
The Four Horsemen of Remote Work
The argument against remote work boils down to four main points: first, it's tricky for new hires and junior employees who miss the in-person onboarding experience. Second, misaligned team schedules can create more problems in a remote setup than in an in-person one. Third, data shows remote workers clock in fewer hours per week. And finally, there's anecdotal evidence that everyone working remotely can lead to decreased productivity.
It's up to us.
While these points sound valid, they show we must change our mindset about remote work.
It's up to us, the remote warriors, to show that we can be as productive from our kitchen table as we can from a cubicle.
But let's not ignore the fact that there are real challenges that come with remote work.
Owning the Remote Work Experience
As remote workers, we need to step up and take ownership of our productivity, time management, and communication.
We must find ways to make remote work effective for us and our teams because the success of remote work hinges on us.
A Certification for Remote Workers?
So, this got me thinking, what if we made it official? What if we had a certification for remote-first companies and single workers? This could be a way to show our commitment to practical remote work and address some of the concerns bosses have.
What do you think? If I were to create such a certification program, would you be interested? I would love to hear your thoughts.
That's all for this Saturday.
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I wish you a great weekend!
Gabriele
Yes a certification program with details on
1. How we can make balance between our family and work together when working from home office.
2. Schedule time management.
etc., will surely help. New hires also can start work from home with the help of this as well.
Things like this don't help: "to show that we can be as productive from our kitchen table"
It presents an image of us half-arsing it and phoning it in.
When I work remotely, I have a private office with a better desk and chair than I've ever had in a cubicle and I'm surrounded by a library of top technical books.