Today we are having a national remote work day in Finland. Our organization is celebrating this, although remote work is what people at our company are allowed to do anyway. Knowledge intensive work offers many opportunities to do things elsewhere than at your own office cubicle. It also has tremendous effect on your company’s young talents, who appreciate freedom and want to be trusted. Why does remote work do good for your employer image? And why does remote work increase your young talents’ motivation and engagement?
Freedom. Brain is a curious thing. If we are forced to do something, it doesn’t feel as compelling as things we do voluntarily. Remote work is a way to tell your young stars and their brain that they are working in your company because they really want to, not only because they have to pay the rent. This freedom is also a way of non-monetary compensation and will enhance your employer image – your talents are going to tell all their friends that one of the greatest things of working at your organization is the possibility to do remote work and maybe even have flexible working hours.
Trust. Brain is still a curious thing. Allowing people to do remote work really shows that you trust them. It’s a signal that you trust them to do a good job even without standing next to them. Younger generations don’t need people babysitting them, they need trust and support. If there is a need for a babysitter, the recruitment has either gone bad or the boss really needs to learn how to minimize his or her need to over control everything.
Performance and positive energy. Some of the young people tend to get a lot more done at home. They have fresh memories from the university where they have been writing essays and reading to an exam with only few disruptions: lunch, coffee breaks, Facebook notifications, WhatsApp messages… Now you are adding up work-related emails, phone calls, colleagues and supervisors. It’s nice when colleagues and bosses drop by to have a word, since this is good for the information flow at the office. But let’s be honest, you are distracted dozens of times a day. Having remote days usually increases work performance and your future hopes return to the office with loads of positive energy. Yet again our young talents’ brains have done something for us and for your company’s success – coming back to the office feels nicer when you have been away.
I hope you too had a great and productive day at your remote office!