When managed right, remote work can be engaging, flexible, dynamic with the desired outcome. It’s 2021, and we are going through the second tremor of the deadly virus. As the second wave of pandemic breaks in, we will see remote work gaining momentum again.
But this time, it is going to be “learn from your mistakes” what failed in 2020 cannot be repeated in 2021 cause organisations are all set on their revival path.
Remote work is no doubt incredible, but it comes with its baggage of difficulties. The report suggests that in 2020 the most common concern raised by employees is “they forgot to unplug from work”. Blending work and personal time, employees complain of failing to call a day at a reasonable time.
You might have felt that the productivity of your team is fluctuating. Common reasons detected are feeling of burnout, isolation, disconnectedness, etc. Considering all the challenges, 2021 will see a transformation in remote working and following five trends will shape remote work management in 2021, which is forecasted to continue in 2022.
Integration of Technology
When it comes to managing virtual teams, leaders are looking for technology that will integrate different tools required for managing the remote workforce. There might be ten different tools that will keep team members on the same page, from communication tools to workflow management, helping the leaders to track and manage. But handling ten different tools is tedious. Thus, 2021 will see the rise of a single platform with the integration of various tools in a single platform, making collaboration easier.
Flexibility of timing
Remote work has become a melting point of your professional life and daily household chores. In such an atmosphere where team members are juggling work and household task, having a traditional work time doesn’t make sense.
2021 will promote an outcome-driven culture. Organisations have understood the importance of flexible timings to complete the task. Moreover, in the remote culture, tracking outcome based on the KPIs is the best way to measure your team’s productivity.
Reduced Conference Calls
In remote work, morning generally begins with daily sync calls. But then it doesn’t end there. Slowly organisations have started questioning the effectiveness of video conferencing. Is it draining our productivity? Long calls have left the team with less time to finish off with the priority task. Responding to this, in 2021, we will see the trend of reduced video calls and focussing more on task.
Transforming HR practices
2021 will see the demand for digital transformation in HR practices. With mass employees going remote mode, it has become essential to leverage built-in support for virtual onboarding. When employees do not have F2F interaction, there is a chance of feeling isolated. Thus, it becomes vital for HR to promote inclusive culture by deploying a digital platform and be connected to the employee’s journey. This year, we will see some transformation HR practices with the objective of employee’s well-being.
Filling the gap through Reskilling
Pandemic has put a halt on individual growth. The report suggests that “54% of workforce needs reskilling by 2022”. Pandemic has widened the skill gap, and reskilling is becoming urgent in organisations. With a heavy focus on digitisation, AI, cloud computing, machine learning and analytics, the in skill demand for the same is on rising. Gartner report suggests only 16% of the workforce possess adequate skills for new jobs. Thus in 2021, we will see the rise of reskilling in remote work mode.
Pandemic has shown us how a remote work model can become a choice for an organisation without affecting productivity. It has been an immensely successful model in the tough time. With learnings from the past, taking care of the challenges will ensure a smooth transition.
