Would you make a great remote employee?
Ken Pelczarski | TLT Career Coach March 2021
Certain types of job positions lend themselves to remote work—see if the following points apply to you.
Are you a proponent of employees working remotely? You might have a strong opinion on this subject, especially if you have had first-hand experience working remotely or have managed employees who work remotely. Many of us, however, have not had much experience with the concept of remote work until the COVID-19 pandemic hit hard in March 2020.
Many recent studies indicate that remote work is here to stay at a high level, even after COVID-19 is behind us. Although some employers have not bought into the remote concept, most employers have significantly increased their number of remote employees or maintained a high number of remote employees.
I conducted a survey of more than 500 lubricant industry leaders with a nearly 10% response rate for my Career Coach in the September 2020 TLT. The results of this study indicated that 29% of employers plan to greatly increase their number of remote workers or begin for the first time to allow remote work, 31% of employers plan to continue utilizing a high level of remote workers and 40% of employers plan to limit the number of remote workers because of difficulty in managing this type of employee.
Below are several studies showing that remote work rates post-COVID-19 will likely remain well above pre-pandemic levels:
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77% of employers expect an increase in the number of employees working remotely for at least three days per week, even 12 months after the pandemic substantially subsides.
(Survey of 150 human resources executives primarily at large U.S. companies in June 2020 by The Conference Board)
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82% of U.S. companies will let office-based workers decide when they will return to the workplace.
(Survey of U.S. senior executives representing 100 companies with annual revenues over $1 billion in September 2020 by KPMG)
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22% of U.S. workforce will still be remote by 2025.
(Survey of 1,000 hiring managers in December 2020 by Upwork)
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74% of workers say a mix of office-based and remote working is the best way forward. 77% of C-suite leaders say business will benefit from increased flexibility, with the optimal mix being 51% in the office and 49% remote.
(Survey of 8,000 global office-based employees, managers and C-suite executives in June 2020 by The Adecco Group)
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81% of employees enjoy working remotely. 65% state that remote work has positively affected their work-life balance. 60% of working professionals have grown more productive while working from home.
(Survey of 1,022 U.S. workers on their remote work experiences since the pandemic in January 2021 by LiveCareer)
Whether you are in management or not, you would make a great remote employee (happy, motivated and productive) if the following points apply to you:
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You place high value on no commute time.
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You work well without supervision.
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You have tremendous self-discipline.
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You feel great satisfaction working independently.
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You would put in the required number (or greater) of work hours weekly.
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You would be able to achieve company goals from home.
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You do not need the camaraderie of having coworkers around you.
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You have a dedicated space to work at home.
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You would be able to set boundaries with family members at home.
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You would work efficiently and stay on track through occasional distractions at home.
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You are set up to participate in virtual meetings on Zoom, Microsoft Teams or other video conferencing programs.
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You have sufficient technical/computer proficiency to communicate effectively with superiors, peers and subordinates.
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Your employer encourages and supports remote work.
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You work in the type of position that lends itself to remote work
(see list below).
If you are in management, you would make a great remote employee (happy, motivated and productive) if these additional points apply to you:
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You would be able to motivate subordinates virtually.
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You would promote high goals and a common vision virtually among subordinates.
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You possess the technology skillset to communicate effectively with subordinates virtually.
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You have the necessary technical know-how to conduct virtual meetings with team members.
Certain types of job positions lend themselves to remote work (e.g., office, sales, IT, finance). Industry and manual services workers are typically more difficult to employ remotely than professional and office workers. Below is my assessment of difficulty level for various types of employees to function effectively in a remote capacity.
High-difficulty positions to set up remotely:
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president/CEO
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vice president/general manager
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operations/plant manager
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quality control manager
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laboratory director
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R&D chemist
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laboratory technician
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process/project engineer
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reliability engineer.
Medium-difficulty positions to set up remotely:
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marketing manager/product manager
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technical service manager/representative
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human resources manager.
Low-difficulty positions to set up remotely:
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sales manager/VP sales
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inside sales manager
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formulation consultant
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purchasing agent
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supply chain manager.
Relatively easy positions to set up remotely:
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sales representative/account manager
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marketing consultant
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office manager
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IT director
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chief financial officer.
The above difficulty ratings regarding ease of working remotely can vary greatly, depending upon an individual employee’s situation. For example, (a.) a formulation chemist might have access to necessary lab equipment at home or another nearby facility, or (b.) an executive can be home-based if it is logistically and economically feasible to be in the office as needed.
Hybrid roles are becoming increasingly popular among employers. These are positions in which an employee spends at least one or two days per week working from home. For positions above that are rated as difficult to function remotely, it is important for both employers and employees to look closely at the hybrid work structure. This flexible approach by employers could greatly increase the pool of candidates for an open position. This concept might especially work well in a situation where an individual lives just beyond a comfortable commuting distance from the employer facility.
In general, remote work is trending upward as more employers are realizing through first-hand experience the many possible advantages. The survey I conducted for my September 2020 TLT Career Coach found most employers mentioning the following advantages to remote work.
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Greater employee satisfaction
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Increased employee motivation
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Higher productivity
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Reduced absenteeism and turnover
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Healthier and less stressed employees
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More focus on work tasks
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More economical
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Greater efficiency
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No office distractions
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No commuting time.
Note: One positive result of the increase in remote work is that many older workers will be healthier, put off retirement and contribute to the workforce longer.
One of the above-mentioned advantages applies to both employers and remote workers. The employee will save money on commuting costs and eating meals out. The employer, according to a recent study by Global Workplace Analytics, will save approximately $11,000 annually per half-time telecommuter through increased productivity, lower real estate costs, reduced absenteeism, lower turnover, greater agility and better disaster preparedness.
Another one of the above-mentioned advantages, “higher productivity,” also can be construed as a disadvantage. A poll by Robert Half International Inc. found that 68% of employees who transitioned to remote work because of COVID-19 said they work on weekends, and 45% of remote employees regularly put in more than eight hours per day. Although 76% of remote workers said their productivity has improved, according to a May 2020 study by the Best Practice Institute, a significant number of these same workers report increased stress and mental health issues because of loneliness and being overworked.
The bottom line is that despite the many possible advantages listed above, it takes a special kind of individual to manage work-life balance, maintain good health and have a high level of success working from home. Even sales professionals who are accustomed to being remote employees are adjusting mentally to remote work in a different sense. These individuals have been working at home much more than usual during the pandemic because of limited physical travel to customers.
Along with the many advantages of remote work, there are some distinct disadvantages associated with working from home. Three of the top four predominant ones cited by the January 2021 study of 1,000+ remote workers by LiveCareer coincide with the top three mentioned by employers in the survey I conducted for my September 2020 TLT Career Coach. These top three disadvantages are:
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Home distractions
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Communication issues
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Reduced teamwork/collaboration.
“Home distractions” was by far the leading concern both in my survey (mentioned by 69% of employers) and the LiveCareer survey (mentioned by 59% of remote workers).
The increase in remote work has brought new opportunities and challenges to both employers and employees. Honest and frequent communication is paramount to have work monitored effectively and to keep morale and motivation high among remote employees.
If you believe that you would be successful as a remote employee, do not hesitate to sell this idea to your current employer and/or a prospective employer. Explain the self-evaluation you have done or, better yet, describe the high level of accomplishments you might have had previously while working remotely. Promote how a full-time or hybrid remote work setup is the best way for you to maximize your productivity and job satisfaction.
Ken Pelczarski is owner and founder of Pelichem Associates, a Chicago-based search firm established in 1985 and specializing in the lubricants industry. You can reach Ken at (630) 960-1940 or at pelichem@aol.com.