The Effect of Remote Work on Employee Productivity

Remote Work, also called Work-from-home is a type of working arrangement that gives employees the option to work from a place other than the organization’s corporate offices. This concept dates back in time to the earliest "working man" (Homo ergaster) who lived 1.4-1.9 million years ago and did not travel far from home to hunt (which was the way he worked to provide food). So far, we've come a long way, from the longhouses of England, when farmers lived and worked from home to the tradespeople's age when many trades were done from home.

The way people work from home has evolved since 1980 when companies officially began flexible working. Due to the COVID-19 forcing a change in working practices and the numerous benefits of remote work such as improved employee engagement, cost savings, and talent attraction, 16% of businesses are now fully remote, with companies like Microsoft and Meta allowing employees to work from home permanently.

Remote working has quickly become the norm for many companies, the reality isn’t quite so rosy as many employees struggle with the unsettling changes that remote work brings such as mental health issues arising from the isolation faced when working from home, the technical issues like software, hardware and internet issues which are immediately taken care of in the workplace can cause interruptions in remote work as well as difficulty in communication and collaboration as it is difficult to know the mood of someone virtually which makes collaborating with colleagues on projects online onerous. These are some of the issues facing remote work and in turn, hampers employee productivity.

In the same vein, remote work has brought about improved wellbeing of an employee such as providing the time to live a healthier life either by exercising or making healthy foods; activities that would have been near impossible to do in an office setting. It also provides ample time for employees to attend to personal matters which promotes better work-life balance and makes employees happier doing work which inadvertently improves productivity. Working from home also allows people to avoid the burden of, purchasing office attires, lunch meals, paying commuting fees and the hassles in commuting to work. for example, in Lagos, some workers undergo the 4 am to 10 pm working cycle which negatively impacts health and lowers productivity. With the recent outbreak of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, remote working would prevent employees from being exposed in the workplace and ensure they are safe and remain productive.

Since remote work can have a positive impact on organizations if it doesn't negatively impact employees' productivity, its benefits and drawbacks are two sides of the same coin. However, with the current pandemic, it is important to encourage more remote work to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Furthermore, for remote work to be effective, it requires good planning and the adoption of technological processes that will enable team members to effectively collaborate even when they are apart.