7th May 2021 2 MIN READ •Talos Engage •Employee Engagement
43 of the UK’s 50 biggest employers have said they will continue to promote hybrid/remote working beyond 2021.
The news comes as firms across the UK embrace the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions by welcoming some employees back into the office.
Remote working has become the norm for millions of UK workers over the past 12 months. 2020’s lockdown measures saw office doors forced shut to prevent the spread of COVID-19 – forcing many to continue their roles from home.
What do employers say?
While initially approached with caution, remote working has proven a success for many firms. One 2020 study showed a 47% increase in productivity amongst remote workers – shining light on the advantages of a home-based workforce.
This has led to a large number of employers pledging to continue flexible working initiatives after restrictions are lifted.
Mark Read, CEO of advertising firm WPP, told the BBC: ‘We’re never going to go back to working the way we used to work.’
What do employees think?
Remote working has received a mixed reception from UK employees. While some struggled with home-working, many have praised the absence of lengthy commutes, and creative space provided by remote working.
Of some 16,000 employees at insurance firm Aviva, 95% said they would like to continue working flexibly in the future.
Hybrid working – the mix of office and home-based employment – has shown to be a popular choice for both companies and their employees in recent months. While many employees embrace the return to the office, the majority still wish to be offered flexibility over where they spend their working day.
This has reinforced the importance of employers adapting their HR strategy to incorporate flexibly working. This is necessary in order to meet the changing wants/needs of their employees.
Is remote working the future?
The increasing popularity of flexible working suggests a bright future for home-based employment – but not necessarily the death of office culture.
Instead, it seems likely that ‘hybrid’ working will become commonplace across many companies – mixing both remote and collaborative working environments.
Vox predicts that 70% of the workforce will be working remotely at least some of the time by 2025.
While it’s unlikely that either workers or their employers will embrace fully-remote working, chances are slim for a return to the five-day office week. Now is the time for employers to future-proof their HR strategy – ensuring remote workers remain happy, engaged, and productive.
Engage your remote/hybrid workers to promote productivity: Talos Engage
Are your employees working partly, or completely remotely? It’s vital that you maximise engagement to promote wellbeing, productivity, and retention.
Talos Engage is a gamified EVP analysis tool, allowing employers to identify key changes in their employees’ wants and needs. This enables you to build an employee value proposition (EVP) that truly meets the needs of your workforce.
With the game-style layout of Talos Engage, employees simply swipe left/right on various EVP factors, formulating an easy-to-read report for your HR team. It has never been easier to develop a talent-winning engagement strategy.
Discover a better way to engage your remote workers:
