CFOs Plan to Keep Some Employees Working Remotely After the COVID-19 Pandemic

CFOs Plan to Keep Some Employees Working Remotely After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Gartner surveyed 317 CFOs – finding that many are planning to continue embracing remote work after lifting lockdowns. Why? It’s convenient, cost-effective, and efficient.

Remote work has been an option for businesses for years, but not many have bothered adopting it until now. The global COVID-19 pandemic has forced firms to send their employees home and figure out how to keep them productive while they’re there.

Gartner surveyed 317 CFOs and found that the business world may not change back when the pandemic subsides:

• 74% of CFOs say they expect to move previously on-site employees remote post-COVID-19
• 81% of CFOs plan to exceed their contractual obligations to hourly workers using remote work to offer flexible schedules and maintain operations.
• 13% of CFOs have already cut real estate expenses, with another 9% planning to do the same.

Why is the remote work model beneficial?

Although remote work can be challenging, especially when there’s no plan in place, there are many benefits to working remotely. Recent studies from some of the leading research institutions around the world have highlighted the many benefits of remote work:

• Productivity is enhanced by roughly 35-40% for employees that work from home instead of working in the office
• Employee retention is higher, as 54% of employees claim they would switch their jobs for a more flexible opportunity
• Profits are increasing, with businesses saving approximately $11,000 per year per part-time remote employee

What do businesses need to embrace remote work successfully?

It takes careful planning and consideration to ensure a successful transition from working in the office to working at home. We recommend the following:

Make sure employees have the right technology foundation in place.

Your employees will need the right technology foundation to stay productive and efficient throughout the day. This foundation should include:

• Reliable, up-to-date devices, including desktops, laptops, or mobile devices, that run supported operating systems
• Accessories, including head-sets and high-quality webcams
• An internet connection with enough bandwidth and speed to support workloads and applications

We would also recommend investing in the following technologies to make remote work even more useful:

• A VoIP business phone that offers the ability to make and receive calls over the internet with access to their usual work line, transfer capabilities, and more
• A virtual private network (VPN) providing a secure, encrypted tunnel between the device and the network

Invest in enterprise-grade collaboration tools and cloud-based applications

Collaboration is vital when working from home. Microsoft Teams, for instance, is a great option to enable employees to stay connected via:

• The ability to share, access, and edit files in real-time
• Video conferences or group chat
• Communication via instant messaging

If you rely on any line of business applications, it’s also helpful to have cloud-based versions of them, including ERP systems, accounting systems, CRM systems, and more.

Like this article? Check out the following blogs to learn more:

Is Your Work-From-Home Technology Actually Working?

CSP COVID-19 Update #5, March 27th

CSP Update On COVID-19 In Raleigh, NC