What is the Future of Remote Work in 2021?
The global pandemic COVID-19 outbreak changed almost everything. Not only did it affect our mental health and camouflage our daily routines, it also took a toll on our jobs and profession, disrupting the work culture and introducing us to the work-from-home policies.
Being confined to our homes to protect ourselves and our families from being infected, we could no longer have the meeting room brainstorming sessions, the coffee breaks, the work-stress venting, or our office desks where we used to sit with our colleagues the entire day and work. We saw all of that replaced with the work-from-home setup that involved wearing sweatpants, bearing distractions all around, having trouble focusing, and chugging lots of coffee. That was pretty much how our 2020 went about.
As 2021 dawned we hoped it would take away all the craziness we had been witnessing but things stayed pretty much the same. The severity of the global pandemic continues to persist, and so does the transformed work culture worldwide.
The availability of high-speed internet has been a life savior for us to continue working while staying safe in our homes. It was overwhelming to see big providers like Charter Spectrum stepping forward with more affordable and faster connectivity solutions and trying their best to meet the needs of all their users to the fullest. A reliable and high-speed internet connection became a utility amidst the COVID-19 crisis as it acted as a bridge to keep us connected to not only our family, friends, and work colleagues, but also allowed us to stay more aware and informed by catching up with all the happenings around the world.
Wondering how the future will be like for work? Here we have gathered the top trends that will dominate remote working in 2021. Dive in to know all about it!
Video Calls will be a Thing
The video calling trend has been on the rise and we saw many small business owners including yoga instructors, accountants, and therapists, etc. connecting with their customers through video calls. It is expected that video calling will remain a dominant part of the future remote working culture. No doubt, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams have been very popular and widely used programs in 2020, serving as an effective collaboration platform for video conferencing, their usage will continue to grow in 2021.
Hybrid Working Model
As we will enter the second half of the year 2021 and if the situation gets any better, we are likely to see a blend of work from home and office, referred to as the hybrid work model. It can provide a good balance of social distancing along with social interactions, so employees can stay innovative and creative by working in person while also staying safe.
Many organizations seem to be implementing this model where their employees visit the office certain days and spend others working remotely.
Cybersecurity Tools will be Vital
As more and more companies opt for remote working, cybersecurity will be a more serious concern in the year 2021. Organizations will be focused to provide enhanced cybersecurity tools to their employees to maximize their efficiency and keep the data protected. Thus, cybersecurity will become even more important than it was before. There will be more emphasis on data security and to make it more secure. The shift to working from home will compel businesses to invest more in IT systems to be able to protect workers from any cyber-attacks.
Re-skilling
As companies switch to a remote working culture amidst the coronavirus pandemic, work dynamics will shift towards digital infrastructure. Thus, employees will have to upskill in particular areas to be able to work remotely. Investments in newer technology, including cloud, machine learning, AI, and cybersecurity tools, presents a need for workers to be more educated digitally. While coping with this new digitalization, remote employees will now need to learn how to operate various telecommunication and security tools and applications to be able to work efficiently from home in addition to performing job tasks. There will also be a focus on harnessing softer skills, including compassionate leadership, motivation, consistency, and time management, etc.
The Bottom Line
It is a fact that the global pandemic has changed our personal and professional lives. The work culture will not be the same in the year 2021 as companies are forced to consider and implement hybrid work models and look into the utilization of better cybersecurity tools and strategies to ensure more secure remote working. The aforementioned trends will be the future of remote working and will ensure better productivity of the employees and greater investments in digital infrastructure.
