What has been the benefit of allowing remote work?
Company Interview with Fraser, Global Head of Marketing at AnswerConnect
Remote work comes with a variety of benefits. Not only does dropping the commute give everyone some added time back in their day, but it also allows our team to create a work environment that suits them. That freedom is crucial to staying motivated, relaxed, and organised.
Another significant benefit to our flexible work model; in the UK, we’re able to work asynchronously with our team in Chennai and in our team in Portland. With teams distributed across time-zones, it gives us the flexibility to deliver projects under time constraints as we have people working at all hours of the day globally.
Friday newsletters, instant access to HR, & the use of GIFs in comms, Fraser and the AnswerConnect team could write a book on remote work best practices. Check out the process of how they make it all work.
Read full interview from Company Interview with Fraser, Global Head of Marketing at AnswerConnect.
Company Interview with Maxime, Co-founder and CTO of Digicoop
One benefit has been the freedom to organize yourself and a better work/life balance. As a worker cooperative, this is a core value of the company. Being remote-first gives each of us more flexibility than going into an office, having to commute, etc.
But I don't think remote work is enough by itself. To become great, it has to come with trust and asynchronous work.
Asynchronous means that not everybody has to work at the same time.
From making employees shareholders to letting workers take control of their roles, Maxime describes Digicoop's path to remote success.
Read full interview from Company Interview with Maxime, Co-founder and CTO of Digicoop.
Company Interview with Corine, co-founder of Sike Insights
Remote work has opened up a lot of opportunities for our team. None of us can technically drive, and we’ve moved all over during quarantine, so it’s been insanely helpful for reducing commutes and making work accessible.
Remote work also reduces the distraction of a coworking space. We’re a lot more intentional about our time, especially since we have our teammates holding us accountable on Tandem.
Class is in session! Corine and her team have been studying how to incorporate remote work in their startup for months. Learn about the effective remote work practices she and the team are implementing in their new company.
Read full interview from Company Interview with Corine, co-founder of Sike Insights.
Company Interview with Tricia, CEO of BELAY
As a remote company, we aren’t limited to geography. It’s a great position to be in as a business leader when you are looking to scale with the right people.
For 10 years, BELAY has been a 100% remote work company. CEO, Tricia, shares the tools that keep them thriving and how boundaries & expectations contribute to their success.
Read full interview from Company Interview with Tricia, CEO of BELAY.
Company Interview with Sharon Koifman, CEO of DistantJob
There is a list of amazing advantages. First, you have the incredible advantage of having access to a much bigger pool of talent, and you can also work with people in countries where the cost of living is much lower.
Lower cost of living means happier employees for less money. People take less sick days, and they are less likely to stop a project in the middle. You save the environment by reducing commute, and employees tend to use those commute hours to catch up on work.
There are so much research and surveys available about how people are happier, more independent, and far more productive. The list just goes on.
With DistantJob, Sharon has created a mistake-friendly environment where managers lead by example. See his tips for building trust and security among his remote teams.
Read full interview from Company Interview with Sharon Koifman, CEO of DistantJob.
Company Interview with Tammy, CEO of Workplaceless, and a remote work leader
For our team members:
- Schedule and location flexibility. Remote work doesn't always equal flexible work, but at Workplaceless, we find that the best policy is to ensure that they do. We encourage our team members to work when and where they are most productive. We've had team members who have seamlessly moved to different countries while on our team. On a daily basis, our team members share when they will and won't be available so that we all can collaborate efficiently. Plus, our leadership team shares when they are taking breaks for lunch, a midday workout, or need to tend to family needs. We don't do this to keep track, but rather to model for the whole team that we recognize that we all have needs and lives outside of work.
For our company:
- Access to top talent. As highlighted above, at the start of Workplaceless, we knew a distributed model was the only answer for us, and the biggest benefit was access to our amazing team members now dispersed throughout the globe.
For our team members and company:
- Productivity. We've found that when our team members are most productive and recognized for their output, they are more engaged with the work and goals at hand. This also benefits our business as we're able to accomplish more without being interrupted during deep work periods or pulled into meetings that could've been an email.
With Workplaceless, Tammy helps companies start off on the "right remote foot." Hear how her 100% remote team stays in sync, and how she keeps her employees engaged
Read full interview from Company Interview with Tammy, CEO of Workplaceless, and a remote work leader.
Company Interview with Brad, co-founder and CEO of WebDevStudios
Wearing PJs to work? Ha-ha! The single biggest benefit when working from home, in my opinion, is all of the extra time you get back to spend with your friends and family.
This is the time you would normally spend commuting to and from your job. That commute time, which is spent full of frustration and stress, is just wasted time in your life. Getting that time back for things that are actually important in your life is a huge benefit!
A challenging time finding talented local employees gave Brad the idea to make WebDevStudios 100% remote—hear about his strategies for creating a healthy remote work culture.
Read full interview from Company Interview with Brad, co-founder and CEO of WebDevStudios.
Company Interview with Jan Fex, CEO of DotDee Digital
As mentioned above, one benefit is lesser operational costs like keeping an office with equipment and supplies and salaries to non-production personnel. Another benefit is, of course, the relative freedom of working from your home workspace and being able to have more control of your daily schedule.
A three-hour work commute motivated Jan to establish a full-on remote work arrangement for his company. What have been the benefits & challenges? See his takeaways!
Read full interview from Company Interview with Jan Fex, CEO of DotDee Digital.
Company Interview with Devin, CEO of Animalz
The most obvious and well-known benefits are flexibility, freedom, and time.
- Flexibility. Particularly for folks with families. It allows them to create a work schedule that more closely aligns with their children’s and partner’s needs.
- Freedom to work from anywhere they want (particularly appealing for those who like to travel).
- Time: we have a lot of folks who have hobbies like mountain biking, cooking, needlepoint, you name it. Eliminating a commute to an office saves at a minimum an hour every day that folks can invest in other things they’re passionate about.
All of this helps the business because employees are happier and more motivated because they have plenty of time in the week to invest in themselves.
How do you keep remote teams motivated? Devin, CEO of Animalz, shares her tips for how leaders can avoid demotivation and her hopes for the future of remote work.
Read full interview from Company Interview with Devin, CEO of Animalz.
Interview with Shelly, CEO of Fire Engine RED & remote work pioneer
The biggest benefit of being a fully remote company has been our ability to hire top talent no matter where they live.
Our lack of a centralized office proved particularly helpful in the hiring of three of our executive vice presidents, all of whom were “unicorns”—highly sought-after education professionals with unique experience, skills, and credentials.
The fact that they didn’t have to relocate gave us a key competitive advantage over the other companies that were trying to hire them.
Twenty years ago, Shelly started one of the first all-remote U.S. companies. See how remote work has given Fire Engine RED a competitive advantage & the four most important words in the employee handbook.
Read full interview from Interview with Shelly, CEO of Fire Engine RED & remote work pioneer.