Will Remote Working Affect Organizational Culture And Day-To-Day Operations? - Entrepreneur

As remote working picks up pace, organizational leaders must strategize ways in which they can boost employee morale, maintain a healthy working culture, improve processes, and empower employees in the right ways

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March 31, 2021 4 min read

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The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a seismic shift in; how we live, work or operate our day-to-day lives. The national lockdown forced many companies to shift towards working from home, and its efficacy has accelerated the concept of remote working. As the saying goes, "No matter what comes your way, the earth continues to spin on its axis." Likewise, businesses have managed to work with a remote workforce and survived through these turbulent times.

As the world economy gradually unlocks and organizations open their offices, a key trend that has emerged from the pandemic is remote working. As per a recent Flexjobs survey, 65 per cent of the respondents suggested they would prefer to work remotely, even after the pandemic ended. At the same time, 31 per cent of respondents were desirous of a hybrid work environment. This statistic suggests that 96 per cent of the total respondents were in favour of certain remote working styles.

So, as remote working picks up pace, organizational leaders must strategize ways in which they can boost employee morale, maintain a healthy working culture, improve processes, and empower employees in the right ways. Without letting remote working affect organizational culture and day-to-day operations.

While we know managing a remote workforce is quite challenging, aggravating the problem further is the absence of human connection, often resulting in the employee's social life, taking a hit and impacting the team's overall bonding. Therefore organizational leaders must build a personal rapport with employees and make an effort to create an authentic connection with and make them feel valued, heard and trusted irrespective of their geographical location.

CEOs and managers must emphasize on enriching an organization's culture through activities, after ensuring basic processes are in place while working remotely.  Furthermore, it is essential to ensure that employees/team members align with the company's vision and are comfortable working remotely. A good organizational culture results in a happy workforce and a successful enterprise. Lastly, frequent encouragement and appreciation play a vital role in ensuring employee bonding and loyalty amidst turbulent times.

Some of the challenges, which pose a risk and likely affect organizational culture and day-to-day operations with remote working are: cultural differences, communication issues, lack of transparency and trust. And to overcome these problems, companies must adhere to the following:

Cultural differences: Cultural differences are pretty common amongst remote teams, and they can broadly impact the organization and its outcome. Since the hiring process isn't bound by location, employees will often find themselves working with people of all different backgrounds. Therefore, developing a sense of cross-cultural awareness becomes crucial while working remotely. 

Communication issues: Having efficient and coherent communication systems is the cornerstone of any well-functioning group, and it is especially crucial for remote teams. As if communication breakdown occurs within a team, many problems can arise as an outcome affecting the business at large. Hence it is imperative to prioritize effective communication practices within a group for its growth while working remotely.

Lack of trust: Even if technology enables communication, leaders need to build employee trust to be effective, and nothing compares to face-to-face communication. It helps create a collaborative environment that inspires and energizes employee's morale and fosters engagement and innovation, which is necessary for employee satisfaction and maintains organizational culture and growth.

To summarize, in the initial days of remote-working, focusing on building one-on-one connections is necessary, as it builds the foundation for the future. Furthermore employees from corporations with a strong organisational culture experience a sense of belonging, engagement, and commitment towards their organisation which is indeed critical for success.