It seems that it took just one moment for the whole world to turn upside down. No one was ready to make such drastic changes which, in normal circumstances, would take weeks, even months to implement. But, with all of the changes, we will talk about how remote teams have become more productive.
Businesses around the world did it all in one night. They let all their employees know the office is closed until further notice and all of their activities should be completed from home. Most importantly: the results should be as satisfactory as the ones delivered from the office.
From the organizations’ perspective, many struggled with making the overnight transfer, mostly due to the nature of the work they complete. And it’s not just that – there were those who worried that the productivity levels will inevitably deteriorate.
When you look at it from the employees’ perspective, this doesn’t really surprise you, does it? Instead of getting up, getting dressed, and commuting to a place where all focus is on work, you are left at home to find a quiet and comfortable place to concentrate. Considering all the distractions we have at home, we can understand the concern on the employer’s side.
The Unexpected Success
But now that months have passed and the data on work-from-home productivity was collected and analyzed, we see an increase in productivity levels, especially among software developers and digital agencies.
That’s right – contrary to the initial belief, it seems that almost 60% of workers saw an increase in productivity, with 42% of developers saying it is easier to complete their tasks in a timely manner.
The majority of companies have placed their digital transformation objectives as a priority. As a result, they efficiently implemented advanced solutions which allowed them to optimize remote work. But to increase their chances of success, software development companies, and most other digital companies will need to think about adding new tools to their professional toolkit to ease communication and simplify certain processes.
The Transformation
It goes without saying that specifying everyone’s roles and goals is imperative in work-from-home scenarios. Since team members aren’t seated next to each other, they are thus unavailable for quick live consultation when the need for it arises. Sure, you will schedule regular team meetings where you will discuss the ongoing project activities and milestones, but sometimes even daily meetings are not frequent enough to prevent misunderstandings.
The Use Of Collaboration Tools
This is why the popularity of collaboration tools has surged since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. One of the first things the most successful digital teams did was invest in a practical project management tool. This allowed them to keep all their tasks on one platform, delegate activities to different team members, set deadlines, and even upload important documents.
In addition, communication tools and business chat applications like Skype, Slack, and Google Meet were used for individual and group conversations. Meetings were organized as well, but usually on one of the specially-designed video-conferencing platforms – and this might just become the new norm. In fact, according to Bill Gates, more than 50% of companies will reduce the frequency of in-person meetings. This only further stresses the importance of the adoption of communication tools and live streaming services that have the power to bridge the physical gap between remote employees.
Transfer To The Cloud
After cohesive communication was established, the question was – how to ensure all information is available to all or specific team members? The majority have solved the issue by transitioning to the cloud. It represents a safe space where the whole team can access the necessary data, use it to make more informative deductions, and finally achieve their task goals. All changes are saved near-instantly and made visible to all employees who can then use this info to their advantage whenever it best suits them.
Outsourcing
Even software development companies and other digital agencies that insisted on in-office activities in the past are thinking about embracing remote work as a long-term solution. They are no longer afraid of implementing outsourcing business models that allow them to tap into new markets, connect with new talented professionals, and subsequently – grow their teams, business, and audience.
Conclusion
The future of software development and digital agencies in general seems to be a decentralized one. The lack of adequate equipment, infrastructure, and processes is in the past, as solutions were quickly developed to overcome any work-from-home challenges. Now that we see from experience how remote work can actually facilitate business operations, the question is – how many software development or digital teams will want to get back to the office? People are of divided opinions and it seems that, in order to maintain their market positions, organizations will likely need to create flexible, hybrid models that can be quickly implemented based on current events. The bottom line is remote teams have become more productive.
