Going all-in on flexible working? Consider hiring one of these

“Home, home again
I like to be here when I can”

The two verses are taken from one of Pink Floyd’s greatest hits: Time. Not here to talk about the British rock band, but the lyrics set the motto for the way most companies and employees have been working these last couple of months and the greatest benefit of them all (time) — I was about to write the context for how we’ve been living, but I’ve realized the tiredness of the subject, so I’ll resume it into two words: remote working.

Fast-forwarding to today, some companies are now coming back to the office with the necessary precautions and common sense: establishing limits, making sure everyone feels good with the transition. Others are doubling the security measures and still have their offices closed. Of these, some of the usual suspects, AKA tech organizations, are considering a complete transition and keeping the new trend of remote working long term.

But here’s the problem: transitioning to remote working is not a binary switch — it’s not either on or off. There are numerous aspects to consider when establishing a virtual office. First and foremost, for the pioneers, in opposition to the usual laggers, remote working is not something allowed or a simple benefit, but a feature that should be supported — follow these leaders to keep your company attractive. The second aspect should be tasking an individual or a team with the transition, but do not fool yourself: this is not a part-time task.

As the award-winning journalist and Head of Remote at GitLab, Darren Murph explains in a comprehensible LinkedIn post, “the smartest, most transparent, and most progressive companies transitioning to remote will hire an executive to lead their journey in the next one to two years.” And a new job role was born: Head of Remote Working.

This role is taking shape in some of the biggest tech companies. Other than GitLab, GitHub, Facebook, Quora, and Twitter are also investing their time and money into hiring experts in this field.

This is especially relevant for large corporations since there must be someone to help individuals establish themselves at home permanently. Moreover, there are various topics that must be taken into account when establishing a remote culture, such as ergonomic home offices or spaces, documentation strategy, remote onboardings, and how a company intends to keep a strong culture. These are crucial for an organization that’s going all-in on this transition.

Additionally, as Murph explains, the process is tiringly iterative and the task requires even more work if the company is setting a hybrid model — with some of the people working remotely full time and others at the office.

For all of you thinking about a strategy for the next working model, Darren’s LinkedIn article and GitLab’s ebook share valuable insights on remote working and can be valuable assets for your company to consider.

The golden rule for this should be trying to anticipate your team’s needs. Otherwise, you’ll be chasing the sun.

“And you run, and you run to catch up with the sun, but it’s sinking
Racing around to come up behind you again.”