‘Tis the season of turkey and stuffing, but it’s also an important time of the year to be thankful—and that includes employers, too. Being grateful for your workforce and all they do for your company during the year is something that companies should embrace every day, not just during Thanksgiving. Now, employers can easily adopt an attitude of gratitude this year by reminding themselves of these five reasons to be thankful for their remote team.
Here are five reasons to be thankful for your remote team:
They save you money.
Sure, it shouldn’t always be about the Benjamins—but sometimes, it just is. Having a remote team means that your company is saving significantly in terms of office costs, like rent, utilities, computer equipment, and the like.
The money that isn’t being needlessly shelled out for traditional in-office expenses means that it can be reinvested back into the company—or more importantly, back into your workforce in the form of employee training, educational stipends, mentoring programs, and even annual company retreats.
They’re more productive.
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Not to knock office workers, but remote employees have the leg up on them in terms of productivity. Time and again, studies have shown that remote workers are far more productive than traditional office workers. Chalk it up to not having to waste time commuting into an office, dealing with office drama, and other office-related time vampires.
Plus, remote workers have more time, energy, and the ability to focus on getting their work completed on time and efficiently.
They’re more loyal.
There are many things that employees are grateful for: a job that stimulates and challenges them, an engaged employer who values and appreciates what they bring to the job—and of course, a good salary and benefits don’t hurt, either. But by far, the majority of today’s workers want work-life balance over anything else.
So when employees are able to have their career and still attend to everything else they have going on in their lives (like childrearing, caregiving, self-care, etc), it makes them feel very loyal and, yes, grateful to their employers. That gratitude translates into working harder, coming up with more creative, out-of-the-box ideas, and staying with their company rather than looking for employment elsewhere. For remote employers, it amounts to decreased employee turnover (which is a source of additional savings), no loss in productivity, and a more cohesive, profitable workforce.
They’re independent.
Sometimes, you might feel more like you’re babysitting your team rather than actually managing them. After all, if you have to do a lot of hand-holding when it comes to monitoring the progress of your workers, it can impede productivity and negatively impact the overall morale of your team.
Thankfully, one of the biggest soft skills that your remote workers probably already possess is their ability to work independently. That means that they’ll be proactive about reaching out if they have questions, and will work without needing to be micromanaged.
They’re in sync with the mission.
Employers don’t want workers who are solely there just for the paycheck. They are looking for employees who are invested in the company almost as much as they are. That’s why many remote employers look at job candidates to see which ones might possibly grow with the organization and who also understand its mission and embrace its company culture.
Employees whose own beliefs align with what the company stands for will be more motivated to perform at their peak rather than put in a pitiful performance. And when you know that your workers believe in you, your company, and want to work hard to take it to the next level, well, that’s certainly something to be thankful for.
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