People Matters BeNext & the business case for remote work

Last year, we were given a crash course in remote work and were driven many years forward in terms of understanding the possibilities of a distributed workplace. From a financial perspective, for example, there are huge advantages. Remote work dissolves geographic limitations, giving access to talent globally. Furthermore, remote allows for flexibility and a new cost model that opens immense saving opportunities. 

In fact, according to a recent study by Global Workplace Analytics, a typical employer could save about $11k a year for every employee who works remotely even just part-time. At a point when all talent leaders are closely monitoring the bottom line, what is the specific business case for remote work? We know competency-building is the number one priority for HR, but how can we build a compelling argument about the ROI of upskilling and reskilling programs? How can BeNext Certification Programs accelerate growth in this area and maximize the impact of these cost model opportunities and ensure remote work remains a win-win situation for both employer and employee? 

The Case for Employers

From a financial point-of-view, remote work can be hugely cost-effective. As the Global Workplace Analytics report points out, $11k a year per employee would mean collectively employers saving billions every year. Increased productivity and agility, plus reduced corporate real estate, commuting costs, absenteeism and turnover rates all combine to make a compelling case for remote work & cost containment. 

While the bottom line benefits of remote work are clear, that doesn’t mean it’s an entirely popular choice for all leaders and employees. In fact, many agree that it’s been hard to maintain a sense of connectedness, engagement and even trust when working remotely. Looking ahead, organisations must focus on creative ways to keep their people engaged while benefiting from the financial savings of remote, lower-cost models. 

BeNext Cohort Certifications are the ideal way to equip talent leaders with skills needed to build up engagement, productivity, resilience and connectedness among virtual-work teams. Coming up in February, March & April, these programs include: 

• Virtual Meeting Facilitator: 22nd February -16th March
• Virtual Coaching & Effective One2One Conversations: 22nd March -16th April
• Virtual Team Leader: Reimagining Team Alignment: 26th April - 23rd May

These programs target the problems leaders are facing now, including  regular coaching and challenging conversations such as performance coaching and implementing remote performance improvement plans, making video-meetings more engaging, best practices for managing content, delivery and on-going audience participation and developing the right mindset for leading remotely.  

The Case for Employees 

Employees also stand to save from working remotely. In fact, a recent study by Deutsche Bank suggested remote workers save such a lot of money working-from-home, they should be subject to a “work from home” tax of around $10 a day! While this proposal may seem extreme, there is a case to be made for remote cost-saving opportunities. 

According to a recent Mercer report on understanding economic benefits for work-from-home employees, researchers estimated that remote working professionals across 11 major U.S. cities stood to save between $220 and $1,000 a month in commuting and other associated costs. As Mercer points out, by tallying the savings made by not commuting, employers may also be able to offset other remote work expenditures such as Wifi or phone usage, given that they are already accounted for by employees not travelling to and from work. 

From a more specifically employee-centric perspective, the BeNext Reimagine Employee Experience program deep-dives into the latest EX technology & analytics to understand and promote connectivity, engagement and overall happiness in a remote context. These essential skill sets are only set to skyrocket in value and demand and BeNext is the ideal platform to address the needs of NOW. 

The Case for Productivity 

Broadly speaking, productivity levels should increase or stay the same under remote work due to fewer distractions and less commuting time. However, the pandemic complicated this trend. With many remote workers also taking care of children or family members, there are more elements to consider when it comes to maintaining and sustaining a consistent level of expectation between employer and employee, and those working-from-home need more targeted support to remain productive and engaged as remote or hybrid work continues. 

Upcoming BeNext Cohort Certifications home in on this area. Performance Enablement for Virtual Teams (15th March-April 8th) program, for example, focuses on acclimatizing teams to new business requirements for agility & speed and linking performance to other talent processes. 

The Case for Customers 

One of the major benefits of a distributed workforce is that customers stand to have access to company representatives round-the-clock with employees distributed across all different time zones. However, to make this model effective, teams must be empowered with the ability to work asynchronously, coordinate and stay in-step with one another across different geographies to deliver the best for their global customer base. BeNext Certification Programs account for this, equipping learners with the latest tools, technologies and resources to seamlessly work together wherever they are located in the world. 

Consistency and communication are key to customer satisfaction and the Cohort-based structure of BeNext programs models these strategies. Learners from across the world start together and work through the program certifications together, using a blend of synchronous and asynchronous tools. In this way, BeNext empowers teams to be their best and continually deliver winning results. 

As organizations around the world settle into the rhythm of remote or hybrid work, People Matters BeNext Certification Programs are here to equip talent leaders with specific skills and competencies for maximum business impact in the global, remote workplace. For more information about these upcoming programs, and to download the latest brochure with information on instructors, dates and programs, visit our website here.