Companies Are Failing to Build Equitable Remote Workforces
We need to forget the “remote worker” label
The approach to work has permanently shifted because of COVID-19. Almost 40% of executives expect their employees to work remotely at least twice a week after the pandemic, compared to just 22% of executives surveyed before COVID-19. Some companies plan to allow employees to work 100% remotely, while others will offer a hybrid approach.
While remote work has its benefits, it also comes with disadvantages. I have worked colocated and distributed teams throughout my career and have witnessed that remote workers often feel like second-class citizens. Research shows that those who worked remotely before the pandemic were not treated equally by their coworkers. And over the past year, many remote workers report missing in-person socialization and meeting opportunities.
At Okta, I am the head of dynamic work, a framework we’ve implemented that empowers employees to work when and where it makes the most sense for them. We’ve thought carefully about how to enable productivity and connectivity for all of our employees, no matter where they are located. We’ve seen that as other companies create strategies around work in a post-pandemic world, they need to be intentional about setting remote workers up for success and treating them equitably at every part of the employee lifecycle.
Here are a few lessons we’ve learned by launching dynamic work that can help other companies create equitable experiences for all of their employees.
Forget the “remote worker” label
For a long time, many organizations have had remote policies built to prevent productivity loss, not for the employee. As a result, the term “remote work” often has a negative connotation and implies a worker’s whole identity is based on their physical location. It also infers that work location is a binary choice: you’re either a remote worker or an office worker.
We need to be more intentional about the language we use. For example, the term ‘dynamic work’ is effective because it puts the employee first, empowering them to build a personalized work experience that fits their lives. We consider all of our workers to be dynamic workers, regardless of where they are located and how often they come into the office.
Give every employee a productive work environment
Conversations and planning around remote or dynamic work tend to focus on the way work gets done. We talk about which apps workers use or focus on the types of devices employees will have and what their working hours will be. What these conversations overlook is that the environment we do our work in is just as important as the tools we use.
When you work in an office, it’s typically assumed that your employer will provide you with necessities like a desk, adequate lighting, heat, and cameras for video conferencing. So why don’t we make the same assumption about people who work outside of the office? When I’ve worked remotely in the past, all I was provided with was a laptop. No adjustable desk, lighting, or monitors — the default assumption is that you will work in the office or you’re on your own.
To help employees be productive and feel supported by their employers, companies should provide everyone with commercial supplies that feel like an actual office — no matter where they work. My rule of thumb: if someone working at home can’t have it, employees in the office shouldn’t have it either.
Foster human connection
So much inter-colleague connection happens in the office throughout the day. You might learn about a coworker’s upcoming wedding when you see them in the kitchen or hear about their kid’s first day of kindergarten in the hallway. When you’re working remotely some or all of the time and often communicating with colleagues digitally, it’s easy to miss out on those opportunities. In my experience, that’s been one of the hardest things about joining meetings over Zoom; you miss out on the casual banter and conversation that happens before and after an in-person meeting.
Companies need to find ways to offer that kind of connection to workers who aren’t coming into the office. One easy step is to put an official process in place for announcing employee milestones or life events, such as weddings, anniversaries, a death in the family, or career pivots. It’s important to make it easy for all employees — regardless of where they work — to find and meet colleagues with similar interests. We’re testing out a few Slack applications that help employees stay connected, including WaterCooler and Hallway, which focus on human connections instead of work.
Support all employees’ health and wellness goals
Employees don’t just want good benefits; they want customizable benefits that work for them and their families. Benefit resources should be straightforward to find, and options should align with employees’ geographic location and culture. Someone working in the office in San Francisco might want different healthcare benefits than a remote worker in Tokyo, for example. A “one size fits all” approach to benefits will inevitably leave some employees feeling like the company doesn’t support all of their needs.
Empower career growth
People who spend some or all of their time working outside of the office can feel overlooked when managers consider promotions or other opportunities. When an employee doesn’t see their manager every day, the manager might not know what they are working on or see their progress. Every employee should have a clear and easy way to find information about training resources, career trajectories, and compensation structure. Mentor opportunities are important too, both for employees to be mentored and also to serve as mentors for junior staff.
Remote employees who don’t feel they are on equal footing with in-office employees likely won’t have a long tenure at the company. That’s why companies must think about how to provide the best experience for every worker throughout their entire employment cycle.
The best approach is to ensure every employee, no matter where they work, has access to the same benefits that in-office employees receive.
