Distributed workforce

What is a distributed workforce?

A distributed workforce is said to exist when a business utilizes employees who work in multiple locations, including their homes and satellite offices. Traditionally referred to as telecommuting, today’s distributed workforces have rapidly evolved to more collaborative environments. A co-located workforce is the opposite of a distributed workforce.

Distributed workforce companies can employ workers in traditional offices, mobile salespeople and executives, those who work in a shared workspace (such as Regus or We Work), and remote workers logging in from home. What they all have in common is a group of software and connectivity tools that enable them to work on shared projects, virtually hold ad-hoc meetings, schedule conference calls, and seamlessly share documents and folders necessary for the completion of their job functions.

Some of the many communications and collaboration tools utilized by distributed workforces are:

• Teleconferencing tools such as Zoom, Skype, Microsoft Teams, and WebEx.
• Chat rooms, either integrated in current tools or through stand-alone chats such as FaceTime.
• Cloud-based file sharing such as Dropbox.
• Whiteboard and screen sharing software.
• Traditional telephone.

Even small businesses have adopted a distributed workforce, despite the traditional co-location associated with small businesses. This has caused many organizations to adopt remote workplace solutions and has driven skyrocketing demand for collaboration platforms and other distributed workforce tools.

How do you manage a distributed workforce?

Distributed workforce management presents new challenges. Keeping employees focused on business tasks and maintaining productivity is critical to a business’ continued success.

Key to management is communications and collaboration. Every distributed team requires a solid set of digital meeting tools to keep employees connected and engaged so they continue to feel they play an important role in the organization. Whether on a Zoom call, via a Slack channel, or by sharing Google documents, that collaboration and communication is the lifeblood of any distributed workforce.

Just as important is ensuring employees are engaged and motivated to perform their jobs. Working remotely can have a psychological impact on employees, and so HR and management must strive to engage with every employee and encourage them to engage with each other via departmental chats, newsletters, and even contests, for example fundraisers for local food banks or virtual fun runs.

You can’t manage what you can’t see, and so monitoring employee productivity brings additional challenges. There are many tools available to monitor employee engagement, monitor what is on their screens, and otherwise ensure that work is actually being performed according to plans. Here are some tips for improving remote management.

1. Provide the right tools for employee success.
2. Communicate any changes in responsibilities due to working remotely.
3. Set deadlines and get regular updates on tasks and don’t micromanage.
4. Set ground rules for when and how to interact via phone, chat, videoconference, text, etc.
5. Communicate with employees daily.
6. Keep calendars up to date – let employees know when you are available to chat or meet.
7. Create trust. Build relationships with each employee through 1-on-1 meetings.
8. Provide honest and transparent communication.
9. Recognize and reward individuals and teams as if they worked in the same location to maintain company culture.
10. Provide training and education opportunities that can lead to job growth.

Benefits of a distributed workforce

Distributed workforce companies offer benefits to employees, and also benefit the organization in the following ways:

• Reduce real estate costs. Without the need for extensive office space, organizations can save on real estate costs and enable seamless scaling as employees are added since there is no scramble to find space for them.
• Higher productivity. Employees working from home tend to put in more work than co-located employees due to the lack of a commute.
• Expanded hiring geographies. If every employee is working from home, home can be anywhere. Recruiters can seek talent across a vastly expanded geographic area to find the right talent

Employee benefits include:

• Flexible hours. With the opportunity to work how, when, and where they want, employees can practice a better work/life balance.
• Saving time without a commute. Elimination of a commute saves hours per week, reduces wear and tear on vehicles, and saves commute dollars.
• Increased personal productivity. As motivated employees get more work done faster, they have the chance to focus on a broader array of projects with the time saved.

Business challenges of a distributed workforce

Cybersecurity presents a huge risk to distributed workforces. Employees who work outside a trusted network environment on company-issued computers and smartphones increase the attack surface – at best, they utilize office equipment on a home network equipped with VPN, and at worst on an employee-owned smartphone or tablet from an insecure Wi-Fi connection at the local coffee shop. Additionally, lost or stolen devices may contain login information that enables access to corporate resources.

Since business, governance, and regulatory issues change frequently, plan for compliance training on a regular basis. Besides normal HR-related training, include best practices for cybersecurity, government mandates like PCI, HIPAA, GDPR, etc. utilizing a combination of microlearning and traditional training sessions to meet the needs of different constituents.

Difference between distributed workforce and “working from home"

A distributed workforce includes multiple employees working in different locations, which could be remote offices, headquarters facilities, home offices, or in the field. It does not preclude on-site teams; rather, it indicates that workers are in multiple locations as opposed to under a single roof.

Work-at-home implies just that: An employee whose principal place of work is a home office. A work-at-home employee could be part of a co-located team that typically works in a single facility, or they could be part of a geographically distributed workforce.

Working from home typically refers to an individual, while working as a distributed workforce is a business-wide strategy that encompasses many – or all – employees.