The Future of Remote Work
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Abstract
The impact of COVID-19 on the way that we work arguably represents the most drastic and rapid shift to the global workforce that we have seen since World War II. This paper investigates the long term impacts of this remote work experiment and what we can anticipate in the future, based on the direct impact that COVID has had on hiring, sentiments around remote work, and plans moving forward. The analysis uses two waves of survey data: one fielded prior to the pandemic in November 2019, and the other fielded during the pandemic in April 2020. The surveys polled a combined 1,500 hiring managers which includes executives, VPs, and managers- so the results reflect the views and plans of those with direct influence over businesses’ remote work decisions. In short, these results provide before and after snapshots of how relevant decision makers view the remote work experiment so far and how it has affected their plans. The results suggest that the remote work experiment has gone better than expected for hiring managers. The perceived benefits of working remotely are causing businesses to significantly increase plans for remote hiring in the future, which will cause an acceleration in the already upward trend of greater remote work.