Explosive Trend: Remote Employees, Including International Workers, Will Become a Larger Part of Your Workforce

Today’s post is the first of a series in which I will  introduce  my predictions about  explosive trends that I believe will soon transform your company and your way of working. I invite you to share your thoughts. 

Unless you have a business that requires all your employees to work in defined physical locations, this trend will impact on your business. The cost savings of remote employees, the speed with which you can interact with them and the quality of video connections will make them feel included in your enterprise while they work from home or remote locations. As a result, they will have reduced travel time and a better work/life balance. And this trend will allow you to save a tremendous amount of money per employee.

The message for your franchise is to begin to develop systems and build a culture that welcomes employees who work remotely. Now is the time to prepare for an age when you will build a talent pool of less expensive remote employees.

A related trend is that the gig economy will grow and offer new opportunities to hire employees in a focused way to meet your immediate needs. Also, be prepared for the reality that more of the employees who work for you on a project basis will be working for multiple companies.