The future we envision for work allows for infinite virtual workspaces that will unlock social and economic opportunities for people regardless of barriers like physical location. It will take time to get there, and we continue to build toward this. – Andrew Bosworth, VP Facebook Reality Labs

The Coronavirus brought many changes to the world, one of which is the popularisation of remote working. While remote working has always existed, it only became a necessity during the heat of the Coronavirus pandemic when businesses all over the world had to shut down onsite operations and most workers have to start working from the comfort of their homes. This brought about a shift in our perception of what work is and where it should or can be done.

Before remote work became a necessity, organisations have always had no reason to fast-track key investments in digital transformation. At board meetings, the onerous task of defending strategic investment in technology infrastructure always falls on the laps of the technology executives as CFOs and CEOs are keenly interested in how ROIs can be evidently traced directly to such technology investment. However, the pandemic brought a new paradigm; companies have been forced to rethink how they conduct their businesses, and they have been forced to see key investment in digital technology as a must and this, in turn, has enabled new paradigms, enabling real-time collaboration between teams from different locations in the world and the normalisation of remote working.

It is no longer business as usual. Companies that do not take digital transformation and cloud adoption seriously have found themselves at risk as bad customer experience and lack of real-time data for key decisions meant that they would be in the dark and would lose their customers to their competitors.

While the nature of work has shifted and investment in digital technology has made remote working possible, there is now a new challenge of brain drain in the Nigerian technology workforce.

If there is anything COVID-19 has done for the Nigerian technology workforce, it is that it has made the possibility of getting employed in the global tech market more feasible for Nigerian tech talents. Global tech recruiters are now turning to Nigeria and other developing countries to recruit tech talents for remote jobs. The reason for this may be because labour is cheap in this part of the world or because of the vast amount of talent in the Nigerian labour pool. Either way, this is a good opportunity for Nigerian tech talents who typically get paid between $9,200 to $10,000 yearly for mid-level roles, for, with the attention of global recruiters turning towards Nigeria, local talents can now secure remote jobs that offer between $45,000 to $100,000 yearly.

Before Covid-19, tech companies like Andela and new entrants like TalentQL and Decagon offer tech talents in Nigeria employment opportunities. And now, with the attention of global tech recruiters turning towards Nigerian talents, there will be competition between local tech companies to offer what their global counterparts are paying if they want to attract and retain the top 1% in the industry.

This opportunity to engage the global market from local shores and the increment of salary are not the only positive development remote working has brought for Nigerian tech talents, it has erased the need for commuting, reducing health risks and other issues like stress and fatigue that comes with having to spend hours in traffic, which affect employee’s productivity. Remote working has also increased employees’ productivity level as there is less distraction and they get to work from their comfort zone.

It is not only employees that are benefiting from remote working, companies are reaping the benefit too. One of the ways companies have been able to incorporate diversity and inclusivity in their workforce is through remote work. Remote work gives companies access to a diversity of talents from all over the world, and the diversity of talent meant a diversity of ideas and creativity, and the convergence of these (talent, ideas and creativity) helps companies create new and innovative products.

Remote working also helps companies to save operation costs that could have skyrocketed if all workers were in the office.

These positive developments nonetheless, remote working also has its downsides for both tech employers and employees.

In a country like Nigeria where the power supply is epileptic and internet service is poor in some areas, productivity and workflow can be affected, thereby affecting the company’s productivity. There is also the case of unruly workers who would not put in the number of hours required of them each day.

The downside of remote working can also be telling on tech talents too. Working from home can erase that thin line between work hours and personal time, as a lot of workers now see themselves working more hours than when they were at the office; they then no longer have the time to attend to personal and private needs, affecting the work-life balance. There could also be distractions at home too, affecting concentration and productivity.

Some companies argue that since they are working from home, they (that is, the companies), have helped reduce expenses on the part of the employee, and therefore, they have to take a pay cut.

Remote working can also reduce the connectivity between people, and the psychological impact of this is that the employees lack the motivation to do work. And this hurts the company’s bottom line. Connecting with people at an emotional level, beyond just work, improve employees’ emotional and psychological health. Remote working takes this away.

Lack of face-to-face supervision is another issue that troubles both employees and employers alike. Supervisors argue that employees will not work as hard or as efficiently as they would do under supervision, while some workers would not thrive without direct and physical access to supervision from their superiors.

What can be done?

If it is not on slack, it does not exist— Vandease

The solution to the downside of remote working is not to terminate it. I believe that remote working is here to stay as we cannot turn a blind eye to all the positives it has brought. Instead, what we should do is look for creative ways to incorporate remote working into the corporate culture such that both companies and talents are not suffering. And one way to do this is the incorporation of a hybrid work system— a flexible working system that combines the option of working from home with the option to work in the office.