The New Normal in the field of profession as everyone knows is Remote Working. What is Remote Working? Well, it could also be called as “Telecommunication”- communicating and working from anywhere. This has become the new normal. Until last year, the experts have assumed that within a decade 90% of the companies shall opt for remote working, but the covid crisis seems to have shrunk the timeline.

Evolution of Remote Working:

Earlier before Year 2000, remote work wasn’t even a possibility, because the technology didn’t exist. If anyone wanted to get in touch with their colleagues, they couldn’t email, text or direct-message you. You had to provide an alternative phone number, a pager to have a work-related conversation.

The Remote Working has actually started in 2000 era when there was introduction to the internet. The introduction of internet has made many people think “Do we really need people working at office!?” “Can’t they work from home?”.

In 2014, about 6.6% of US Population had opted for remote working (i.e. 9.4 million people in US alone). Many companies like Google, Apple in Techspace have opted for remote working in their company culture. Well, remote working obviously provides tons of benefits:

• Reduction in Commute Cost
• Low cost for business (like work space, attire, events.
• Most important- Reduction in environment pollution

A survey showed that the absence of movement on the streets due to the quarantines imposed across the world has contributed to the reduction of pollution in general. In a span of one month, there was a reduction in the amount of nitrogen dioxide in China.

The same phenomenon was observed in European cities such as Paris, Rome and Madrid, resulting in 50% less air pollution than previous year in the same period.

The Remote working technology has advanced so quickly that many companies have opted for this instead of traditional offices by setting up office in one’s own house or co-working space.

A research has found that remote working can boost employee productivity, improve work/life balance and also promote better mental health. It is changing how the workspace operates globally. Since the Pandemic, it has shown a trend of work not slowing down, it has only shown a rapid increase in work all around the world.

Apart from the benefits of remote working, there are few drawbacks like the following, especially for the employees with sensitive information:

 

• Keeping office equipment at home- Proper security of the equipment is highly required.
• Distraction at home- Common distractions at home are kids, other family member’s conversations which could be avoided by allocation a separate room for work.
• Social Isolation- working remotely may end up in social isolation. In order to avoid this, one should organize a face-to-face casual meeting at the end of the week.
• Confidentiality of the data- This can be overcome by setting up strict rules.
• Unplugging from work- it becomes tough for one to switch from work atmosphere to immediate leisure time- This can be overcome by setting up strict work schedules. One should know to balance it.

Future of Remote Working:

One of the surveys have concluded that remote working will become the most preferred form of work life. AI will also likely play a major role in managing remote staff. This work lifestyle might put companies more at ease. One of the most helpful technologies for a seamless remote work is video conferencing.

Video conferencing helps out-of-office workers to see and speak to one another in real time, anywhere with an internet connection (of course possible only with the presence of internet).

There are several mobile-enabled individual messaging functionality (like Slack, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, etc.) which are being used for video conversations. Following are some of the Patents related to remote working which help in shaping the business sector in a better way:

• US2014136630A1- System and method of managing meeting invitations
• WO2019211713A1- Automated augmented reality rendering platform for providing remote expert assistance
• JP2017174353A- Telework Management System And Program For Telework Management
• CN204926175U- Telecommuting system
• JP2016001385A- Remote management device, remote management method, control program, electrical apparatus, and remote management system

The inventions related to remote working are included in the IPC Green Inventory and as they have resulted in reduction of travel which in turn contributes to the environment protection.

[The “IPC Green Inventory”, developed by the IPC Committee of Experts, facilitates searches for patent information relating to Environmentally Sound Technologies (ESTs), as listed by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)]

Furthermore, especially post-pandemic, people might even refuse to accept an onsite position, keeping in mind about the convenience and flexible lifestyle in remote working.

Well, as said by Voltaire (French writer)- “work spares us from three evils—boredom, vice, and need”, I would say that, though remote working has been in existence since the introduction of internet, the Covid-19 crisis has given a great opportunity to evaluate what matters to us and has opened the doors for the NEW NORMAL WORK LIFE. We have figured out how to make the most out of any situation related to our work life.

An Article By Forbes: 4 Common Mistakes To Avoid When Remote Working And How To Correct Them

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