A study of remote work at the Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry suggests workers and managers do not believe remote work is as productive as many claim. Keep in mind this is a survey of attitudes, not an attempt to directly measure some proxy for actual output.
The productivity of remote work can improve over time, the researcher expects. Of course, much depends on the type of work.
Some jobs simply cannot be conducted remotely, such as service jobs requiring physical contact with customers, often including doctors, nurses, hairdressers, and restaurant waiting staff.
Most work conducted by “information” workers in offices are easiest to do remotely, one might argue. The REETTI study suggests that the jobs of managers of knowledge workers might be far harder to do on a remote basis.
Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry
The study suggests four main classes of issues impairing higher productivity. Many people said the user friendliness of software and hardware for remote access was an issue. But Masayuki Morikawa, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry, believes that is an issue which is resolved over time as workers become more experienced.
Some tasks, conducted in the office, sometimes for security reasons, were hard to replicate in a remote context.
Some people “emphasized the loss of the valuable, quick communication that is only possible through face-to-face interactions with their colleagues,” he said.
Finally, a poor working environment at home, particularly the lack of a private room specifically designed for work, was reported as a serious constraint by many respondents.
User experience and better remote location security and communications might be easier to fix. Home working environments will be much tougher to improve, as will the loss of face-to-face interactions.
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