Remote work is still 'frustrating and disorienting' for bosses, economist says—their No. 1 problem with it

Abstraction: Employers' top remote work challenge is inability to observe and monitor employees

Key points:

• Less than 26% of U.S. households had someone working remotely at least one day per week as of 2023, down from a peak of 37% in early 2021
• ZipRecruiter survey of 2,000+ U.S. employers found difficulty observing and monitoring employees is the No. 1 cited disadvantage of remote work
• 43% of companies set tighter remote work limits or mandated return-to-office over the prior year (Goldman Sachs, Zoom, and Meta among them)
• Demand for employee monitoring software skyrocketed post-2020 but companies still lack effective ways to measure remote knowledge-worker performance, since much work happens in calls, research, and brainstorming
• Research shows workplace surveillance can backfire by undermining employee confidence in managers and increasing turnover
• ZipRecruiter chief economist Julia Pollak recommends investing in middle managers as connectors and having them set clear workflows with direct reports rather than relying on surveillance

Connections: Ziprecruiter · Remote Work · Productivity · Organizational Culture

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/17/the-no-1-challenge-holding-companies-back-from-offering-remote-work.html