Even if you weren’t directly involved in the remote work trend that exploded in the first year of the COVID 19 pandemic, chances are you heard plenty about it. And if you held an office job prior to 2020, and did not end up working at home for at least part of the year due to the coronavirus, you might just be in the minority. In fact, according to statistics reported by FlexJobs, only 3.4% of the US population worked remotely in February of 2020, but by the end of the year that percentage had risen to an incredible 42%. And the remote work phenomenon shows no signs of slowing down in 2021. In fact, we predict that telecommuting will not only continue; it will become the new normal for many of us in 2021 and beyond. Here’s why we believe that to be true:

• Employers have come to realize all the benefits of employing a remote workforce. From a reduction in office overhead to a happier, more loyal workforce, employers finally understand how advantageous it is to employ a staff of telecommuters. Because of that, they will be more likely to extend the work-at-home opportunities for their employees, even after vaccines make it safer to return to an office environment.
• Telecommuters will finally settle into their daily at-home work routines. Making the transition from working in an office to working at home is a challenge for anyone. But beginning in 2021, as more and more people settle into the remote-work lifestyle, they will not only adjust but come to appreciate the advantages of working from home. Experts say that it normally takes about 3 weeks to establish a new habit, which means that most people who started working remotely in 2020 have had ample time to become accustomed to this new “habit.”
• Remote workers will feel less and less isolated as time goes by. Isolation was one of the most common complaints of telecommuters who just started working from home in 2020. But the fact is that working from a home office is something that countless people have done happily and successfully for many years. And that sense of isolation that many remote workers felt at first in 2020 may have been more due to the pandemic than working from home. As employees become more and more accustomed to remote work, and take full advantage of video conferencing and other methods to stay in touch with peers and management, that sense of isolation will simply not be an issue.
• Employers will take full advantage of the tools specifically designed for supervisors of remote workers. The more time goes by, the more likely it is that employers will discover the plethora of technological tools available to assist them in managing remote staff. From content management systems to team communication programs, there are countless opportunities for employers to utilize today’s technologies to ensure that their remote workers are staying connected and productive. One such tool is MySammy, our cloud-based software designed to measure the productivity level of remote workers without the need for blocking websites or invading workers’ privacy with “spyware.”

We predict that telecommuting won’t be going anywhere in 2021 and that, in fact, it will become the new normal for many of us. If you’re managing a remote team, it only makes sense to put today’s technological tools to good use. A great place to start is with MySammy. To find out more, visit our website and sign up for your FREE trial today!