The National University of Ireland, supported by the Whitaker Institute and the Western Development Commission, recently published its third report on Remote Working in Ireland, following on from similar surveys and reports in May 2020 and May 2021.
Having read the report, I see five key takeaways for organisational leaders, which I’ve expanded on below. Where possible, I’ve also compared the findings of the 2022 Report to outcomes from twelve months ago; that is, where it’s accurate and relevant to do so.
It should be borne in mind that, as the authors themselves declare, the survey demographic is made up primarily of individuals working in industries where Remote Working is feasible or practical; therefore it doesn’t reflect the views of individuals working in sectors like, say, retail or frontline care.
If you’re a current or aspiring remote worker, or an organisational leader with a remote working team, I hope these points are of interest to you.
1. A shift back to office working is evident, but a significant population remain working 100% remotely.
In early 2021, when we were still emerging from the COVID Alpha variant surge, 75.3% of survey respondents were working remotely on a “Daily” basis; as the survey defines it, this means working remotely all the time. A further 20.2% were working in a “Hybrid” arrangement, splitting their time between home and an office.
In 2022’s report, the proportion working remotely “Daily” had decreased to from 75.3% to 40%, with those in “Hybrid” arrangements increasing to 52%.
This demonstrates a clear shift over the past year from “fully remote” to hybrid working arrangements, which I’m sure will mirror the experiences and anecdotal evidence of many. However, despite this shift, it may surprise many to observe that 40% of respondents remain working remotely all of the time.
It’s also notable that the survey population that works in an office full-time remains in single digits (8% in 2022), a sign of what may well be the lasting impact of COVID and the associated periods of lockdown.
2. A surprisingly high proportion of organisations haven’t yet decided on their remote working arrangements.
Despite it being now two years since the outset of the pandemic, half of respondents stated that their organisations haven’t yet decided on a permanent policy for remote working.
In 2021, only 25% of respondents worked in organisations that had decided on a permanent policy. Twelve months later, the 2022 report shows this figure has increased to 50%. A further 22% of respondents in 2022 say that their organisations are trialing a remote working arrangement, with the remainder responding that no policy had been decided or trialed as yet.
This will come as a surprise to many, and if your organisation is one of the 28% that has yet to decide on its permanent remote working policy, or put a trial arrangement in place, you would do well to note other report findings about workers’ preferences, and the influence that remote working policy will have on things like retaining and attracting talent.
3. A large number of respondents believe their remote working preferences are being facilitated.
The proportion of respondents (61%) who say their preferences for remote working are being facilitated, is a good sign that organisations have been listening to feedback from colleagues and designing policies with their people in mind.
Only 19% of respondents say their preferences aren’t being facilitated, and, where their organisation has yet to decide on a permanent policy, only 15% believe their preferences will not be facilitated.
4. The permanent impacts of remote working on lifestyle may prove to be mutually beneficial for employers and workers alike.
It’s notable that 49% of respondents in 2022 admit to working more hours per week than they did prior to the advent of remote working. Whether these are qualitative working hours or not is obviously not clear, but it would appear that employers that facilitate remote working are getting more working time in return.
For workers who have converted commute time savings into more time at the desk, one would hope that employers are monitoring time worked, not only in line with their legal duty of care, but also to mitigate against burnout.
Other interesting insights from the survey can be gleaned from respondents’ answers to the questions “has remote working made your work / your life easier?”, particularly when we compare 2022 results against 2021:
- 76% of respondents believe Remote Working makes their work easier (vs. 54% in 2021)
- 95% of respondents believe Remote Working makes their life easier (vs. 86% in 2021)
This suggests an overwhelmingly favourable impression from individual respondents to the impacts of Remote Working, as well as indicating that the positive impacts are growing year on year. One might assume that, as time goes on, organisations and individuals are figuring out how to make the best out of their new work and life arrangements.
5. People leaders’ perceptions on remote working indicate that challenges remain in important areas.
Respondents who have people management responsibilities were asked to provide their impressions on key areas, as shown below, using a three-point scale (positive/negative/no difference). I’ve summarised the positive and negative impressions revealed by the survey in each area below.
| Area | Negative | Positive |
| Productivity and performance | 10% | 47% |
| Innovation and creativity | 19% | 34% |
| Engagement | 25% | 33% |
| Onboarding | 47% | 17% |
| Communication and collaboration | 23% | 38% |
It’s interesting to see that, in the view of large percentages of respondents with people management responsibilities, Remote Working has yielded better performance, innovation, engagement and collaboration. Onboarding is a notable exception, and indeed one wonders whether it’s ever appropriate to onboard new colleagues remotely, with face-to-face time being so important in the initial learning and team integration period.
It’s also interesting to contrast the views of people managers (as shown above) with the views of the survey population at large. When asked about the impacts of remote working on Engagement, it was interesting to note that only 17% of the total survey population believed that the impacts were positive (vs. 33% of people managers), while 35% believed remote working had had a negative impact on Engagement (vs. 25% of people managers).
It would seem therefore that the impressions of managers are not exactly aligned with those of their teams. An area that’s worth study further one would think.
Conclusions
It’s now over two years since the start of the pandemic and it’s clear that the world of work has changed fundamentally. In industries where Remote Working is possible, a very small proportion of survey respondents are back working in an office full-time. While there has been a shift back to the office in the last 12 months, it’s very much on a part-time or hybrid basis, with most hybrid workers working no more than 3 days per week in an office. A large proportion are working remotely full time.
It’s also clear that organisations and people leaders are still getting to grips with the challenges of leading a remote or hybrid team. Significant challenges remain in key areas like Onboarding, Engagement and Collaboration.
For organisations, the key is to continue developing their policies and approach, reflecting the wishes and needs of their workforce alongside business needs. A collaborative and open approach is the best route to better innovation, collaboration, communication and delivery of services in our new world of work.
If you’d like to discuss Remote Working or any other aspect of your operational strategy drop me a line at alan@ireganadvisors.ie.