As globalization gains speed, outsourcing and remote teams have become increasingly popular. In fact, plenty of companies maintain a distributed team as their backbone and hire talent worldwide.
One of the brightest examples of a thriving remote company is Basecamp, a100% distributed team company with 54 employees spread out across different cities. Other technology-driven companies that currently offer remote work opportunities.
- Hotjar – 105 vacancies
- PhishMe – 95 vacancies
- DataStax – 90 vacancies
- GitHub – 42 vacancies
- Zapier – 40 vacancies
- InVision – 33 vacancies
Despite popular opinion, remote teams of software developers are not just a way to lower overhead expenses at a tech company. It’s also probably the only way to bridge the skills gap when there is no right talent in the region. Some believe that limiting the search to one location is equitable to shooting oneself in the foot. Why do that when the world is a true repository of various skillsets and unique expertise? That’s why remote engagements became so widespread and here is how the interest in this kind of collaboration increased over time.
Delving deeper into the remote work world, here are five facts that explain the growing interest of stratus, enterprises and investors to it.
- Remote teams accelerate time to market
According to the studies, it takes nearly 1 month to recruit and onboard an engineer. These are light years for those who have an idea that needs to be shipped to the market before the competitors do. Recruiting takes much time and effort. When there is no possibility to afford it – remote teams can be a lifesaver. Working with trustworthy vendors that have access to their local job markets helps in finding the right specialists quickly.
- Remote teams facilitate increased flexibility
The market continuously changes and requires being flexible to move up to speed. Remote teams can become a silver bullet when the workload suddenly goes up. With imminent deadlines, staff augmentation is the best way to bring in extra hands with necessary skills at any point. This way companies can tackle projects of any size. This model of work engagement helps fill in vacancies in a matter of days, not weeks.
- Remote teams can drive a business 24/7
One of the biggest reasons why companies opt in for remote engagement is that it lets them cover time zones that would otherwise be outside regular working hours. For example, it’s possible to organize the work process in a way that a QA department will check software in one time zone while developers have rest in another. This way the product stands a chance to be shipped to the market faster than with regular, on-site teams. Depending on an agreement with the vendor, a company can organize 24/7 support of the product.
- Remote teams are more productive
A great set of surveys show that the majority of people feels more productive working from home than in the office. A study by Harvard Business Review has found that remote employees are 13.5% times more productive and motivated than their tied-to-the office counterparts. Remote teams can boost your company’s productivity, as motivated people will be eager to put in the hours and get the job done due to a strong sense of purpose. Remote workers can come up with solutions that reduce the time required for implementation and they have no excuse about wasting time on distractions besides their work.
- Remote teams bring diversity to the table
Having a remote team means reaping all the benefits of diversity. Bound to a single location, many companies put a lid on various aspects of working with people that represent a different culture. Geographic location does affect ideas and perspectives – this fact has been proven by many. Someone living in NY may see things in a different light than an individual living in LA.
When individuals from different backgrounds come together, they tend to produce great ideas. Afterall, a good product is one that unites ideas of the majority. Companies spend fortunes on market research to be sure that their product jibes with the masses. There is probably no better way to incorporate ideas of people from all walks of life into a product than having it done by a remote team.
Afterword
Remote teams is a fast way to find talent when there is nobody in your vicinity with the right skills. Having a remote workforce enables business owners to scale their teams, tackle projects of any size, and engage experts with rare expertise.
Remote work today is powered by technology – it’s not about where you are physically but rather how effective you work.
