Why You Don’t Need An Office To Be A Successful Manager

 When we think of ‘a business’, we tend to think of an office full of people sitting at their desks on computers. But increasingly, there are companies realizing that not every business needs an office, after all. Some of them are among the most successful companies in the world.

So how exactly does that work? Without employees and managers working side-by-side, is it possible to achieve the same level of productivity and collaboration? Research suggests that not only might this be possible – it may even be more successful than the traditional working model.

Embracing collaborative technologies

With a wide range of new technologies at our fingertips, employees and managers have the ability to connect to work from anywhere with an internet connection – even on the go. Theoretically, they can access everything they need to do their jobs – files, information and people. They can schedule virtual meetings, create shared documents and presentations, and stay connected with their co-workers. All of this without sharing an office.

1. Not familiar with business collaboration software? Here are five you can try today:
2. Slack – a cloud-based team communication tool
3. Trello – web-based project management
4. Basecamp – project management and team communication
5. Red Pen – give live, annotated feedback
6. IdeaFlip – real-time brainstorming and collaboration

The emergence of co-working spaces

Thanks to collaborative technologies, and the ever growing popularity of outsourcing business models, any location now has the potential to become a workplace, provided there’s internet access. It could be a home, a coffee shop, or even a dedicated co-working space. Co-working spaces – where employees can rent desks or office space closer to home – have been popping up all over place over the past few years, providing a dedicated work environment with all of the necessary amenities. The only challenge is getting your remote team to work together.

So, what are the pros and cons?

Pros:

• Gives employees a dedicated place to work outside of the home
• Benefits of a professional work environment with a shorter commute
• Ability to network with other co-working peers

Cons:

• Not much privacy
• Every co-working space has its own culture
• Shared space can be distracting

Managing stay-at-home workers

Telecommuting is becoming an increasingly popular option for companies who want to give their employees more flexibility and save money on office rental costs; indeed, some companies now operate a business model that means they don’t even have a physical space for the products they sell, let alone the team involved in their sale.

But managing a remote team is very different to managing people face-to-face in a traditional office environment. You need to have the infrastructure in place and educate your employees on how to get the most out of working from home, where they may be distracted by kids, pets or household chores.

The most important thing to ensure is that even when they’re working from home, your team feels like they’re part of a wider organization – not out on their own. Making the most of virtual spaces is crucial if you don’t operate out of the same physical space. Slack (mentioned earlier) is ideal for group communication, as is Google Hangouts. Likewise, shared documents and spreadsheets allow everyone to access information and see what’s going on in real time.

When everyone works from home, it’s a good idea to organize local social events from time-to-time to maintain good working relationships.

Time and productivity

For many employed people around the world, commuting is a real bugbear of the corporate environment. The average American spends around 4.5 hours per week on their commute – time that could be much better spent elsewhere. For others, it’s much more than that.

Remove the need to commute, and that’s much more time – and much less stress – put on your team each day of the week. What’s more, various studies suggest that employees who telecommute feel more productive than those who work in a traditional office environment.

 

The absence of a physical office isn’t about removing face-to-face communication. Rather, it's about opening up other possibilities and giving workers autonomy and flexibility around their own work schedules – an option that’s increasingly desirable for the modern employee. Corporate offices are no longer the only places to inspire productive teamwork. In fact, we can achieve equally beneficial results from teams spread out across the globe.