Smart work, telecommuting, hybrid work: from the first months of 2020 these concepts suddenly became part of the everyday life of businesses and employees. Today, new models of work organization are based on flexibility and autonomy they seem destined to stay and bring about a decisive change in the world of work.
The diffusion of Smart Working in Italy
Throughout 2021 and the first half of 2022, private companies of all sizes have consolidated and integrated remote working into their HR processes and policies. At the end of 2021, in a much later period of emergency, smart workers in Italy were still over 4 million and today, according to a study conducted by the Smart Working Observatory of the Polytechnic of Milan, 81% of large companies plan to continue flexible working even after the pandemic is overlaunching structured hybrid projects.
In particular, smart workers from large companies have improvedbalance between personal and professional life and positively evaluated their effectiveness and efficiency in remote work, while recognizing two typically critical issues of the new work scenario: the increase in technology anxiety and the risk of neglecting rest by working more than expected.
The situation is different for women Small and medium enterprises: in 2021, 53% activated remote work projects, but only 35% said they wanted to continue. In part, this lower interest in smart work depends on the characteristics of sectors in which presence is fundamental and remote work is difficult to implement (for example in manufacturing, retail, hospitality). In other cases, it entails difficulties for SMEs to face some of the challenges posed by this transition: from adapting digital technologies and training staff, to the need to develop a new corporate culture based on trust and on the evaluation of results.
Incorporate a well-structured intelligent working model it opens up opportunities for innovation and growth, but requires changes at the level of production processes, work dynamics and also corporate culture. Knowing how to address these challenges will be fundamental to reaping the benefits that this new approach to work organization can bring to employers and employees.
Smart working, flexible working, remote working, hybrid working: what are the differences?
Smart work means a way of managing work that leaves people with flexibility and autonomy regarding the places and times in which one exercises one’s duties, since it is based on achievement of objectives and to evaluation of the results rather than controlling attendance and working hours.
Agile work is the name by which, in Italy, smart work is regulated by law no. 81 of 2017, which defines the legal aspects.
With the gradual return to face-to-face work after the emergency, flexible working is back in place hybrid form (hybrid work), which alternates personal and remote work. Hybrid smart work does not require that work be done 100% offsite, much less from home, but that the worker can they manage times and places flexibly and autonomouslyworking both in the company’s premises and remotely: from home or traveling, in coworking solutions or adopting forms of digital nomadism.
The most common hybrid working methods plan to alternate work days in the office and work from home days during the week, a solution that allows you to maintain a good balance between the demands of your personal life and the benefits of talking with colleagues and superiors. Or, alternate full weeks of in-person and remote work, an option that makes it easier to include workers who live away from the office and helps reduce commutes.
Smart work: opportunities and challenges of a new dynamic work
Autonomy and flexibility, workplace, technology and digital skills These are the fundamental characteristics of Smart Work and some of the most important drivers of change in the world of work.
Flexible and autonomous working: how corporate culture is changing
One of the most valuable opportunities for change is perhaps the most demanding challenge, and it takes place at the level of corporate culture.
The prerequisite for a truly effective smart work project is to participate in one workforce management model based on trust and empowerment despite the control. No longer tied to hours and attendance, the value of the smart worker is measured in clear goals and recognized based on results.
A competitive and innovative company knows encourage partner autonomy and reaps the benefits in terms of efficiency, work quality and employee engagement. The satisfaction of engaged, empowered and valued employees increases productivity and attracts talent.
In addition to work management processes and systems, it is therefore necessary to review evaluation and feedback models, not only for monitoring productivity, but also for they recognize the value employees. One of the critical issues of remote working is just how it feels disconnection and isolation which can take an employee physically away from the rest of the team, supervisors and employer, a situation in which it becomes more difficult (and therefore even more important) to recognize efforts and show appreciation.
Home office, smart office: how the workplace is changing
The workspace is the first test bench on which the change was measured, starting from home office adjusted during the lockdown and optimized over time by following tips and advice on how to improve working from home.
By returning to hybrid work and presence, the change was also about the environments of the main companies that redesigned the workplaces to favor a more flexible and shared method. In a context in which people rotate, work in person and remotely after days or weeks, we can bet on overcoming the concept of individual and fixed workstations by designing offices inspired by workplaces.
The advantages of a environment that encourages collaboration and sociability on in-person business days there are many. It can stimulate discussion and improve the quality of work, fill any gaps in digital communication between colleagues and, above all, create connections that keep the social support alive, the lack of which has been felt in the experience of workers forced to work fully remote during the pandemic.
Just as hybrid work can contribute reducing travel and emissionsfrom the point of view of environmental and social sustainability, rethinking and reducing personal workspaces can be an opportunity for contain consumptionimproving energy efficiency and reducing the company’s ecological footprint.
Operational tools and digital technologies for remote work
Remote work is not possible without the right one digital infrastructurewhich includes not only sufficiently powerful and up-to-date hardware and devices, but also fast and reliable connection, IT security systems, protocols that protect employee and customer privacy, VPN, social networking tools within the company, applications and software compatible, secure and topical.
If work needs to be done anywhere as easily as it can be done at your “traditional” workstation, the technologies available to smart workers They must allow them to communicate with all levels of the company, quickly find information and resources, receive technical support and training, monitor the onboarding of new employees, socialize with colleagues.
Therefore, the ongoing transformation also involves substantial investments by companies in business tools, which in turn will help create new work habits for employees, both personally and intelligently. In fact, it will be increasingly important to prevent their creation technological gaps between those who work on-site and those who work remotely.
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