From the course: Agile Software Development: Remote Teams

The rise of remote working

From the course: Agile Software Development: Remote Teams

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The rise of remote working

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- Let me ask you a question. Do you ever work remotely? If so, you are not alone. Nearly four million people worked from home at least half time in 2015. And a 2017 study by Gallup found that flexible scheduling and work-from-home opportunities play a major role in an employee's decision to take or leave a job. Working remotely is no longer a fringe or experimental setup. It's very mainstream, especially for software development teams. Now, I don't know about you, but I love research! So whenever I think about a changing trend, I like to spend a little bit of time grounding myself in the data. So let's take some time to look at industry research to help us answer some questions about remote working trends. First, how has remote working changed in the last decade? Gallup cites a 2016 survey from the Society of Human Resource Management, also known as SHRM. 60% of companies offer their employees telecommuting opportunities, a threefold increase from 1996. Gallup also surveyed how much time people spend working remotely. who spent 80 to 100% of their time working remotely. That section grew from 24% in 2012 to 31% in 2016. The State of Telecommuting report shares that regular telecommuting grew 115% in the last decade, nearly 10 times faster than the rest of the workforce. We can see a clear trend. Remote working is gaining in popularity. More companies are offering remote working as a choice. Next, what types of teams have had success in implementing remote working? Gallup measured 11 different industries and found the highest percentage of remote workers was in the transportation industry where 61% of people work remotely. Computer, IT, and math was a close second at 57%. And arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media came in third at 48%. That same survey showed that finance, insurance, and real estate are adding remote workers at the fastest rate. The State of Telecommuting report also broke out their data by occupation. They noted that management, office administrative occupations, and sales together account for 43% of telecommuter jobs compared to just 34% of non-telecommuter jobs, and that, though participation levels vary by occupation, telecommuters are found in every industry. That same report also revealed that a person who has a computer or mathematical occupation is 2.8 times more likely to work remotely compared to the non-telecommuting workforce. Remote working is no longer a fad. It's here to stay, especially for software development teams. Companies that learn how to best incorporate remote working benefits give themselves a competitive advantage. give themselves a competitive advantage.

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