Summary

The article emphasizes the importance for job candidates to inquire about potential employers' remote working capabilities in light of the COVID crisis and its impact on work practices.

Abstract

The unprecedented nature of the COVID crisis has necessitated a shift in work habits, with remote working becoming a critical aspect of business continuity. The article argues that job seekers should prioritize asking about teleworking options during interviews, as this reflects an employer's flexibility, operational maturity, and commitment to work-life balance. It suggests that the ability to work remotely is an indicator of a company's resilience and can significantly affect job security. The article concludes that understanding a company's remote working capabilities is crucial for candidates to ensure they are entering a stable and adaptable work environment.

Opinions

Flexibility in work arrangements is essential in today's uncertain world, and employers who offer remote working options demonstrate a commitment to adapting to their employees' needs.
The capacity for remote work is seen as a measure of an employer's operational maturity, with companies lacking this capability potentially facing financial, security, or organizational issues.
While remote working can offer benefits like work-life balance, it may also lead to excessive availability expectations from employers, which candidates should be wary of.
Companies that can sustain remote work are more likely to ensure job security for their employees, as they are better equipped to handle business continuity during crises.
Candidates should thoroughly investigate remote working policies and infrastructure during the job search process to avoid future employment instability.

The One Job Spec Candidates Should Now Inquire of Potential Employers

Teleworking in a world of uncertainty

The COVID crisis, the subsequent lockdown and other measures that followed have no precedent in recent history. People all over the globe need to change their habits and way of living to stay mentally and physically healthy, as well as productive.

This crisis also affected employers worldwide. The measures taken by local governments meant that companies would have to enforce remote working for their employees. Those that already had appropriate teleworking infrastructure in place (e.g. remote working policies, VPN configurations, video conferencing tools etc.) will probably live to tell the tale. Those who weren’t so lucky — or more appropriately, proactive — will need to up their game and get up to speed with the current situation. If not, those businesses will likely perish.

But how can job seekers who are now on the lookout for a new opportunity be safe that they get a fair deal? It’s simple: they should ask their potential employers around their remote working capabilities.

Here’s why candidates should stress remote working during an interview.

It is an indication of flexibility

As the COVID crisis has so strongly illustrated, flexibility is a big deal. In a world where a disruption can impact our health and well-being, having this element of flexibility is crucial.

This extends above and beyond the situation we are currently experiencing. An employer’s capacity to offer a flexible schedule through teleworking functionalities can be a life saver. This may be especially useful for people with lots of other activities, obligations and constant changes to their rhythms and schedules.

Job searching and the subsequent interview process should, thus, be approached with an inquisitive mindset around teleworking options. How flexible is the company in allowing you to work from home on a day you need to visit your doctor? Are you able to work from another country?

Nowadays, flexibility is not a luxury or a good-to-have. It is a requirement.

It helps gauge the employer’s maturity

Picture this scenario. You are asking an employer whether they can enable you to work remotely from the comfort of your home. The HR expert present in the interview declares this is, unfortunately, not a possibility.

What are your thoughts?

Have they not installed a decent video conferencing application to enable this functionality? Or perhaps their network is not secure enough to allow a remote access. What if they are just lazy or don’t have the budget to implement those solutions?

Truth is, the lack of remote access and work components are, for the most part, bad indicators. Not being able to allow employees some sort of remote working capabilities can mean that some (or all) of the above scenarios are true.

This is, then, telling of the employer’s maturity level, in operational, financial and/or information security terms.

Not being able to install a simple tool to allow instant communication between employees due to budgetary constraints? Maybe the company is not fairing well financially in this period of time. Are there any other obstacles? It could be that there is no internal alignment between the departments responsible to make it happen.

These are all red flags pointing towards a low maturity and preparedness level. If an employer does not have the right tools in place to facilitate remote working, caution is advised.

It can give signs of work-life balance expectations

Not everything about remote working is sunshine, rainbows and unicorns. Sometimes, an option — or even a requirement — to work remotely may highlight the employer’s expectations around a candidate’s performance and availability.

Being constantly connected through wires and circuits means that an employer may have (excessive) expectations around an employee’s availability at any given moment. If something urgent comes up, there is now the option for a boss to call or message the employee and request their immediate engagement, outside the traditional 9–5 window.

While this is sometimes acceptable, and in some cases even part of the job, it needs to be considered carefully. Working overtime and during weekends may well be part of a contractual agreement, but it could also be that an employer expects the candidate to be on standby just because the processes, technology and infrastructure are there to support it.

In this case, working from home may actually backfire. The teleworking conditions is a topic that needs careful consideration and exploration.

It provides clues around job security

The COVID outbreak taught businesses around the world a crucial lesson: business continuity is fundamental. Business continuity is the ability of a company or organization to maintain key business functionalities and processes after a disaster occurs. If they are not able to take the hit, they will go bust.

What does this have to do with remote working capabilities?

If an enterprise is able to sustain a work-from-home culture for an extended period of time, that means it has more chances to persevere through challenging times such as a virus outbreak.

And what does this mean for the inquisitive candidate? Quite simply, an employer’s resilience can improve their employees’ job security tenfold. As a result, a job applicant who knows that working from home is a well-established practice gets the assurance that, should things go south, he/she is relatively safe from being laid off.

In conclusion

This unique situation has forced many changes in the way companies do business. It has left its mark on the economy, and it has affected the ability of these businesses to retain their people and know-how.

Looking for a job during the present times can be quite a challenge, especially for younger people with limited working experience. Even if they find a job, history showed us that sudden changes can be devastating.

If you are on the lookout for your next employment opportunity, spend some time going over remote working options during the application and interview processes. The information you obtain can save you from potential problems, and can support your decision leading to stable and healthy working conditions. If remote working is an option, take it. It might not be established as the new status quo after this crisis subsides, but it will be invaluable when disaster strikes again.