As we’ve explored before, embracing remote work as an organization can bring many benefits to the AV integration community – especially those located away from technology and industry hubs that struggle to find new, young talent.
Design engineers, sales staff, marketing representatives, human resources professionals and other positions can be supported remotely, allowing firms to hire talented AV professionals from different areas of the country and helping them save on facility costs.
If you still aren’t sold on this, you could follow the example of several leading technology companies like Facebook, Google and Microsoft, the latter of which is now allowing its employees to work from home permanently – even after offices reopen and the COVID-19 pandemic is behind us.
According to The Verge, which obtained internal communications about Microsoft’s new remote work policy, employees have the option to work from home for less than half of the work week or seek approval to work from home full time.
Those permanent remote workers will still have access to shared spaces at Microsoft offices.
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While Microsoft employees will be allowed to move across country for remote work, compensation and benefits will change and vary depending on the company’s own geopay scale.
Microsoft will be covering home office expenses for permanent remote workers, but any that decide to move away from Microsoft’s offices will need to cover their own relocation costs.
Flexible working hours will also be available without manager approval, and employees can also request part-time work hours through their managers.
The company originally planned to begin opening its offices at the beginning of 2021, but those spaces may not ever be filled to capacity again.
Of course, not every position in the AV community can be supported via remote work since most of what integrators do involves on-site work.
However, integrators that have trouble finding new talent near the office should consider looking outside their geographic area for positions that could be supported remotely.
If your team is currently working remotely in some capacity, ask yourself if you can continue to support those positions remotely.
