After more than seven months of remote work in firms throughout the Americas, many work-from-home (WFH) evangelists have already declared victory for their cause. The Covid-19 pandemic and the shift to WFH has not led to a marked drop in productivity, and plenty of studies suggest it may have had the exact opposite effect.
Nearshore companies are keenly aware that remote work capabilities are critical to their long-term survival. From now on, ITO and BPO providers will have to prove they can transition seamlessly to WFH in the event of another Covid-like crisis.
But the WFH revolution is unlikely to have a positive impact on Latin America’s emerging technology hubs. Little is known about the long-term impact of WFH on talent development. However, we can safely deduce that permanent remote working will not lead to greater engagement of BPO agents or enhance networking opportunities for software developers.
“I believe there is some negative impact because of not being close to other people,” said Giuliana Corbo, CEO at Nearsure, a remote-first IT outsourcing company. “It’s easier if you can ask a question and the other person is right next to you.”
Corbo added that projects need not suffer because of remote work, but said an extra effort is required to ensure team members align.
“There are a lot of communication channels that help us to avoid that kind of [misalignment] problem,“ Corbo said. “In software development, there has been a culture of remote work for a long time now.”
Nevertheless, Corbo said the pandemic had created new obstacles for WFH arrangements.
“Being a remote company before Covid and after Covid gave us a more complete view,” she said. “It’s totally different. [Employees] used to have their own space and their kids were at school. When they finish work, they cannot just go to the gym, for example.”
The Discipline to Rest
Early research suggests culture plays a key role in how employees adjust to WFH arrangements. Microsoft’s Work Trend Index, based on a Harris Poll of more than 2,000 people, showed that Mexican employees were having a harder time striking a work-life balance than workers in the five other countries surveyed: China, Germany, Italy, the United States and the United Kingdom. Of the Mexicans surveyed, 52% of over-40s and 59% of under-40s agreed that it was difficult to balance personal responsibilities while working from home.
Many factors could be driving that remote work fatigue. In general, Latin America has a young workforce, and young people are struggling with WFH. They are more likely to be sharing their home with roommates or parents. They are also more likely to be caring for young children while maintaining a fulltime job.
“People have spoken about burnout because they are working until 8 or 9 at night,” Eduardo…
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