What Is Your Organization’s Long-Term Remote Work Strategy?

Ten questions to guide your approach.

by

and

Susan R. Vroman

by

and

Susan R. Vroman

March 24, 2021

HBR Staff

Summary.

Companies shifted quickly and unexpectedly to remote work in early 2020, but leaders planning for a post-pandemic future have an opportunity to take a more intentional, strategic approach to remote work. Most likely this will involve revisiting a number of 1) company policies and 2) management practices. The authors examine key emerging trends in these areas and suggest a number of questions leaders should ask themselves as they plan for their organization’s optimal mix of remote work.

Virtually all projections anticipate the post-pandemic workforce will be relatively more remote — that is, nearly all firms will experience an increase in remote work relative to their pre-pandemic baseline levels.

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Erin E. Makarius is an associate professor of management at the University of Akron’s College of Business Administration.
Barbara Z. Larson is executive professor of management and director of partnerships at Northeastern’s D’Amore-McKim School of Business. Her research focuses on the personal and interpersonal skills that people need to work effectively in virtual environments, and she works with collaborators in both academia and industry to develop training methods and materials to enable more productive virtual work. Prior to her academic career, Professor Larson worked for 15 years in international finance and operations leadership, most recently as Director of International Finance at R.R. Donnelley.
Susan R. Vroman is a lecturer of management at Bentley University. Her research interests include the impact leadership enactment has on organizational culture and employee engagement, with specific focus on supporting flexible work arrangements. Prior to her academic career, Dr. Vroman worked for over 20 years as an organizational effectiveness and strategic human resource management executive and advisor. She continues this work in a consulting capacity.

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Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Change Management. Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.

Change may be the only constant in today's organizations. Here's how to lead through it.

Start Course

Learn More & See All Courses

What Is Your Organization’s Long-Term Remote Work Strategy?

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