PODCAST | A remote workforce is possible, but employers need to want it

The case for more remote work in a post-Covid-19 world is the focus in this edition of the Business Day Spotlight.

Our host Mudiwa Gavaza is joined by Liam Martin from Montreal, Canada. 

Martin has been working remotely for the past two decades, well before Covid-19 panic caused many businesses to adopt the model about two years ago. He is the co-founder and chief marketing officer of two remote working specialist companies: Time Doctor and staff.com. 

Once a professional figure skater, Martin has built a business with hundreds of remote employees around the world, and recently penned a book, titled Running Remote, discussing the ins and outs of remote work.

Join the discussion: 

The discussion begins with a definition of remote work. While the concept seems obvious, Martin says most companies have got the concept wrong, having merely transferred the office environment into the virtual world.

He argues for the value in creating “remote-first” businesses as a way to keep up with the times, challenging a number of traditionally held beliefs about the workplace. 

For example, Martin says “remote teams operate on autonomy, and contrary to popular belief, the more automated measurements you have within your organisation, the more freedom you have”.

Also “remote-first companies have on average half as many managers as on-premise companies. Management in remote-first organisations is redundant.”

Topics of discussion include: Martin’s journey as a remote worker over the past two decades; differentiating between virtual work and remote-first work; the advantages of the remote-first concept; current remote working trends; and the case for more remote work as economies around the world pick up again. 

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• Business Day Spotlight is a MultimediaLIVE production.