What's the difference between "working from home" and developing a distributed workforce strategy and capabilities? One is a response to an unexpected pandemic, while the other is designed to be a sustainable long-term working model. In the capital projects and asset intensive industries, a distributed workforce strategy and capabilities allows companies to adapt to disruptions and unlock a myriad of tangible, trackable benefits that can include:
- Reduced indirect project site cost (temporary facilities, power and utilities, transportation, insurance)
- Reduced office space needs and costs
- Reduced travel expenses and per diem Expanded pool of potential job candidates and increased retention of talented personnel Leveraging global resource time zones
- Cultures with differing work weeks can extend the available working days (e.g., Sundays or Fridays treated as workdays
- Reduced environmental impacts and carbon footprints
Four Fundamental Elements of Success
Capital asset management organizations must consider four elements that are fundamental to a successful business strategy: People, Process, Technology and Data (PPTD). A transition to a distributed workforce must address each of these elements in order to bring added value to the organization's functions, processes and enterprise operations and to avoid long-term negative impacts.
Culture Shock
This article also highlights the culture changes needed for a successful transition to a distributed workforce model, including:
- Clearly defining the mission, vision and objectives
- Incentives for proactiveness
- Open lines of virtual communication
- Encourage flexibility
- Avoid relapse
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
