It’s 2021, and businesses are no longer keeping social concerns outside of the workplace. Instead, many are trying to be inclusive and are actively planning for diversity in the workplace.
Diversity comes in many guises. It means to be inclusive of a person irrespective of their race, age, gender, ethnicity, disability, or other aspects.
Remote work has enabled a unique opportunity for workplaces to be more diverse.
It is so much easier today for employees to work in a remote setting. People can work from their homes or pretty much anyplace that offers them decent internet coverage. In addition, the prevalence of technology has made connecting with co-workers in a remote setting much more effortless.
The pandemic has given the adoption of remote work a massive boost. Most office jobs now are done by people working in a ‘remote’ work environment. That is a highly welcome opportunity to foster inclusiveness.
By virtue of what it is, remote work naturally enables diversity and allows for more diversity-oriented hiring practices. The rise and fast adoption of remote work will give businesses a renewed chance to focus on improving diversity at the workplace.
Remote work is not going away. It’s a huge advantage for businesses that intended to be more diverse but couldn’t, whatever the reasons may be.
How remote work will benefit diversity
Businesses generally tend to hire from specific geographies. That geography depends on where the business has set its base of operations up. By the same virtue, they limit themselves to hiring from a small region. The hiring pool is entirely dependent on the city and locality, which may or may not offer a diverse set of candidates to choose from.
With remote work, businesses can choose to hire employees from wherever they are and not restrict to where the company operates.
There might be a disadvantaged person who couldn’t go for a job because they couldn’t make a move to a different city for the job. But with remote working, that is no longer a concern.
People with disabilities often find it difficult to be recruited for typical office jobs, owing to their disability as being seen as a hindrance. Working a remote job will enable them to have a position where they can showcase their skills and build a career.
The hunt for great talent shouldn’t be restricted to a particular geography. Say if a business could hire an employee who resides not in the US but lives in a different country or region. Such as India, Europe, or other such places.
This widens the talent pool and businesses get to work with amazing talent, who they would not have access to if it weren’t for remote work.
Businesses care about diversity
Businesses these days are more vocal and active about social causes. And diversity is one of the key ones that they all speak about. They also realize the advantage of having a team that is diverse and inclusive.
Diversity is no longer a buzzword or a word just thrown around for the sake of it. It is a genuine concern that many businesses have and they want to address it head-on.
For recruiters, remote work is an extremely advantageous opportunity. They can choose from a large candidate pool, get more productive work done, and keep their costs low.
Hiring a diverse team will help the business foster a unique perspective that these employees bring. A diverse team will bring different skills to the team.
Along with that, they come with different experiences that will help the employees learn from each other and grow as a team. A team that works so well, it can add to the bottom line. Now, what business wouldn’t like that?
About the author
Sharan R. is a Content & Marketing Strategist at Wishup with a penchant for all things copy and content. A writer at heart, he maintains interests in the areas of marketing, advertising, media, science, and technology. He actively works on using content to drive marketing efforts and has over 7.5 years of experience working for various exciting startups at different stages of their growth.
Remote work disadvantages those with no or poor internet capabilities. Remote work disadvantages many living in rural areas with no or poor broadband.