Remote Work Remains a Competitive Recruiting Advantage

As a recruitment professional, I’m frequently asked for advice on how to find top talent, how to recruit diverse candidates, and how to retain highly skilled contributors.

The good news is that there is one key benefit that will help you accomplish all of these important goals: the ability to work remotely.

I’m surprised that so many companies are reducing flexible work options or once again requiring employees to work full-time on-site. According to data from the U.S. Labor Department, 72.5% of private-sector businesses reported that their employees worked remotely rarely or never in 2022, compared to 60% in 2021. Major employers like Disney, Meta, Amazon, Twitter, and Microsoft have announced plans to reduce or eliminate working-from-home policies this year.

This trend creates an opportunity for hiring managers. In my conversations with top talent, candidates continue to tell me that the opportunity to work remotely some or all of the time matters.

A study from the Pew Research Center confirms what I’m hearing: roughly a third (34%) of hybrid workers who are working from home part of the week report that they’d prefer to work remotely full-time. The same study found that employees working remotely stated that working from home enabled them to achieve a better work-life balance and to meet deadlines and get work done more effectively.

These findings make sense to me. Duffy Group has been fully remote since I launched the business in 1991. I didn’t intend to be a pioneer in offering the opportunity to work from home. I simply knew that, as my husband and I wanted to start a family, I needed the flexibility that remote work offered, and as the business grew, I had conversations with experienced recruitment specialists who understood and respected my model and were also looking for a more flexible schedule.

This is how I began to build my team, looking for driven and self-motivated individuals who believe in our work and are eager to learn and grow. Today, we have more than 50 employees in 12 states. They’re engaged, productive… and happy. Those aren’t my words—that’s the feedback they share! I am proud to share our team recently received a Business of the Year IMPACT Award for Exceptional Workplace from the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce.

But let’s talk about why I encourage business leaders to include flexible or fully remote work as a key benefit. It makes strategic sense. It delivers value when recruiting top talent, and also aids in retention. It’s a way to communicate value and respect for your employees: if you’ve recruited and trained individuals who are driven and motivated, remote work demonstrates that you trust them to meet goals and accomplish tasks.

It also creates a smart plan for continuity of operations. The COVID pandemic demonstrated the strategic importance of businesses being able to pivot to remote work, but the same strategic value is evident if there’s a significant weather event, transit strike, or other challenge that prevents your employees from traveling to an office.

Finally, offering remote work is a great way to expand the pool of candidates from which you’re recruiting. Remote work means that you can attract diverse candidates from different parts of the country (or the world!). It’s also a way to ensure that your business adopts inclusive hiring practices for underrepresented groups, including those who may find it challenging to commute long distances or operate effectively within a traditional office space.

I’ve seen how remote work has enabled me to work with exceptional talent. It’s no surprise that I recommend it for anyone looking for their next great hire.