Your Remote Learning & Development Resources Blog

By Deel, a partner of Workplaceless

Any opinions expressed within the blog are those of the author and not necessarily held by Workplaceless itself.

Hiring remote contractors has become a go-to solution for many companies. The benefits are clear- you can source your talent from across the globe, reduce company costs, and increase efficiency in general. Although this seems to be a popular trend, there are a few things you need to be aware of to stay compliant.

1. Labour laws differ, so should your contracts

When you are working with talent, many aspects need to be taken into account to ensure full compliance with (local) labor laws. Not all the information is easily accessible, so it's worth investing time into it. Most lawyers advise you to hire local lawyers to ensure locally binding contracts. It's crucial to understand the type of relationship you have with your service provider. One of the most common misclassifications occurs when you decide whether the person is...

Disclaimer: The information contained within this article is not a substitute for legal or medical advice from a licensed professional who is aware of the facts and circumstances of your individual situation.

Throughout the past two months, we’ve laid out the health and safety concerns of the remote workforce and some ways to address them. If you’re part of a remote leadership team (HR, CXO, etc), these are the things keeping you up at night. As remote work becomes more mainstream, companies need to get policies in place to keep off-site employees safe. 

Most companies have been kicking this can down the proverbial road, retrofitting policies whenever possible and favoring individual solutions over company-wide standards. The risk with this practice is two-fold: potential legal and/or compliance issues, and missed opportunities for attracting and retaining new talent. Either way, the cost is too great to ignore. 

So when it comes to creating safe and...

By Scott Dawson, Author of The Art of Working Remotely

We're grateful to Scott for sharing his experience especially as we've spent the past two months connecting with our remote community about health and wellness challenges alongside solutions. Scott is passionate about remote communities; he runs the weekly #remotechat on Twitter and is a regular attendee at our Networkplaceless events. Any opinions expressed within this blog post are those of the author and not necessarily held by Workplaceless itself.

If you’ve worked in a traditional office, you may have felt the urge to stay at your desk to appear as productive as possible. Think about the reasons that you’d get up from that position of productivity: to get a drink, grab some food, head to a meeting, stretch your legs, or go to the bathroom.

When you’re working outside the confines of a traditional office, you might feel the same pull to appear as productive as possible. But really,...

First of all, we feel deeply enriched by this remote work community that continues to inspire and challenge us to be better every day. We are grateful for your input!

Last week we came together to specifically network and discuss health, safety and wellness solutions for remote workers and teams. We focused in on the top four categories of challenges discussed during our June Networkplaceless, but of course our conversations delved much deeper into the why, how and what next. With a high percentage of remote leaders joining us last week, we heard some management perspective as to the role leaders and companies play in implementing solutions. 

Here are a few specific solutions that rose to the top during our voting:

• Set aside time for high quality breaks tailored to you, not just to check a box
• Ensure your leadership team models taking deliberate and regular breaks
• Establish non-work team calls/check-ins to encourage interpersonal connection

An...

By Victoria Vanderbilt, Founder and CEO of TelecommutersTalk

We're grateful to Victoria for sharing her experience especially as we've spent the past two months connecting with our remote community about health and wellness challenges alongside solutions. Any opinions expressed within the blog are those of the author and not necessarily held by Workplaceless itself.

Remote working is growing and has many advantages both for the employers and employees.  With the advantages also come a few disadvantages, and one of the main challenges of remote work is managing isolation. Isolation can lead to mental health issues like depression, social anxiety, low self-esteem, and dementia. To ensure you stay connected and have face-to-face interactions, you need to be diligent. 

According to the 2019 State of the Digital Workspace report from Igloo, 70% of remote employees feel left out of the workplace. 57% of remote employees are missing out on crucial information. The...

I’m just going to say it … remote work is glorious. It’s liberating to have autonomy over my days, it keeps me from having to commute, and it has given us the ability to access people, ideas and communities through work in ways that were previously constrained. The overall concept of #remotework is rooted in recognizing that each individual is trying to find balance across all aspects of life, and that time is valuable. Also, that your physical location shouldn’t limit your ability to access or deliver productive work.

We also talk about the benefits of remote work to teams and companies in addition to the individual workers themselves. No longer a trend, remote work is a movement that we at Workplaceless are obviously passionate about.

But there’s a catch—if you’re passionate about, or experienced in, remote work, you know it’s not all hammock swings and piña coladas. In addition to team challenges, there are...

We’ve all read the declaration that remote work is on the rise and expected to grow exponentially in the coming years. Yet, some companies are changing course by banning and limiting remote opportunities, finding comfort in supposedly having more controlled work environments in brick-and-mortar offices.

A recently published SHRM article (“Why Are Companies Ending Remote Work?”) discusses the reasoning behind the shift of large corporations such as IBM, ATT and Yahoo to recall remote employees. Specifically, the author identifies the following concerns with remote work:

• Employers allow people to work remotely without giving them the proper training or resources to do so productively.

• Supervisors—untrained on how to properly manage and monitor remote workers—find it easier to manage someone face-to-face.

• Some supervisors—perhaps because they feel they must be in control or don't trust their workers—are uncomfortable having...

It's been an exciting couple months at Workplaceless!

One of the highlights was winning the JMU College of Business Innovation in Emerging Business Award at the Shenandoah Valley Technology Council (SVTC) Tech Nite. We were incredibly honored to receive the recognition and to be in such great company alongside fellow leaders in the local region.

We're grateful to be a part of the community that SVTC has grown and fostered. Not only did they celebrate business and education innovation at their annual Tech Nite awards gala, but also hosted a follow-up event with members where we were able to have a more intimate Q&A discussion about the #futureofwork. Thank you SVTC for the recognition and the fast friends!  

Read our full press release here.

Check out some photos from both the Tech Nite Gala and the follow-up luncheon.

via GIPHY

By Tory Fitzgerald, Operations Leader and Remote Work Seeker

Any opinions expressed within the blog are those of the author and not necessarily held by Workplaceless itself.

15 years ago, the world was introduced to the world’s greatest movie – 50 First Dates. I know every single one of you is shaking your heads, YES! It’s funny, a great love story and involves adorable penguins, that’s a win in my book! It’s a classic! (Okay, maybe not a classic, but it is good!) This is one of my go-to movies when there is NOTHING on Netflix, Hulu or Prime.

But why will this movie stand the test of time? – Because it is relatable. The core of the plot line is Adam Sandler’s character, (Henry) is trying to convince Drew Barrymore’s character, (Lucy) with repetitive short-term memory loss, over and over again to… love him.

Relatable.

Whether you are going on 50 First Dates with a girl who has...

To hire, or not to hire?

It may feel as though most businesses have only just fully embraced and fostered Millennial talent in their corporate cultures, and now a new wave of candidates are hitting the job market.

The great news for remote companies: Gen Z (born 1997 - 2012) is by far the most digitally literate. (Crazy sidenote: They don’t know a world without smartphones !) Yet it seems that while they naturally possess the adequate digital skills to fill remote roles, many HR personnel may feel a level of discomfort with inexperienced workers starting positions while physically isolated.

And yes, isolation (and the pangs of loneliness that come with it) are the most frequently cited challenges for remote workers. Employers may need to be more aware of the mental health aspect of remote work for younger candidates; however, the health, safety and wellness of employees should really be treated as integral parts of your company culture in order...