The Zapier remote work report 2019 confirmed what many advocates of greater autonomy and flexibility have known for a long time — remote working is a desirable condition for employers to offer, and leads to loyal and productive employees.
Their survey of 880 US knowledge workers demonstrated that motivations to work remotely are diverse, ranging from environmental sustainability to domestic arrangements. But at UC Today we know that the tech set-up facilitating remote working can make or break its success – so when we caught up with Zapier CEO, Wade Foster, we wanted to talk about the connection between the growth of UCaaS, and the rise of remote working:
“Which came first? The chicken or the egg? Certainly better tools means more remote working and more remote working drives a demand for better tools. It’s tough to say which is causing the other, but we know for sure more folks work remote, and the tools are getting better”.
New entrants for traditional categories
And as the social trend for remote working takes root alongside improved communications tools, Zapier’s position at the intersection of different apps and workflows leaves them able to observe the impact of innovation. This has clear implications for breakout success, as Foster has identified, “companies win by coming into an existing category and doing something better, with a twist. Front’s a better email app, for teams. Bonjoro is email marketing, with video. Zoom is video calls that work reliably on any connection.
“Platforms like Zapier enhances the discovery of apps that companies need to operate their specific business, regardless of size or name cache””
We focus on helping users connect the tools they use most, so they can increase productivity throughout the workday.”
Of course integration tools like Zapier can be the bane of the IT director’s life, as the simplicity of SaaS enables curious executives to circumvent officially sanctioned tool stacks and experiment with whatever they like. But such creativity in workflow design can lead to breakthroughs in productivity and new ways to get things done — which then feeds back to the developer who are inspired to create the tools that the changing needs of the workforce demand, and to the buyers who are ready to listen to those at the cutting edge of the work itself.
The right tools keep the right people happy
When employers listen, top people stay loyal and add value — and the Zapier research found that 1 in 4 people had already quit a job because the company didn’t offer remote or flexible work options. With UC offerings exploding into cascades of differentiation as we embrace a new decade of changing life-work expectations, and recruitment and retention now taking place on a global stage, it’s essential to stay on top of the evolving marketplace.
As Foster continues, “remote work is a clear competitive advantage, and offering your employees the tools to be successful is key.”
“As remote work continues to gain popularity, I believe we’ll continue to see an emergence of best-in-breed tools that solve niche problems”
The research concluded that the majority of workers (66%) believe the traditional workplace will be obsolete within the next decade, with most positions fulfilled remotely. It will be interesting to compare the outcomes of the Zapier remote work survey of 2030, if we are indeed still mentioning ‘remote’ as a distinct category at that time.
