In 2020 national lockdowns had forced companies across South Africa to re-evaluate how and where employees would work and invest in technologies that allowed their house-bound staff to continue remote working and balance flexibility control through the pandemic.

At the time we saw the emergence of new concepts in workforce management, from work-from-home to hybrid and borderless work.

Here, employees could be present in the office full time, working from home several days a week, or even located in another country.

As the boundaries of the modern workforce change, companies face a number of challenges to keep their operations running like clockwork and their distributed teams productive.

Now that we have come out of the pandemic, employers and employees have once again re-evaluated what it would mean to work from anywhere.

Some employers have even brought their people back to the office or less flexible hybrid arrangements. They have cited the need to have a fully accessible workforce to drive their companies forward that is centred around collaboration that ensures issues are resolved for their customers and clients.

Despite many more employees now back at the office on a more frequent basis, work-from -home and hybrid arrangements remain a key feature for knowledge workers in South Africa.

Work-from-home and hybrid isn’t for everyone

The first challenge employers face is whether to allow borderless working at all. While some industries have reported increased productivity, others have witnessed a definite decline in worker output and ineffective collaboration among employees.

With the close of the pandemic, employers have managed to determine for themselves whether this model enhances their type of business through a mix of research, pilot implementations, and possibly sheer trial-and-error.

Employers have now developed a range of policies that govern working from home which have become entrenched in the working culture of many organisations.

Planning and balance

Still a major challenge is to make certain people are where they need to be, when they need to be there to ensure the business continues to operate smoothly.

No company wants days when too many employees are working remotely and not enough are in the office to handle face-to-face situations.

Keeping the different roles and timings coordinated – internally, locally, and internationally – demands careful attention to planning and communication between all teams and stakeholders.

This can be especially tricky if remote employees are out of sync by several time zones.

On the flip side, employees whether they are office bound working from home or hybrid would need to focus on their work-life balance to avoid burnout etc.

Team cohesion

Communication and cooperation between managers and their teams, as well as between team members themselves, can be more difficult if some members are outside the region.

Organisations need to continuously invest in management and communication technologies that will keep members informed and in the loop on every decision and detail, big and small, mundane or significant.

Productivity and trust

Unfortunately, bias can creep into management and performance evaluations. It’s easier to see an employee as productive when they are visibly working than when they are situated away from the office.

Ultimately, though, corporations need to judge employees based on results, not location. This means keeping performance reviews focused on outcomes and trusting remote employees who achieve their tasks to manage their discipline in their own way.

Managing the mix

Borderless workforce managers are being exposed to unusual challenges they seldom faced before. Employees who must be on-site full time could become resentful of those they consider privileged for working remotely.

The latter, on the other hand, may experience feelings like a sense of isolation, a lack of involvement, or a loss of direction. Cross-border staff could also face problems that are cultural or language-based, or due to a lack of familiarity with local markets.

Now, emotional intelligence and support are more important than ever.

Legal considerations

With no limit on where employees can work from, including other countries, organisations have more to consider from a governance, compliance and legislative perspective.

These become critical when determining matters like how data is secured and exchanged, what foreign governments expect of employees and employers, or how workers should be remunerated in accordance with their labour and tax laws.

Reward remains a constant

It’s tempting to think that employees who work away from the office are less involved than those who are present. Yet, regardless of where they perform their duties, employees are rewarded for the work they do.

In this sense, reward (i.e. remuneration, benefits and other incentives) continues to be a significant force for attracting, motivating, and retaining talent, even in the borderless model.

Rewarding an employee consistently with fair recognition of their outcomes-based performance is essential to making this model a success.

Muhammed Goolab is a Manager: Reward at Old Mutual Insure as well as being an Executive on the Sara Committee.