Thanks to a variety of tools and advancements in technology, virtual teams have become increasingly common in the modern workplace. More and more companies of all sizes embrace the flexibility and agility that virtual teams offer, which allows them to build strong teams and stay competitive in the constantly changing business landscape.
Just so that you can understand the growing importance of virtual teams in the business world, let’s look at the numbers that speak for themselves. Here are six fascinating statistics to know about virtual teams.
1. The Prevalence of Virtual Teams Is on the Rise
According to Upwork research, 36% of the workforce in the US alone now works from home, which shows a significant increase from just a decade ago when remote work was far less common.
When it comes to the global scale, an IWG study from a couple of years ago shows that more than 70% of professionals in various industries work at least 3 days a week at home. And this number is steadily increasing every year.
Taking these figures into consideration, it’s quite obvious that the virtual team trend is on the rise, making it important for companies that want to expand to jump on the bandwagon and take advantage of it.
2. Virtual Teams Lead to Higher Levels of Productivity
Studies have shown that virtual teams can be more productive than traditional teams. For example, a study by Stanford found that remote workers were not only much more productive than their office-based counterparts, outperforming them by 13% on all metrics, but they were also less likely to leave their jobs.
This is because remote teams are often able to allot a full day of work and enjoy flexibility in terms of when and where they work, unlike office workers who are bound to office hours. To back up this claim, Nature Human Behavior conducted a study that showed that remote teams work 10% longer on average.
What’s more, according to the employees themselves, it is easier for them to concentrate while working in the comfort of their own homes, which is something that not all people working in the open space can attest to.
This increased productivity should – and has to – be used to the advantage of organizations that want to improve their work efficiency and have a competitive edge over their peers.
3. Virtual Teams Can Save Companies Money
Another important benefit of virtual teams is that they can be cost-effective. By not requiring a physical – and often very expensive – office space, companies can save a significant amount of money on rent, utilities, and other expenses.
In the same vein, employees can also save a bit of money by cutting out work commute costs, which can be quite substantial for those who live further away from the office.
In fact, according to another study by Harvard and Stanford Universities, the savings from switching to a hybrid work model average $11,000 per remote worker and could be even more if a company decides to go fully remote.
To calculate how much your organization can save by shifting towards the use of virtual teams, consider the following factors:
- Where your office is located;
- Where your team members reside;
- Whether you cover employee travel expenses;
- Whether you pay for the Internet or equipment of your home-based team.
You’d be surprised how much money your company – and employees – can save by going remote, making a virtual work environment very appealing for everyone.
4. Virtual Work Environment Makes Employees Happier
While the pandemic first took everyone aback, forcing many companies to let people work remotely, the results exceeded all expectations. Not only did employees demonstrate higher levels of productivity, but also, as the repeort published by Owl Labs and Global Workplace Analytics showed, 74% of them felt much happier.
Some people are happy just because they don’t need to travel to the office and can save some money on petrol costs, while others have acknowledged that with remote work, they’ve improved their work-life balance.
In fact, the same report says that if these people were asked to return to the office, 67% said that they would expect a pay rise to offset their travel expenses. And 45% said they would feel less happy.
5. Virtual Teams Are More Loyal to Their Companies
Creating a virtual work environment proves to be a great way to increase loyalty to the company and retention of top talent. According to FlexJob, 79% of employees would be more loyal if they were allowed to work in a more or less flexible environment, and 97% of participants would recommend the employer to others, as Buffer study says.
For business leaders who want to increase their talent pool while also reducing employee turnover, these numbers cannot be ignored.
6. Virtual Teams Are More Diverse
Finally, virtual teams are often more diverse than traditional teams. You’d be surprised, but 76% of recruiters, according to Glassdoor, acknowledge that finding the right job candidate is one of their biggest challenges. However, with virtual teams that are not geo-restricted, they can recruit team members from a wider pool of candidates.
This can lead to greater diversity in terms of gender, race, and cultural background, which has been shown to be beneficial for creativity and innovation.
Final Thoughts
To sum it all up, the trend toward virtual teams is very strong, and there are no signs of it slowing down anytime soon. This is easy to see from the statistics, which clearly show that the virtual work environment is beneficial for both employees and organizations.
So, if you’re still not sure whether to launch a virtual team or continue working with on-site employees, the numbers we’ve shared with you in this article should help you make up your mind.
