Benefits and challenges in work-from-home for federal agencies

Remote work was an unfamiliar concept to many employees before 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic was a catalyst for change within the workforce around the globe. One result of this change was increased flexibility within the workplace, including new work from home options, which have sparked interest among employees after being forced to work from home during the pandemic. This flexibility has challenged organizations to create new and innovative ways for their employees to communicate and collaborate on day-to-day tasks.

Cisco survey of Global IT Leaders and Workers 2021 reported 64% of respondents said having some flexibility in work location directly affects whether they will stay at or leave a job.

Federal agencies have continued to re-envision their workforce beyond the pandemic era, so employees can continue to telework. By re-configuring their work environment and offering flexible work to their employees, federal agencies can expand their talent pool and recruit top talent from a broader range of geographies.

OPM’s 2021 Federal Employee Satisfaction Survey found that 36% of respondents reported 100% telework and another 21% reported teleworking at least one day a week.

Baker Tilly’s Meghan Loomis, Director, and Courtney Csik, Senior Manager, discussed remote work within government agencies and the benefits and challenges these agencies face as they adapt to a new way of working.

Q: What are the benefits to remote work in the federal sector?

Csik: One of the benefits to remote work for the government is that it enables agencies to search for candidates outside of a particular city or state where a job is posted. Therefore, remote work increases their candidate pools, enables federal agencies to scale their internal recruiting strategies and align to their national strategies, which in turn gives employees and agencies more opportunity and benefit.

Loomis: More and more industry is moving to telework and flexible work options. In order to stay competitive and recruit top talent, government will need to offer work flexibility to encourage more individuals to gravitate toward government jobs and see those career paths as great opportunities to pursue their professional goals.

There has been a 343% increase in mentions of “flexibility” in company job posts on LinkedIn since 2019.

Csik: Additionally, if agencies lean into remote work, it can help them achieve their goals for interagency collaboration. Federal agencies are placing a high importance on increased communication, synergies across agencies and interagency collaboration in how they work, what they work on and the tools used to meet their missions. Telework can be a contributing factor to interagency collaboration. With the number of remote workers increasing, the mechanisms, digital tools and procedures have had to adapt and change. Agencies need to adjust to new strategies and tools to make it easier to communicate from one remote worker to the next. The next evolution should be easier connection outside of a single agency, leading and helping the government to meet the goals of interagency collaboration.

Statistics sources

• Oct. 7, 2021, Cisco Launches First Global Hybrid Work Index: Key Findings Reveal Hybrid Work is Powered by Mobile and AI, Talent Sits Everywhere, Cisco
• Cisco Global Hybrid Work Study 2022, Cisco
• Kelly, Jack, Jan. 18, 2022, LinkedIn’s Global Talent Trends Report Shows People Want Jobs That Offer Flexibility, Remote Options, Help With Their Mental Health And Emotional Well-Being,Forbes
• OPM 2022 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey Results, OPM U.S. Office of Personnel Management