- With more companies incorporating remote work into their schedules, startups may be contemplating whether to take a fully remote approach
- A fully remote company will save on overhead costs, but could struggle to establish a company culture and pursue business opportunities
- Venture capitalist Mike Ghaffary offers tips for how businesses can assess a remote model
Summary by Dirk Langeveld
As more people get vaccinated against COVID-19, companies are pondering whether to allow employees to continue working remotely or to establish hybrid work weeks that permit remote work some of the time. Startups may find themselves grappling with the decision of whether they should go fully remote right from the beginning.
Mike Ghaffary, a venture capitalist, recently explored the issue in an article for Fast Company. Ghaffary says that while fully remote companies can reduce their overhead costs by eschewing an office, it can also be more difficult to establish a company culture and capitalize on business opportunities.
- Companies can follow a framework to establish their remote policies, including how to establish schedules, whether you’ll be hiring people from outside the state or country, and whether remote workers may not be able to pursue certain advancement opportunities
- Companies may opt for a more flexible option that allows some of the workforce to stay fully remote while allowing others to have a hybrid schedule
- Ghaffary says he has worked with several startups that are limiting their fully remote staff to 20 percent of the payroll, with the remainder coming into an office at least three days a week
