Remote work has continued gaining traction globally, becoming a central focus for job seekers and companies. In the USA and Canada, remote jobs have steadily increased as businesses adapt to flexible work models. Aura Intelligence hiring trend data from August, 2024 shows that new remote job postings accounted for 6.5% of all jobs by August, with over 700,000 remote work jobs posted. This shift not only highlights the demand for flexibility but also reflects how remote roles are shaping the future of work across the world.
Remote work is now a long-term trend. According to a 2023 study from Stanford, remote work saw a five-fold increase from 2019 to 2023, with approximately 40% of U.S. employees now working remotely at least one day a week. This marked a significant shift from the pre-pandemic landscape. But as we see, the growth in remote work has continually grown stronger.
A Consistent Growth Pattern
According to Pew Research, around 22 million employed adults in the U.S. work from home full-time, representing 14% of the workforce. Additionally, one-third of U.S. workers who can work remotely do so full-time, while 41% follow a hybrid setup. This trend is further validated by Aura's data, which shows that the number of remote job postings has remained strong and consistent over the past six months, as seen in the graph below. Remote work is now a key factor in many industries, with businesses like Amazon and leading tech firms continuing to offer flexible roles.
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Graph - Remote Work Job Trends from Aura
Companies seeking top talent must adapt their management and hiring strategies to accommodate this demand. Many organizations are now working to develop strong remote work cultures that foster engagement and productivity. In fact, Upwork’s Future of Remote Work study found that one-third of hiring managers reported increased productivity due to remote settings.
Why Employers Are Prioritizing Remote Work
Remote work provides access to a broader talent pool and allows companies to hire from any region. Employers across industries, particularly in customer success, sales, and tech, are expanding their reach by offering remote roles. This has become crucial, as 58% of white-collar workers prefer working remotely at least three days a week. Moreover, 42% of office workers said they would be willing to take a 10% pay cut for the flexibility to work remotely.
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Graph - Changes in Remote Working, by Industry, from Aura
From Aura's data, shown above, we see that remote work is proliferating across a diverse range of industries. For example, a wide range of industries like printing, mental health, research, and e-learning recently made big gains in remote work. For companies like Amazon, offering remote jobs is a competitive advantage in attracting talent for jobs that don't require a physical presence. Job seekers are increasingly interested in roles that provide them with the ability to balance work and life. With remote opportunities, employees can be working from anywhere while contributing to team success and management initiatives.
Skills-Based Hiring and Strategic Planning
As the demand for remote work jobs grows, companies are shifting toward skills-based hiring. This approach focuses more on the competencies required for the job rather than geographic location or traditional qualifications. With remote roles, companies can find the best candidates regardless of location, from California to Florida, Canada to LATAM, or elsewhere.
This trend is further supported by projections that one in five Americans will be working remotely by 2025. Remote job opportunities allow companies to fill specialized roles more efficiently and find the talent they need. Aura Intelligence provides critical insights into this trend, helping businesses apply workforce data to optimize their recruitment strategies, build objective investment strategies, and tap into a global talent pool.
Stanford researchers also noted that hybrid working tends to have a neutral or slightly positive impact on productivity, making it a popular option for employers focused on retaining talent and optimizing costs.
The Role of Workforce Analytics
Aura Intelligence’s platform has become a valuable tool for companies looking to stay ahead of remote hiring trends. By analyzing data from over 1 billion workforce data points, Aura enables employers and investors to make data-driven decisions and gain a competitive edge. For example, companies can benchmark their customer success teams or evaluate how their sales force compares to industry standards, key areas impacted by the rise in remote jobs.
In addition, Aura’s platform, when combined with internal financial metrics, allows businesses to assess the performance of their management teams by tracking workforce trends in near real-time. This level of insight ensures that organizations are ready to adapt to the ongoing shift toward remote work. By leveraging workforce analytics, companies can ensure that their remote work strategies align with broader business objectives.
Remote Work - A Key to Customer Success?
Remote work has become an integral part of the modern employment landscape, and remote jobs are now a key offering in many sectors, as we've seen from Aura's data. As more companies offer remote roles, workers have greater flexibility in balancing work and life, while businesses gain access to a larger talent pool. However, the key to all of this, at the end of the day, is whether or not better products and services are produced for customers. On that front, let's call the jury "still out."
Leveraging workforce data and insights is crucial for organizations interested in staying competitive in the remote work arena. Aura Intelligence’s platform provides the tool and data to make informed decisions and optimize remote workforce management strategies. With more than one in five Americans expected to work remotely by 2025, the demand for remote opportunities will continue to shape the future of work.
Access a free trial of our workforce intelligence platform to learn more about how Aura can help your company optimize its remote workforce or examine other companies for due diligence, competitive benchmarking, or investment insights.
