What is the status of remote work?

Before we dive in, let’s tackle a common question: Do employees even want to work remotely? While the answer may have been a resounding “Yes!” in 2020 when the world shut down, there is much more nuance to it now. 

First, some background: Gallup reports that in May 2020, 70% of full-time, remote-capable employees in the U.S. worked exclusively remotely. As of November 2024, that percentage has dropped to 26%. Similarly, only 12% of this employee demographic worked solely on-site in May 2020. By November 2024, that number had increased to just 19%. 

Clearly, the way we think about remote work has changed since the COVID-19 pandemic started. This is evident in some employers’ recent actions to get employees to return to the office. For example, employers now allow employees to work from home an average of 2.2 days per week. Some well-known corporations such as Amazon, Dell, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, and X (formerly Twitter) have gone further, requiring employees to return to working on-site all five days of the work week. Millions of federal employees also have been required to return to in-person work after Donald Trump’s return to the presidency. 

Employers seem to be moving away from fully remote models, but many employees disagree with the shift. According to the U.S. Career Institute, 54% of people want to work fully remotely. But 41% of employees say they want a solution that offers the best of both worlds—a hybrid work model.

The Middle-of-the-Road Option: Hybrid Work

Hybrid work blends remote work and in-person work, allowing employees to experience the flexibility of working from home and the benefits of working together on-site. According to Gallup, hybrid workers selected the following as the top benefits of working in person a few days a week:

• Spending time with people in person to build relationships (55%)
• Having in-person conversations with your manager (44%)
• Collaborating (43%)

As you consider implementing remote work policies, think about the potential advantages of requiring employees to spend some time working together in person. Remember, your final decision will depend on the way your organization operates and your employees’ needs. 

Now, let’s dig into some best practices to help you implement remote work policies, even if they’re part of a shift to a hybrid work model.

1. Establish clear expectations and guidelines.

Whoever manages human resources (HR) at your organization, whether it’s one individual, an entire department, or an external consultant, will be instrumental in developing remote work guidelines, but you also should involve senior leadership and department managers.

Here are some key areas that your guidelines should cover:



• Work hours, as well as expectations about availability and responsiveness 
• Communication protocols, including which tools or platforms will be used for collaboration (e.g., Zoom and Slack) and when regular check-ins will occur   
• Performance metrics, i.e., specific goals or deadlines that employees will be responsible for meeting 

Creating clear policies for how employees do their work at home ensures that you’re laying the groundwork for your team to be productive and accountable. Introducing these policies transparently and reinforcing them regularly will also help you maintain trust with your team.

2. Equip employees with the right tools and technology.

When working from home, employees need the right tools and technology on their side to stay organized, collaborate effectively, and complete everyday tasks. 

Begin by thinking through the physical equipment team members will need to do their jobs at home, such as: 



• Desktop computers or laptops
• External monitors 
• Keyboards and mice 
• Microphone-integrated headphones 

Some employees may not have a dedicated workspace in their homes, so they also may need desks or office chairs. 

Additionally, consider any file-sharing or software systems employees will need to access. For example, your organization’s marketing team will need to have access to all of your marketing platforms, such as your social media management system, email marketing tool, and graphic design solution. Make sure you’ve purchased enough subscriptions or seats for each tool or that you have a secure way for team members to share passwords with each other. 

You also may want to invest in project management software such as Trello, Asana, or Monday.com to streamline your team’s workflows.

3. Foster a culture of strong communication.

When you’re working in an office and have a question for your manager, it’s easy to get up from your desk, pop into their office, and get an answer right away. When working from home, communication becomes more challenging—but not impossible.

Here are some ideas for proactively fostering a culture of strong communication: 



• Ask team leaders to hold daily check-ins where employees can report what they’re working on and get answers to any questions they have. 
• Regularly remind employees in organization-wide communications to go to their managers with questions or concerns at any time, whether related to their compensation or their day-to-day responsibilities. 
• Encourage managers to hold frequent one-on-one meetings with their direct reports.
• Ask employees to get comfortable scheduling quick Zoom meetings or making phone calls when questions or issues arise during the work day. 
• Create open-ended communication channels through tools like Slack where employees can stay connected throughout the day. 
• Invite feedback from your employees by sending out surveys or directing managers to ask specific questions in one-on-one meetings—and then act on that feedback to demonstrate you’re listening. 

You also should remain open to receiving feedback about your remote work guidelines. For instance, you may set the expectation that all employees attend a weekly morning meeting at 8:30 but discover through informal feedback that a few working parents on your team can’t be there due to school drop-off. Moving the meeting to a time that works better for everyone will help build goodwill with your team and demonstrate the value of the flexibility you want everyone to adopt as you transition to ongoing remote work.

4. Encourage employees to embrace a healthy work-life balance.

Remote work holds the potential to empower your team members to unlock a healthier work-life balance. After all, many remote and hybrid employees find it nice to avoid long commute times, complete projects at the time of day that is best for them, or be able to blend caregiving tasks or housework with their day-to-day professional responsibilities. 

However, employees need to be coached to achieve this level of work-life balance. Sometimes, without clear direction from your organization, working remotely can overflow into personal time. For instance, it might become easy to say, “I can work on these donation appeal letters tonight while I watch TV with my family.” 

To help employees keep the line between work and life distinct, encourage them to set clear boundaries. This will typically involve sticking to specific working hours and not responding to emails after a certain time each day. It will also include taking scheduled breaks throughout the day and taking full advantage of weekends and paid time off. 

When employees can strike a balance between engaging fully while at work and wholeheartedly enjoying their other interests and pursuits outside of work, they’ll experience less burnout, maintain their physical and mental well-being, and make your remote work model more sustainable for the long term.

If your nonprofit is interested in implementing a permanent remote or hybrid work model, it’s not too late to do so! Your employees—and, as a result, your cause—may very well thrive thanks to the additional flexibility. Use the best practices outlined above to create your remote work policies, and remember to turn to an HR expert if you need additional guidance.