With a staggering 86% of millennials reporting that they would like to work remotely at least one day a week, and with the pandemic showing managers the potential benefits of this first hand, we’re very much living in a remote revolution. In fact, this is so much the case that flexible working is now a standard job expectation, while more millennials than ever are actively seeking, and finding, fully remote roles that finally look set to bring that all-important work/life balance into check.
Unfortunately, phony listings, ill-thought remote roles, and unrealistic expectations placed on remote workers mean that jumping into the first great remote role you find will rarely work out for you. Instead, it’s vital to make sure that you know what a good remote listing looks like by first considering these three red flags that a role might not be what you need after all.
# 1 – A questionable employment status
Employment status is perhaps the prime consideration when looking at remote job listings. After all, the out-of-office nature of these positions means that many employers will seek to hire remote workers on either a freelance or contractual basis. While there’s nothing wrong with that if you’re actively seeking freelance work or similar, negating things like job benefits or security means that you shouldn’t just accept this reality if it’s not what you’re after. Instead, it’s vital to understand precisely what position you’re filling, what your employment status would be, and what that means for your career prospects.
# 2 – No access to the tools you need
While most remote workers supply their own laptops, etc., companies should always provide the tools for remote teams to function. As well as things like collaboration tools and integration into company networks, businesses looking to successfully implement remote employees especially need to think about their broader data setups with something like a reverse ETL tool, which enables all workers to easily access data as and when they need to. If implementations like these aren’t already in place, then a remote position can quickly become untenable, not only leaving you struggling to get the job done but also potentially damaging your prospects in this career more broadly.
# 3 – It seems too good to be true
Job listings that seem too good to be true typically are. Remote listings that promote crazily high salaries without narrowing down on job roles are especially worth looking out for and may see you being pulled into things like pyramid schemes that don’t come with a regular income. Instead, always remember that legitimate remote postings are looking for the highest quality candidates, and will always be clear about specific roles, expectations, and requirements from that very first moment, and throughout the interview process.
Remote roles provide an entirely new way of working, and one which is desirable for countless millennials. Just make sure that this dream setup doesn’t turn into a nightmare by looking out for these warning signs throughout your career search.