Experience has shown us that software development methodologies work best when a team is working as a cohesive unit in a single location. After all, when everyone shares a workspace, they can ask important questions and solve issues without having to schedule meetings.

However, the pandemic forced software engineering teams to adopt remote work. Surprisingly, remote work isn’t as bad as many people make it out to be. In fact, it has become the norm in the current software engineering industry. In this article, we’ll discuss how remote work is impacting both software engineers and software engineering companies.

Allows employers to hire the best talent

According to Harvard Business Review, nearly 30% of company supervisors are not confident in their employees’ abilities to complete organizational tasks remotely. One of the reasons for this is that it is harder to keep track of their progress and provide immediate feedback to ensure that software engineering teams are working cohesively towards similar goals. However, subscribing to this somewhat outdated belief can result in missing out on the best software engineering talent. Roughly 40% of software engineers would prefer to work remotely according to a recent TechTarget survey.

Since remote software engineers can work from anywhere in the world, the likelihood of finding the best fit for the position can be increased while saving considerable expense in the process. Plus, as skill shortages have risen significantly, having access to the best talents is vital to keeping software engineering operations moving forward. Top software engineering candidates are more adaptable and capable of learning innovative technologies more quickly, allowing companies to pivot and respond accordingly to changing market conditions.

Provides more opportunities for software engineers

Remote work has revolutionized the way software engineers work, breaking free of the traditional limitations of location-bound employment. Anyone who has been in the software engineering industry for a significant length of time is likely aware of the changing dynamics of the job market.

As artificial intelligence continues to advance, the software engineering market has become more competitive than ever. Although the remote software engineering job market is just as or even much more competitive, it allows candidates to find positions that suit their unique skills and abilities. The issue with location-bound employment is that sometimes software engineering companies are looking for individuals with specific skills and abilities that may be difficult to fill locally.

Those looking to join the software engineering field can review the full range of software engineering jobs available. The necessary education can be gained by enrolling in an Online Masters in Computer Science – Software Engineering at a reputable institution such as Baylor University. With smaller class sizes and a self-paced, online curriculum, students have the opportunity to study a wide range of topics, such as cybersecurity concepts, applied artificial intelligence and distributed systems to gain the skills needed to excel in this diverse field.

Supports flexibility and work-life balance

Working in the office, it is not uncommon to lose track of time while working in software engineering. This can raise the likelihood of missing important family time or even skipping meals to beat a tight deadline. Some consider this to just be part of the job and that sacrifices need to be made at times to advance.

While this is a valid point, overworking and spending late nights at the office can potentially lead to burnout, which is something most software engineers need to beware of. Recent data shows over 80% of software engineers suffer from burnout due to a lack of work-life balance.

With the software engineering industry encouraging and promoting remote work, professionals can align their work schedules and choose to work the hours when they are most productive. This allows remote software engineers to accommodate personal appointments and family responsibilities and makes it easier to incorporate healthy lifestyle choices. By maintaining better health and wellbeing, software engineers are better able to manage work demands and sustain their career over the long term without being forced to retire due to nagging health issues. It also provides more time to start a home-based business if that is something of interest.

Remote work is here to stay!

As remote work becomes the norm, software engineering professionals and companies must learn to navigate these changes to remain competitive and relevant in this rapidly evolving industry. By completely embracing remote work, software engineering professionals and organizations can work towards aggressively achieving set goals and intentions.