As we slowly emerge from the pandemic, it’s important to that remote working hasn’t actually been around that long. It was thrust upon us when lockdowns hit, served with the promise that things would be back to normal in a month or so. We all know how that turned out. What was pitched as a temporary measure led to a permanent global shift.
Due to this, though it can sometimes feel like it’s been normal forever, there are still professionals who’ve yet to experience the joys of working from home: taking Zoom calls from the sofa, plotting Excel sheets from the comfort of the back garden, and enjoying long lunch breaks. Once you’ve tried it, it’s hard to go back — but what if you’ve missed it?
Whether you’ve been unlucky enough to miss remote working so far or simply feel worried that future opportunities won’t allow it, you might be curious about which industries favor it most strongly. To help out, we thought we’d sketch up a quick list of some of the leading contenders — so if you’re dreaming about a career away from the office, look no further.
Customer service
The world of online retail received a huge boost from the pandemic. With people everywhered confined to their homes for months on end and high street stores completely closed off to business, the stage was set for rapid growth in ecommerce.
But with online stores suddenly having to manage a huge influx of customers, many businesses began to expand their customer service departments — and the great thing about these service jobs is that they’re easily performed at home, whether by email, phone, live chat, or some combination of the three.
Customer service positions are generally viewed as ‘unskilled’ (however unfairly), so for those new to the world of work (or those simply looking to try new things) they offer great opportunities to interesting companies while enjoying the perks of remote working.
Don’t expect customer service to be easy, though. This work can be challenging: it calls for exceptional communication skills, the ability to think on your feet, and a great deal of empathy when attempting to understand and address customer concerns.
Technology
Technology is a rapidly evolving and expanding sector, and it shouldn’t be at all surprising that the industry most focused on the future has been among the fastest to accept remote work as the new standard for its employees. The tools have all been there for years at this point, so why not go ahead and start using them?
Many companies in tech were banking on remote working growing, and saw massive growth when COVID-19 changed the game. Consider the rising demand for a service like Remote: with an objective of providing a comprehensive employer of record service to facilitate seamless global hiring, it was perfectly positioned to take advantage of the slow realization that there’s no compelling reason to adhere to the classic office structure.
You can also think about communication and HR tools such as Slack and BambooHR. They were already popular for in-house teams, but they’re all the more important for teams scattered throughout the world. So with the rich proliferation of remote-working-centric solutions on the market, there’s evidently no shortage of opportunities to get involved, whether you can get into complex UX or simply help out with tasks.
Content creation
Possess an artistic flare? This is quite a broad sector, but to hone in on some specific career paths, you could take on one of the following roles:
- Social Media Content Creator
- Influencer
- Copywriter
- Editor
- Blogger / Youtuber
- Streamer
Some of these paths allow you to be your own boss, so the option to work remotely is completely up to you. More traditional positions in copywriting or editing are now offering up greater flexibility in how they allow their employees to work, too.
Hiring managers for these positions look for candidates with good portfolios of creative output, so if you’re thinking of making a career jump, be prepared to build your folder of completed projects before applying. Stuck for ideas? Try looking for tips on how to put your portfolio together: there’s a wealth of resources out there to help the aspiring creative!
Sales
Negotiating sales doesn’t have to happen in person. The wide acceptance of video conferencing means that sales meetings can be conducted from anywhere. That said, we wouldn’t recommend attempting to schmooze potential clients whilst still dressed in your PJs. Maybe just stick to an audio call if that’s the case.
Selling requires a strong set of skills, including communication, persuasion, initiative and resilience. This is another career path that values demonstrable experience over anything else, so don’t expect to be hired on ability alone — but if you haven’t been through higher education, this is one of the best paths you can take.
On the whole, sales jobs are easy enough to find, but they’re typically quite demanding too. You can’t expect an easy ride. So if you’ve got the gift of the gab, you have some relevant experience, and you’re committed to whatever path you pick, you might be able to build a great career from making people offers they can’t refuse.
The opportunities to work from home have never been more numerous Search for positions in some of the industries mentioned above and you’ll have an excellent chance of ing the remote work revolution. Found the job of your dreams? For tips on how to nail your application process, take a look at our article: Four Factors that Prospective Employees with Job Offers Consider Before Accepting.
