Remote work employee productivity in South Africa

Abstract

The concept of remote work has become a popular buzzword, yet its impact on productivity remained an unanswered question. The pandemic gave companies the opportunity to adopt remote work on a larger scale, leading to a significant increase in the number of employees working from home in South Africa. This study examined remote work impact on employee productivity, delving into the challenges, and factors contributing into feasibility of remote work in South Africa. The purpose of this research was to investigate the productivity levels of remote based employees in South Africa. There was a perception that remote work resulted in different levels of productivity, and this research aimed to understand if the perception was correct and further investigated this assumption. This qualitative study is underpinned by the TOE framework and employed a phenomenological approach to capture the lived experiences of remote workers. Through in-depth interviews, the purposively selected participants were able to share their personal insights and perspectives, providing a deeper understanding of the challenges, benefits, and complexities of working remotely. By using this method, the research aimed to give voice to the experiences of those directly affected by remote work, offering a rich and detailed account of how it affects their daily lives and influences productivity. The key findings from the study reveal that while remote work offers certain advantages, such as flexibility and elimination of daily travel to the office, it also presents challenges like feelings of isolation and technology challenges such as poor network connections and load shedding pose as a significant risk for the success of remote work. Employee well-being, in particular, emerges as a critical factor that significantly affects employee’s productivity, with positive mental well- being being linked to higher productivity, and poor mental health potentially leading to decreased productivity. This study offers valuable insights into the significant impact remote work has on employee productivity and emphasizes the importance of maintaining positive mental well-being to ensure ongoing productivity. It further contributes to the body iii of knowledge on changing perceptions of remote work productivity in South Africa. Additionally, the study explores the factors and challenges affecting remote workers and assesses the feasibility of remote work in South Africa