The office-less abound.

It’s officially (and finally) the age of the remote worker, and everybody seems to have an opinion about it. With some CEOs of Fortune 500 companies publicly declaring it a “pure negative” – and even going so far as to call it an “aberration” – the question of where one should work has had a piece of the global stage since mid-2021, when working remotely seemed to become less of a necessity and more of a preference.

At Ample, we made the decision to go fully remote in 2021 after realizing that our team’s commitment to their jobs, and to each other, didn’t falter just because they didn’t clock their time at a particular building every day. (But, we kept that building just in case any Cincy locals want to stop in and co-work.) So, we’re here to give our two cents about why remote work can not only work for you, but can actually help your company thrive. Hear from our team on why they believe remote work really works for Ample – and why many of our processes actually improved since making the change.

1. Larger resource pool. No, like, way larger.

Not only does the offer of remote work entice more top talent from across the country – and around the world – remote jobs also allow you to select from a much wider pool of candidates, increasing your chances of finding the ideal person to fill your available role.

Our Senior Operations Manager, Lizett Trujillo, noticed that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find qualified talent – particularly in tech roles. “A lot of talented people no longer want to work in an office,” she says. “Having remote positions available gives us access to a lot more talent that we wouldn't typically have if we were hiring in Cincinnati only.” Thanks to opening up the hiring pool this way, we now have a team that spans across the whole country – from LA to Georgia.

Ample’s CEO, Becky Blank, agrees that the extra effort in the hiring process is totally worth it. “It takes us a lot longer to get through the resume pile, but that thoroughness means we have a lot of confidence in the people that do make it all the way through the process. If you made it through a pool of applicants that big and all the way through our interview cycles, you were meant to be here.” Aw, thanks Becky.

2.  Diversity of experience, wealth of knowledge.

When your company employs people from all over the country, you’re inviting countless different perspectives to contribute to the way things are run. Having a diverse array of individuals at your company gives you and your team access to a wealth of experiences, knowledge, and modes of operation that can improve upon current practices, expand the company’s shared knowledge and resource base, and provide your organization with avenues of growth that you may not have discovered on your own.

At Ample, our interview and hiring process reflects these values: we conduct “blind interviews” – aka, cameras off – for at least the first two rounds, ensuring that unconscious biases don’t impact our evaluation of a candidate's qualifications.

Blank says that how wide you cast your hiring “net” directly impacts how diverse your “catch” is. “Instead of looking for culture ‘fit,’ we look for culture ‘adds.’ Will this person bring something new to our team? Will they offer an experience or perspective that we don't already have? By implementing practices like behavior-based interviewing to eliminate bias and hiring from coast to coast, we are able to find a diverse set of people and perspectives.”

That’s one way to squash sameness.

3.  Happiness.

A 2022 study by Tracking Happiness polled over 12,000 workers from across the world and discovered that remote work increases employee satisfaction by as much as 20 percent. Coupled with findings that happier employees are more productive, I think you can glean where we’re going with this.

While some of us love remote work because it lets us spend more time with our beloved pets, others love it for the more human element. Project Manager Torie Pire loves it because she gets to meet her “co-worker” around the house for quality snack breaks. “My husband also works from home, and it is so nice to be able to take a break and go sit in his office with him, or make breakfast or coffee between meetings.”

Senior Developer Shay Scarberry says that working remotely provides comfort. “When people are comfortable they are more true to who they are,” he says. “When every day is bring-yourself-to-work-day it fosters a strong culture of happiness that people carry with them in and out of work.”

No matter what you love about WFH life, it can lead to improved mental health for many. Whether it’s increased access to comforts, reduced social anxiety, or more time in the day to devote to stabilizing the nervous system, working away from an office environment can be quietly revolutionary.

4. Flexibility to deal with…life stuff.

You’re in the office. Boring gray cubicle walls shield you from the rays of the sun and the lively clamor of the outside world. Your right leg is asleep from sitting on it funny all day. Suddenly, you get a phone call from your daughter’s elementary school – can you come pick her up? A water pipe has burst and the school has had to send everyone home. (Maybe this is an unlikely scenario, but work with me here.)

You peek over the wall of your Cubicle of Isolation: If you leave now, will people judge you? Will your boss or team think you’re a slacker? Even if the answer is no, it’s a heck of a lot easier to deal with appointments, errands, and the daunting unforeseen from home than it is from an office. For people with kids, the lack of a commute can also give them more quality time spent with the family, regardless of “emergencies.”

Senior Copywriter Elizabeth Lowry says that before working for Ample, she didn’t realize just how inconvenient dealing with “life stuff” could be. Luckily, now that’s all changed. “If I have an appointment or need to take care of something for one of my kids, I just block off the time, alert my team, and do it. It makes work so much more enjoyable when you know your employer trusts you to get your work done and also wants you to be able to take care of stuff at home too.”

Flexible WFH schedules allow employees and bosses alike to dip out for a bit to deal with the minutiae of the every day – usually without missing a step when it comes to their job requirements.

5. Freeing up budgets – both ways.

Commute miles, the cost of snacks, office clothes, rent, extra childcare: These things add up. Employers are responsible for office upkeep, work stations and supplies, providing parking, and much more. On the employee’s side of the equation, at the very least there’s the cost of gas, an office wardrobe, and the inevitable lunch or three out to consider.

“I miss lunch with the team sometimes,” Ample’s ECD, Kevin Comer, says. “But I gotta admit that it’s a lot more cost effective to eat in my own kitchen.” Comer is also curious as to how companies who’ve gone remote will spend their cost savings. At Ample, we use it for the ultimate team building. “This summer, Ample flew our remote employees into town for a three-day summit,” says Comer. “It gave us time to connect face-to-face and get to know one another a little better. I can see a future where office-less companies might use some of the funds they would be spending on rent for team gatherings and team-building events.”

When you nix these costs and consider the benefits of increased employee retention and higher engagement, the formula just makes sense. Remote work saves money.

So, you’ve heard our humble opinion: Whether we’re working from our home offices, couches (and *cough cough* sometimes beds), or the coffee shop down the street, the shift toward fully remote hasn’t changed our commitment to the work we do — creative or otherwise. Plus, the world gets a little bit bigger when you have the freedom to take your laptop and work from wherever you like.

We take pride in remaining a forward-thinking, people-first company. So, we took the plunge into the fully remote world early on, and we haven’t had any regrets. We don’t think you will, either.

Ready to take advantage of our diverse, talented, and knowledgeable team?  Contact us today!