New Delhi : A majority (55%) of the India Inc. hiring managers stated that the requirement for remote workers at their firms had gone up amid the COVID-19 lockdown, revealed a new survey conducted by TimesJobs.

TimesJobs survey titled ‘COVID-19 and its impact on jobs at India Inc.’ aimed to understand the impact of the lockdown on the country’s employment scenario. The survey received 1,345 responses from HR professionals working in different sectors.

Among those who said that the talent demand for remote jobs had gone up, about 33% respondents said that the demand grew by 20-30% in this review period. Whereas, 30% hiring managers estimated that the talent demand surged above 40%.

But with the growth of preference for remote work, the challenges that come with working from home can be overwhelming. For instance, when looking for remote work, you might need to get your RPL certification, a method of assessment that makes formal qualifications more accessible.

The continued rise in remote work, however, isn’t by chance. With remote working revolutionizing the way employees work, it’s becoming a preferred option by employers and employees. Some of the leading reasons for the continuous rise of remote jobs include the following:

• Remote jobs cultivate the start-up culture as more job seekers are encouraged to work wherever they are as long as they deliver what they need on time. These start-up companies provide great perks to staff to make them feel like they’re working for a normal business. 
• Remote jobs create better work-life balance as most traditional jobs are too rigid, and the family tends to fall behind. The need to be around family without going through a long leave approval process makes remote work appealing to most employees. 
• Technological advancements have made it easier for people to work remotely. Employers can now engage with employees like in a traditional setting, whether by keeping in touch with teams, communicating with colleagues, or having meetings. And with more companies turning to remote work, there are constantly new ways of communicating and working without being in an office. These communication platforms make it easy to work remotely as they are user-friendly.

New job roles come up to cater to remote working:
In the survey, more than 72% hiring managers stated that companies are devising new job roles that will be limited to remote working only. That’s a big revelation because until now IT-related and digital transformation-related roles were the new additions at most workplaces. Thanks to COVID-19 lockdown, Indian companies are now focusing on remote jobs too.

Around 52% respondents said that the IT domain would create most new remote jobs, followed by R&D and Marketing and Sales domains.

“India Inc. is going through a transitional phase amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown. The concept of remote working is no more a privilege, but a necessity to stay afloat in such difficult times. Remote working is expected to cause the next big shift in our working style, it will be crucial for companies to put the right policies in place to ensure that both employees and employers make the most of remote work culture”, said Sanjay Goyal, Business Head, TimesJobs and TechGig.

System Operators, Digital Marketing professionals most sought after roles for remote working:

TimesJobs asked the hiring managers to enlist the job profiles that will be most sought after for remote working. System Operators, Store Associates and Digital Marketing were ranked as the top three job roles that would be in demand amid the Coronavirus lockdown. This can be co-related with the fact since outdoor activities are restricted; most firms are now looking forward to increase their online reach. The survey also concluded that job roles such as Content Writers, Healthcare Specialists, Customer Services and R&D Professionals may see a surge in the talent demand. On the contrary, job profiles related to Branding, Accounts Management and Business Administration may witness a dip in talent demand amid the COVID-19 lockdown.

Bengaluru and Delhi would be India’s hotspots for remote jobs:

IT-capital, Bengaluru was named as the top location to host most remote jobs. After that, 20% hiring managers said that Delhi would be the next center for remote jobs. While, 19% respondents earmarked Mumbai as the hotspot for remote jobs, followed by Chennai and Hyderabad. Among the Tier II cities, Noida and Gurugram were named as the emerging top locations for remote jobs, as per 29% and 13% of respondents respectively.