Working from Anywhere

We have begun holding remote work sessions at Parihoa for the NZ-based Parihoa Network. I have long enjoyed being surrounded by talented people who work remotely.

Even when I had ChapmanCG, Parihoa would regularly have employees and friends visiting me in NZ from around the world. Simultaneously, my home in Singapore would also be full of guests tapping away on computers.

Remote working can have a mixed reputation due to fears of loneliness or lack of accountability. But the reality is that it's a muscle and a competence that can grow with practice. And once mastered, it affords extreme flexibility, provided results are met.

My tips on remote work:

• If you are running a remote company, recruit carefully for talent who are comfortable with their life setup to cope well with high autonomy.

• Employees and leaders function best with good accountability for tasks and deadlines, so they can be trusted.

• Optimise technology and tools so that people can perform well outside the office.

• Communication and stakeholder management skills are vital to succeeding in remote working.

• Build capability in employees to "switch off" and get a break, so they are not always "on".

Now that we are beyond COVID-19, an era that exploded remote working possibilities, the landscape has been set for more employees to function well in remote or hybrid settings. Between 2020 and 2022, we expanded our mindset that not being in an office was possible. In 2025, the reality is that companies and leaders all think differently about how to work.

Personally, I like to optimise the potential of others by not being tethered to traditional practices. I feel that to unlock super performance, we have to experiment and take risks. If we follow the tried-and-trusted techniques of everyone being together in an office, I don't think we leverage the potential of "what could be," especially in this day and age with the potential of technology and creative approaches to working.

Last Friday at Parihoa, as I watched some of the Network converge on the Jewel Box to work remotely, I proudly watched everyone singularly focused on their goals, collaborating with each other and, most importantly, getting a good, honest day of work in. I found myself highly productive just by being around others but was also inspired that we were functioning as a collective with different jobs in different companies. This, I hope, is the future!