Founders Share Their Views On Whether Remote Work Is Good For Startups

A few days ago, Schmidt said that Google’s work-from-home policy was putting the company at a competitive disadvantage in the AI race. He has now adjusted those comments, informing The Wall Street Journal that he “misspoke about Google.” This correction follows him saying that work-life balance was possibly detrimental to Google’s ability to lead against AI startups like OpenAI.

Other CEOs around the world have their views as well, like Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, who has been vocal about his preference for office-based work, citing internal data that suggests engineers are more productive on-site. Elon Musk, who has previously criticised the remote work model as “morally wrong,” advocates strongly for returning to the office.

 

The Changing World’s Demands

 

The conversation around remote versus office work is going along with changing business needs and what employees prefer. Numerous reports show that the need for flexible workspaces is rising, with record revenues reported due to increased hybrid work arrangements.

 

What Do Experts Think?

 

Some startups are embracing the flexibility of working from anywhere, while others still appreciate an in-person connection with their teams. Founders and CEOs have shared their views on how remote work impacts startups in particular as a way to continue the ongoing conversation about remote, hybrid and in-office work. This is what they think:

 

Our Experts:

 

• Hayley Knight, Co-founder & Communications Director, BE YELLOW
• Ed Johnson, CEO and Co-Founder, PushFar
• Kevin Gaskell, Former CEO, Porsche UK and Chairman, ITS Global Technology
• Russell Crowley, CEO and Co-Founder, Principle Networks
• Mark Dixon, Founder and CEO, International Workplace Group
• Yoad Tzor, CEO & Founder, Carpoll
• Iffi Wahla, Co-founder and CEO, Edge
• Mayra Hurtado, CEO and Co-Founder, Hormony (Prelude Health)

 

Hayley Knight, Co-founder & Communications Director, BE YELLOW

 

 

“Working remotely isn’t suitable for every start up company, and certainly not for every industry. And sometimes it’s important to be where your investors or stakeholders are, but that doesn’t mean you need a set office space – and it’s an overhead most startups don’t need.

“I believe that people don’t need to be in the office to be productive or focused. We have a fully remote team of 7, and we work really well together, and deliver excellent results for clients. We rely on weekly check ins and brainstorming sessions. It’s important that you build a team that you trust, and who are able to work independently, and who use their initiative, so the hiring process has to be extensive.

“Remote work reduces stress and anxiety, and makes companies more inclusive and accessible. We want to create equal opportunities for everyone when it comes to work, learning and development, and you can’t do this if you expect people to work from the office.

“It’s proven that women especially thrive if they have the option to work remotely. It also creates a stronger work-life balance. I travel full time, and work from various places throughout the world, and remote work has allowed me to input wider world views and perspectives into our campaigns and PR and marketing work, creating a stronger impact. We wouldn’t have these perceptions if we didn’t work this way.

“Our clients are also incredibly supportive of us as a fully remote agency (which I admit, was a concern when we set up the company), and many clients have actually switched to a remote or hybrid way of working since working with us.”

 

Ed Johnson, CEO and Co-Founder, PushFar

 

 

“As a founder of a startup that operates remotely, I very much believe that working from home can create the same level of productivity as working from an office. I have seen hugely positive company growth without the sacrifice of maintaining excellent team relationships.

“Naturally, it is important to ensure that productivity is maintained when employees are working from home, that’s something any businesses leader would think about. However, I would still challenge the view that remote working results in decreased productivity. There are just a few factors that need to be considered in order to avoid any negative impacts.

“First of all, it is vital that your remote team are working in an environment that is productive for them, and that they have all the equipment needed to conduct their job in an effective manner. Often, distractions in a work from home or a remote environment can appear unavoidable, but by basing yourself in a quiet, calm space which has a dedicated office set up, productivity should be encouraged.

“I would also recommend that remote workers factor in a solid structure to their day proactively, this could be anything from creating to-do lists, blocking out time in calendars for deep work. The positive outcomes of working from home means increased work life balance ultimately, and for workplaces that offer flexible hours, it can be hugely beneficial for employees to structure their day in the right way which works specifically for them, whether that means starting or finishing earlier. This system mean you can get the most out of your team, allowing them to work hours that suit their needs and times of heightened productivity.

“Encouraging team members to factor in breaks into their calendars is also very important too – just as you would in an office. Whether that is taking five minutes to make a coffee and step away from their laptop or heading out for a walk at lunch.

“Moving away from office timetables such as lunch hours can be easy to do at home, and without factoring in regular breaks, burn out and staff departures will likely be on the rise. Encouragement of regular team catch ups is really important so that remote workers don’t feel isolated, and that they are part of the working team. This can also help drive productivity and people buying in to the team.

“Ultimately, I think accountability is the all-important factor. Having a mentor or a colleague holding you accountable to goals, objectives and targets can drive endless productivity. Speaking to someone who is experienced in your field or working situation, can not only provide valuable advice, but also motivation.”

 

Kevin Gaskell, former CEO, Porsche UK and Chairman, ITS Global Technology

 

 

“I always think that if remote working was such a great idea, Pep Guardiola would encourage his Manchester City players to save the commute time and practice their ball skills on their lawn, then travel in on a Saturday and play a match together. Of course they would fail to win a match because teamwork, tactics, communication, understanding, creativity and alignment would be non existent.

“A winning team has to learn and cooperate by being together. It doesn’t matter whether the company is a startup or a global mega corp, team performance requires informal as well as formal comms. That can only be done when they are located together.”
 

 

Russell Crowley, CEO and Co-Founder, Principle Networks

 

 

“Connectivity has improved so much that businesses have become more confident than ever in transitioning to a WFH model, removing the need for exclusive private networks. Specifically, the introduction of Zero Trust Architecture, a framework of technologies and strategies designed to verify every single user and device, is the best way to safeguard corporate resources from being compromised when staff are logging on from different locations.

“The guiding principle of Zero Trust is ‘never trust, always verify’, with access only being granted if stringent identification, authentication, and authorisation processes have been successfully navigated.

“Because of these advancements, a remote working model can offer a lot of benefits to startups. They can enjoy far greater flexibility and reduced overheads than if they were to tie into a private network provider. Based on business needs, startups can scale resources up and down which reduces infrastructure costs, whilst global accessibility can help startups tap into a wider pool of talent and expand into new markets.”

 

Mark Dixon, Founder and CEO, International Workplace Group

 

 

“Unless you have been living under a rock, you couldn’t fail to see sensational media headlines on a regular basis that suggest the only productive place to work is in a traditional city centre office – with critics claiming productivity is suffering because of new ways of working.

“Headlines have talked about Return to Office or Return to Work mandates gaining significant momentum amongst businesses. But this misses the point on several fronts – most notably that the phrase “Return to Work” implies employees have been off work, slacking, or taking an extended holiday while “Return to Office” suggests employees have been working purely from home, which is another fallacy.

“The hybrid model is becoming well and truly embedded in the DNA of businesses of all sizes across the globe. Stanford University’s Professor Nicholas Bloom’s extensive research reveals 40% of businesses have now shifted to a permanent hybrid model, where employees split time between a local workplace, home and their HQ. The academic study found that hybrid increased productivity by as much as 3-4% while providing alongside a better work-life balance for employees.

“Prof. Bloom’s work also highlighted a multitude of broader benefits of hybrid working including a significant boost to regional and even rural economies as higher paid workers no longer need to spend five days a week commuting long distances away from their local communities.

“A recent paper from the Bank of England’s Decision Maker Panel calculated that for every day of the week an employee works in a hybrid way, their productivity rises by about £15,000 a year. What’s more, their bosses now expect that situation to remain unchanged for at least five years.

“As the CEO of International Workplace Group, the world’s largest provider of hybrid work solutions, I wanted to add my perspective based on what we are seeing day in and day out, across our network of more than 4,000 locations across more than 120 countries worldwide. Put simply, the office is not dead. It’s just moved location to a much more convenient place in the heart of local communities where people actually live.

“The reality about where and how work is conducted is far more nuanced than the current conversation particularly in the media implies. Instead of being a binary choice between working from a traditional city centre office and home, employees increasingly have a third option – a local co-working space or office, near to home with other like-minded people from a range of companies and sectors.

“The greatest boost to performance, productivity and employee happiness actually comes from freeing workers from the bind of a long, unproductive, and expensive journey several times a week to a city centre office where they complete tasks, they could perform closer to home.

“Empowered by their employers, there are encouraging signs employees are living their lives in a way that not only rejects long commutes, expensive public transport, and eye-watering real estate costs in major cities, but in a way that’s ultimately more productive and fulfilling.

“Last year, Department for Transport figures revealed Britons drove 19 billion fewer miles than they did before the pandemic, while Transport for London figures showed peak time travel into central London remained at 70% of pre-2020 levels, leading to the current experiment classifying Friday as “off peak”.

“The rapid growth of hybrid and more localised working means the majority of our new International Workplace Group centres are opening in the middle of local communities, suburbs and rural areas, making 15-minute cities and towns a reality to the many that seek them. This means that outlying boroughs and towns are once again regaining their individual identities and are set for strong and sustained growth. A study by International Workplace Group and Arup recently estimated the number of skilled office workers based in UK commuter towns will rise by 175% in the UK over the next 20 years because of hybrid working.

“Tellingly, two academics from the University of Pittsburgh have concluded that businesses who issued blanket “return to the office” orders enjoyed almost no improvements in profitability or market value, leading them to the conclusion that managers were seeking to “reassert control over employees and [make them] a scapegoat for bad firm performance.”

“In times of significant change there has always been fierce debate about how best to adopt and evolve. Every business leader wants their company to thrive, and it is those who choose to adapt quickly, building a culture where hybrid working is embedded into their organisation, that are more likely to benefit.

“We are at such a critical juncture today with the advent of hybrid working. It is worth remembering that just 30 years ago email was first being adopted by businesses and many of those companies that failed to adopt it were by and large not around for much longer.”

 

Yoad Tzor, CEO & Founder, Carpoll.

 

 

“Deciding on remote work is tough, especially post-COVID, when the way we work has changed. Balancing the practicalities of modern work with the high costs of maintaining a physical office is critical for a seed-stage company like ours.

“Our solution? Let the employees decide. We’re building a culture where our team is at the center. Whether remote or in-office, we give them the flexibility and support they need to deliver their best work. It’s about what works best for our people.”

 

Iffi Wahla, Co-founder and CEO, Edge

 

 

“The argument that remote workers are less productive is really not accurate at all. We can see that during the pandemic when most businesses moved fully remote there was little impact on productivity. The reality is that creating a productive remote working environment requires creating the right policies, hiring and trusting the right people and putting the right technology in place for engaging with and monitoring team performance.

“Not everyone is cut out for remote work and some people work better in an office environment. It’s up to the business to align their hiring strategy accordingly. There are huge benefits to remote working for startups, especially in the tech industry where there is a talent gap in most western countries. If your startup is set up to facilitate a productive remote working environment, it opens the door to acquiring talent from across the world and in some cases, at much reduced cost.”

 

Mayra Hurtado, CEO and Co-Founder, Hormony (Prelude Health)

 

 

“The rise of remote work has fundamentally transformed the landscape for startups, making entrepreneurship more accessible and sustainable. By eliminating the need for physical office spaces, startups can significantly reduce overhead costs, allowing more resources to be directed toward product development and innovation.

“Remote work also provides access to a global talent pool, enabling startups to attract diverse skills and expertise from across the world. This broader range of talent enhances creativity and problem-solving, giving startups a competitive edge. Additionally, the flexibility of remote work fosters a healthier work-life balance, particularly for founders juggling family commitments, leading to increased productivity and employee satisfaction—key factors in a fast-paced startup environment.

“For Hormony®, the ability to work from home has been instrumental to our success. When I left my corporate job, it coincided with my father’s passing, and being in a work-from-home startup allowed me to be with my family during that sensitive time.

“This setup integrates work naturally into everyday life, fostering more realistic human interactions. While remote work relies on coordination and brings its own challenges, these are outweighed by the benefits and can be managed with other tools such as team-building initiatives. In essence, remote work has empowered Hormony® to thrive in a competitive market while supporting our values centred on human interactions, creativity, and speed.”