In a survey of Devex community members last year, 71% cited the remote work trend as positive for development work and for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.
But three years since the COVID-19 pandemic forced many organizations to be flexible with where employees could conduct their work — and at a time when major global development institutions, including the World Bank and USAID, have made headlines in recent months for wanting more staff to return to the on-site workplace — there appears to be a lack of consensus on what role remote working should or will play within development organizations.
Remote work advocate Bidjan Nashat, CEO of Atlas Corps, a nonprofit that places young professionals from around the world in fellowships at social sector organizations, cites remote work as a major factor in creating economic opportunity that has the potential to revolutionize how we work, especially as we continue to reduce technological barriers. Others point to potential recruitment benefits including improved diversity and inclusion as global development organizations seek to expand recruitment talent pools.
About the author
Jason McNaboedevexjason
Jason is Co-founder and EVP of Devex, the media platform for the global development community, where he leads operations. He's interested in what makes businesses focused on impact successful–and the culture, systems and teams that make them work. Jason believes in the power of matching the right person with the right organization (and job). He's currently writing about what he's calling the SDG talent gap and how to connect more individuals to careers with impact during this Decade of Action.
