The global pandemic has left most people in the job market working remotely from their homes’ comfort. Before that, platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr made it possible for freelancers worldwide to connect and work remotely. To be honest, most people do not fancy the tedious parts of a traditional job, including commuting and office politics. As a result, most employers would agree that remote working is the future.

So, how do you land a remote position in a company? By highlighting your remote work skills and experience. It is advisable to show your employer that you do have the skills and experience to work remotely. To ensure that your CV qualifies as a remote-worthy resume, we have put together a list of essential remote job skills for job seekers.

Digital Communication

Working remotely means that employees will rarely meet in person as they do not operate under the same roof. As a result, it can be harder to keep tabs with everyone and track their progress. For this reason, practical communication skills are a must-have skill when working remotely. Effective communication is characterized by emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills.

Hiring employers will look for such skills in your resume. The ability to be vocal and comfortably communicate with your fellow employees and bosses via digital platforms such as email, Google Meet, and Zoom is a huge asset. It would be best to highlight your proficiency with these platforms. Additionally, it would be in your best interest to familiarize yourself with project management software such as Trello and JIRA that maintain communication and productivity on remotely working teams.

Time Management

Video calls and online meetings are an integral part of working remotely. Part of this includes jumping on impromptu video call meetings and effectively sharing information for the team’s development. Your flexibility and time management skills are what will make you a valuable resource to the team.

Unlike the traditional 9 to 5 working hours of an office job, working remotely is a tiny bit more flexible. For this reason, be prepared to explain how you handled challenging tasks with a relatively tight timeframe in your resume. Your recruiters will want to know if they can rely on you to get the job done efficiently at home within the given deadlines with no supervision regardless of the circumstance.

Tech Competence

In this day and age, comfort with technology is a ‘big one.’  Phones, computers, tablets, software including Microsoft suite, Google Hangout, Zoom, and Meet are all essential components of working remotely. Any form of technology that enables you to communicate and work remotely is worth mentioning in your resume.

It is advisable to include a technology section that highlights your computer proficiencies and experience with them. While you’re at it, it would be best to pick up a new programming/ coding language if it is relevant to the job that you are applying for. Not only will it increase your chances of landing that job, but it could open up side hustle schemes for you on platforms such as Upwork and Fiverr.

Interpersonal Skills – Team Player Capabilities

As Lynn Baker, a professional CV editor and career expert said: “Regardless of the work setting, being a good member of the team is always desirable. Hiring managers will always look for such skills in your resume. A good team player in a remote work setting is still keen to communicate, stay in touch, contribute to team meetings, solve problems, and ‘gel’ well with the other employees.” So, be sure to demonstrate your ‘team-mindedness’ mentality in your resume.

Verdict

Working remotely either as a freelancer or as part of a team under one company is great as it eliminates most of the shortcomings associated with a traditional office job. However, to land such a position, your resume needs to include computer proficiencies, time management skills, ability to communicate using digital work platforms, and interpersonal skills. If you have a hard time while drafting your resume, then consider using a resume writing service to optimize your document for a job application.

If you have prior remote job experience, be sure to include it in your resume. And lastly, it would be best to create a home office set up to optimize your job experience.