Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the government’s work-from-home order, most of government officials in Indonesia began adopting a new way of working that will possibly become more and more common at government institutions in the future: working remotely. 

Working remotely, or working from home as it is popularly known lately, is clearly not a novel idea for many in the private sector. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has recently announced that his employees can continue working from home “forever”, while Amazon has told its employees that they can work from home until October this year due to the pandemic. Suffice to say, more and more companies, both local companies and global companies, are predicted to follow suit.

However, it seems that working remotely remains an alien concept among government officials as of now. At least for most of us. A couple of months before the pandemic broke out in the country, in an unprecedented move the government actually tried out the-work-from-home model at several ministries and institutions, such the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas). Not much has been reported about the progress of this move though. Nevertheless, now that the pandemic is here, with some experts arguing that living side by side with COVID-19 will become a new normal in the future and President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo telling the nation to “come to terms” with COVID-19, I believe this is the right time for the government to give a more serious and long-overdue attention to the idea of working remotely. And for government employees, I believe the time has come for us to adapt to this new way of working.

In times like these, it is indeed imperative and a must for government officials to continue working in an efficient and effective manner. It is our responsibility to keep the country running, amid the fight against the pandemic. However, while doing so, it is also crucial to follow the health protocols to contain and slow down the spread of the virus. To that end, working remotely can be a practical solution.

Being a government translator myself, I personally find that working remotely suits me best. In fact, I find it far more efficient than working at the office, which can be noisy, full of distraction. I can attest that working in the safety and comfort of my room has been proven to boost my concentration and focus, and has even increased my productivity! Best of all, it has also been both time-efficient and money-efficient as I do not have to waste my precious time navigating Jakarta’s notorious traffic to reach the office. I can also save money previously spent on public transport. A survey conducted by FlexJobs, a job service for remote job listings, shows that out of 5,500 professionals surveyed, 66% agreed that their productivity improves when they are not in office and 76% thought that there are fewer distractions outside of offices.

Working remotely for government officials can also be considered a part of the government’s bureaucratic reforms campaign. Through this working model, not only can the officials work effectively and efficiency, the government can also cut the budget for electricity, water, or office peripheries needed for working at the office. It is also in line with one of the working programs of President Jokowi, namely to create governance that is clean, effective, and trusted.

With that being said, it must be acknowledged, however, that working remotely for government officials can also pose challenges and bring problems that need to be addressed. Without strict supervision and monitoring, working remotely can backfire and offer a chance for the employees to enjoy their time at home, instead of doing office works, while still getting paid at the same time. Without a strict control, work quality can also be compromised. And then, there’s also the issue of rules and regulations. Government officials are bound with strict laws and regulations, including in terms of daily attendance. Imposing remote working policy for government officials, especially at the national level and for a long period, will require changes in related laws and regulations. Access to supporting facilities such as a reliable computer or laptop and Internet connection must also be available to government officials working remotely.  Furthermore, several jobs at government institutions might not be possible to be performed remotely, such those directly serving the public for example.

However, even if only half of 4.1 million government officials across the country can work remotely, I say that would be an encouraging progress.

Therefore, a considerable amount of responsibility is important in working remotely. The government needs to constantly educate the officials about the benefits of working remotely, as well as the responsibilities and the challenges that it brings. The government also needs to strictly and continuously educate the officials about do’s and the don’ts in working remotely. A reliable system can also be established through which the government can monitor and supervise the officials, while ensuring that those officials can remain productive and meet targets set.

With this new way of working, it is also the time for government officials to change the mindset from simply coming to work, recording attendance, and probably playing games or doing unproductive things all day long into producing real works and outputs and meeting targets. It is also the time to change the paradigm of “working”, from previously being physically present at the office into producing outputs and works even if one is not physically present. Simply put, it should not matter where we work; what should matter is our outputs and the targets we can meet.

If there is one thing that COVID-19 can bring changes to our country and our government, it would be changing the way government officials work in the future.