Working Smarter to Help the Environment

Here at VBN we’re all about working smarter to make life easier, whether it’s entrepreneurs running startups and SMEs or the employees themselves. Now it turns out that our approach isn’t just beneficial for people’s work-life balance. These improvements in health and wellness also help the environment!  How? By prioritizing a balanced life and reducing inefficiencies in the workplace, businesses can institute policies like work-at-home or remote-work options that allow people to be with their families and save them from the hassle of commuting, which has the benefit of reducing carbon emissions. Implementing four day work weeks would also greatly lessen power consumption, helping the environment and also reducing the electricity bill! 
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Why the Jack Ma Approach Is Not Best For Business

Recently, the billionaire founder of Alibaba, Jack Ma, argued for a “996” system. This entails workdays spanning from 9am to 9pm – that’s 12 full hours – and a work week that’s six days long. Woah… that’s a lot to take in. He says that it is best for business, particularly in maintaining China’s economic inertia. But we beg to disagree with Jack Ma and this notion productivity that prioritizes profits ahead of the workers’ wellness and their work-life balance.

This is not what’s best for business and runs counter to what entrepreneurs should seek and what they should ask of their employees. After all, don’t startup owners hire Virtual Assistants precisely so they can have more time off? And aren’t people working as VAs to have more flexibility and control over their hours? (more…)

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