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From New York to Dublin via
Buncrana
02.06.20
According to a report
by the Economist last year there could be 1 billion
remote workers globally by 2035. That desk and
laptop in the spare room may become a permanent
fixture for many Inishowen households.
Covid-19 has presented enormous challenges to
business across the world, however one of the
greatest opportunities may be ‘’remote working’’
also referred to as ‘’working from home’’ or ‘’smart
working’’.
This can benefit employers, employees, congested
urban centres and rural areas, through cost
reduction, continued productivity and growing rural
populations. The restrictions on travel and going to
work have seen many talented professions come to
Inishowen to work remotely in a safe and connected
environment.
Just two of those are Nicola Duffy, a New York
lawyer originally from Buncrana and her brother
in-law Mayo man Declan McGuire, a Technical Director
for Boulder Media, a Dublin based visual effects
studio. |
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New York based lawyer Nicola Duffy
enjoying her time remote working from Buncrana. |
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Before Covid-19 struck
Nicola was working between court and an office on
Wall Street. She had the option to work remotely but
generally preferred the office to separate work and
home life. Since moving back to Buncrana she has
been operating on New York hours, which means later
starts and finishes. Despite spending ‘’much more
time in front of a computer now than before’’ and in
a very different environment, her productivity
hasn’t been affected and by in large hasn’t
experienced any connectivity issues working in rural
Inishowen. |
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Declan McGuire, Technical Director
for Boulder Media in Dublin, working from his home
in Buncrana. |
After spending 8 years
building his career in London, Declan moved to
Dublin in 2017 to work on an exciting project which
he hopes will become the first CG (Computer
Generated) movie fully produced in Ireland. Before
lockdown his studio had the facilities to work
remotely but it was only used one or twice a month.
For Declan ‘’working remotely in Donegal is a dream
come true’’. Declan uses quite graphic heavy
programs during his working day but connectivity
here (in rural Inishowen) has actually been better
than some of his colleagues in Dublin.
In addition he says that ‘’there can be a lot of
interruptions in an open plan office, my
productivity has definitely increased by quite a bit
since I started working from home.’’
One of the best aspects of remote working in
Buncrana for Declan is that ‘’even though my work
can be quite fast paced the pace of life here is so
much better and not as crazy as living in a city
like London or Dublin. The scenery is also
incredible and everybody is so friendly.’’ He hopes
that once this pandemic has passed companies will
see the benefits of allowing employees to work
remotely. ‘’After a couple of months in Donegal I
don't plan to leave any time soon’’ Declan proudly
states.
For Nicola, (once restrictions are lifted) she will
need to return to New York as her job requires
frequent court appearances. However being back in
Buncrana has been great to connect with family and
if she was able to work remotely she ‘’couldn’t
think of a better place to do it’’.
The in-laws also offer some prudent advice for
remote workers. Some tips include ‘’making a
schedule each day and be pretty strict about it’’,
while also ‘’if possible, designate a room as office
space so you can enter it in the morning and leave
it once work is done so you can set some
boundaries.’’ One challenge identified by both was
that they occasionally get distracted by the
stunning views overlooking Lough Swilly. |
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