Working from the South: What South Working Is and Its Benefits

South working is the new frontier of smart working in Italy. A revolution in the world of work aimed at breaking down gaps and disparities

South working is the new frontier of smart working in Italy. A revolution in the world of work aimed at breaking down gaps and disparities

Working from the South and having a successful career until recently seemed almost an oxymoron. A remote and unlikely possibility for most young people from the South. Today, however, there seems to be a revolution positively involving the world of work and especially workers originally from the South: we are talking about the so-called south working. To better understand what it is and its advantages we need to take a small step back. In Italy for years there has been talk of brain drain: a phenomenon concerning young people from the South forced to make the difficult choice to leave their territory to pursue the dream of a successful professional future. A sad reality that today seems finally replaced by the concrete possibility of pursuing a high-level career path directly from “home,” that is staying in the South.

But what exactly is south working?

The concept behind this new way of working is to perform remote work for a company from Northern or Central Italy while physically remaining in one's own territory. In fact, south working is a variant of smart working involving all those who belong to Southern Italy. In reality, this new model just gives a name to what, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, was already happening within the world of work: students and workers forced to work or study remotely for an almost indefinite period. Since March, the topic of digitalization and digital transformation has become a top priority for many companies that had to reinvent their internal organization in order to face the emergency without giving up some activities. Many out-of-town workers took the opportunity to return to their region and carry out their work from there, managing to stay close to family and loved ones. It is as if the pandemic generated a reversal in the direction of Italian migrations, now moving from North to South.

The opportunities and advantages of south working

This countertrend has led to new ideas and new projects such as the association South Working - Lavorare dal Sud. A team made up of highly specialized professionals from the South who have the goal of promoting the economic and territorial cohesion of the country in order to reduce the gap between North and South. Thanks to the possibility of working from the South, many young people and their families would no longer have to face sacrifices, especially economic ones, deriving from moving to a region where the cost of living is generally higher. But south working is not only an opportunity for those who want to stay in their place of origin, but it is also an incredible opportunity for companies that, adopting this methodology, would see a reduction in the costs associated with on-site work. Furthermore, the national promotion of this new method would also benefit the State. If the adoption of south working became widespread nationally, it would reduce, at least partially, the problem of unemployment in the South and the development and opportunity gap between northern and southern regions. If we want to look bigger, a globally widespread agile working methodology would mean a reduction in travel and consumption, allowing our planet to breathe a little easier.

A work idea that knows no borders

In short, there seem to be only positive aspects and advantages deriving from a work solution based on south working, and we hope it can soon become the main way of understanding work in Italy. At Beet Community, since our foundation, we have embraced the concept of agile work, work that knows no limits of borders and distances and that starts right from the South. Our coworking and coliving spaces in Palermo have been designed precisely for all those who desire smart work while enjoying all the comforts and beauties offered by our splendid city.