Remote employee work performance in the meta COVID-19 era: evidence from Greece Kleanthis Konstantinos Katsaros Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece Abstract Purpose – By drawing on the reciprocity norm and the employee engagement theory, the aim of this study is to investigate the influence of workplace characteristics (e.g. individual, job, group and organizational levels) on remote employee work performance (i.e. task, adaptive and proactive) and to examine the potential role of work engagement. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected through a phased investigation in a branch of a multinational telecommunication company located in Greece. The research was carried out from September 2022 to December 2022. Firstly, 364 exclusively remote employees completed questionnaires examining work- related characteristics (i.e. change self-efficacy, work autonomy and perceived organizational support (POS)) as well as their work engagement. Consequently, their supervisors evaluated their work performance. The research model was tested with the use of structural equation modeling (SEM). Findings – The research findings suggest that change self-efficacy, work autonomy, support from supervisors and organizational support positively influence employee work engagement as well as that work engagement mediates the relationship among change self-efficacy, support from supervisors, organizational support and employee work performance (i.e. task and adaptive). Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed. Practical implications – The results indicate that if organizations manage to influence positively their employees’ work engagement by providing them with the necessary conditions and support (i.e. individual, group and organizational levels), they may increase their work performance in changing and complex times. Originality/value – The research findings provide new insights into how workplace characteristics and work engagement may influence employee performance during turbulent times. The originality of this study lies in the finding that employees’ work engagement mediates the relationship among change self-efficacy, support from supervisors, organizational support and employee work performance (i.e. task and adaptive). Further, the study refers to exclusively remote employees, and it was conducted in the meta coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) era. Keywords Change self-efficacy, POS, Work autonomy, Work engagement, Work performance Paper type Research paper 1. Introduction The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new... – Socrates The impact of the coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has drastically changed almost every aspect of the workplace. They provoked profound changes in work practices (e.g. telecommuting, remote work and virtual teamwork) as well as significant changes for employees (e.g. social distancing, anxiety, depression and stress). At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a speeding up of trends that were already underway regarding the migration of work to online/virtual environments. Previous research has shown that exposure to such events may negatively impact people’s functioning at work (Kniffin et al., 2021; Yang et al., 2023). Most studies regarding performance in remote/virtual working environments were conducted at a time when this type of work was not practiced at such an extraordinary scale as it has been during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, some of the previously accumulated knowledge on remote/virtual work might lack contextual relevance International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/1741-0401.htm Received 21 September 2023 Revised 2 June 2024 Accepted 2 June 2024 International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management © Emerald Publishing Limited 1741-0401 DOI 10.1108/IJPPM-09-2023-0492