Remote Working…I Say Yes

Raise your hand if you would love to wake up and walk 10 feet and arrive at work!

Well this is exactly what I do every morning. My office is located 10ft from my bed. It’s a blessing and a curse. No seriously it is truly a blessing.

I spent over 15 years working away from home. Prior to becoming an entrepreneur, I worked at least 60 hours per week and this time did not include the 164-mile commute that I took twice a week to my other location. I longed for the day when I could work remotely. The wear and tear on my body and my vehicle was significant.

I totally understand that there are jobs where remote working is not feasible. However, there are plenty of office jobs than can be completed remotely. According to Reuter’s 10% of the workforce works from home daily.

Here are the benefits to remote working:

1. Decrease in office interruption.
2. Less time wasted by managers and meetings.
3. Decrease in operations expenses and indirect costs.
4. Flexibility of work hours for staff members.
5. Work Life Balance.
6. Expands the pool of qualified candidates.
7. Creates a more diversified work force.
8. Childcare becomes easier for staff members.
9. Decrease in the amount of “sick” call offs.
10. Increased productivity because of the absence of morning commutes.
11. Demonstrates trust with staff members.
12. Creates a more motivated workforce.

Of course that are downsides to remote working and it would be remiss of me if I did not include them.

Here are the downsides:

1. Distractions within the home’s workspace.
2. It can be difficult to transition back into a physical office.
3. Company culture takes a hit.
4. Decrease in collaboration and communications between teams and staff.
5. Communication with staff that live in different time zones can create challenges.

With that being said, I still believe that there is more value to remote working. My staff works remotely and it works for us.

In larger organizations I suggest making it an option and include it in your benefits package that you offer during the hiring process. In every area and business operation where you can afford to have your staff work remotely, let them.

Here are a few suggested policies to implement to maintain accountability.

1. Have defined flexible work hours for example, between 7am and 7pm.
2. Ensure the staff member has a designated “distraction free,” workspace.
3. If there is a physical location have remote workers come in 2-3 times monthly or as projects dictates.
4. Create company outings and retreats to maintain company culture.
5. Hold weekly virtually staff meetings.
6. Establish staff chat rooms to ask and answer questions with remote staff members.
7. All remote workers must sign an agreement. Any violation of the agreement is grounds for being removed from remote working program up to and including termination. (A little harsh, but their has to be accountability for the small few who may try to abuse the program).

So what’s my point?

Give remote working a shot. If it doesn’t work you can always go back to the “old way.”

This article was syndicated from Business 2 Community: Remote Working…I Say Yes

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• Author Dr. Donna Thomas-Rodgers
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