Have you ever thought about working from home? Now that most people have computers and the Internet in their private residences, there is less need for them to go into the office every day – they have everything they need right at their disposal. It’s an arrangement that governments have been experimenting with for awhile, and although it’s becoming a little more common in today’s work culture, employers haven’t taken to the idea as enthusiastically as one might expect.
It certainly has personal benefits for employees. Working from home eliminates lengthy commute times and provides a better work-life balance. Employees are able to spend more time with their family. Their working environment is quiter, more comfortable, and, in theory, offers fewer distractions.
It has a number of benefits for employers as well: it can save costs in renting office space and can promote technical innovation, as people are more likely to come up with new ideas that will help them work remotely.
And there is the environmental factor to consider as well. When people work from home, they are not contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. And by relying more on email, it reduces paper waste and the cost of printing.
It’s understandable that employers might be nervous about letting their employees work remotely. After all, they have no way of supervising their employees if they aren’t in the office, and therefore no way to measure productivity. But new research is finding that this line of thinking just isn’t the case – that when done correctly, working remotely can in fact boost productivity.
Employees who work from home don’t have to contend with distractions from co-workers and a loss of productivity due to meetings, and they can choose to work at a time that suits them – even if that means working at 11 pm.
Have you ever worked from home? How did it work out for you? Is it something you think more employers should look at doing? Let us know in the comments.
