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how do companies benefit from employees working from home

by Dudley Murazik Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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  • Employees at Home: Cash Savings. One of the benefits for companies of working from home is money. ...
  • Building Your Team. NPR says Facebook expects to shift 50 percent of its employees to permanent remote work over the coming decade.
  • Work From Home Makes Time Flexible. If everyone was at their peak of alertness and energy from 9 to 5, that would make workdays much more productive.
  • Healthy, Happy Employees. Remote working is also good for employers because it makes employees happier. Commuting doesn't just use up time and gas money, it's outright stressful for many people.

Does working from home increase employee productivity?

“When you think about what happened during the pandemic, employees are struggling with extra stress and their productivity,” says Christina ... or short videos that cover everything? How does upskilling employees benefit employers in the long-run?

What are the advantages and disadvantages of working from home?

There are some pros, too. From saving on travelling time to being able to eat whatever we want at any point in time, there’s a lot to rejoice about working from home. Here are 3 advantages of working from home that we can’t ignore. Following a healthy ...

Does your company offer work from home benefits?

Working from home can make it easier for employees to create a better work-life balance. This is beneficial for employers because a good work-life balance among staff can lead to less burnout and more productivity. Since remote work tends to be more flexible, employees can better manage their personal time.

Can an employer force you to work from home?

While some people do not like to work from home and are keen to get back to their workplace, others may be anxious about an in-person return – either because of Covid or other reasons such as poor mental health. Whether an employer can demand that you return to the workplace does not necessarily have a definitive answer.

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How does an employer benefit from employees working from home?

Working from home can be positive for both enterprise employers and employees. Increased productivity, improved work-life balance, and reduced costs are just some of the ways remote work flexibility can be mutually beneficial. Hopefully, you now have some ideas for how to hire remote employees the right way.

How do companies benefit from remote workers?

The benefits include: Improved employee retention. Keep employees happy and productive and they're more likely to stay on. In fact, they're more likely to develop an appreciation and affinity for their job, and lend positivity to the company culture.

Do companies save money when employees work from home?

Yes, you may be spending more on cloud, but you're saving money elsewhere. Before the pandemic, employers saved an average of $11,000 per half-time remote employee. Extrapolate that to a full year and every remote worker is reducing company costs by $22,000. Employees will save additional money, too.

Who benefits from working from home?

Working from home can greatly increase work-life balance. In a 2019 study, 81% of respondents said the ability to work remotely would allow them to manage work-life conflict better. Remote work has been shown to increase sleep, reduce stress, and allow more time for healthy habits like exercise.

Why are companies against working from home?

Managers reported “negative perceptions” of the work-from-home trend. The managers were brutally honest. Nearly 70% replied that remote workers are “more easily replaceable than onsite workers.” About 67% of supervisors said they spend more time supervising remote workers than onsite workers.

What are some pros and cons of working from home?

Pros and Cons of Working from HomePro: Remote workers feel less stressed and more focused.Con: Working from home can be lonely.Pro: No daily commute.Con: Communication and collaboration can be a challenge.Pro: Remote workers have flexibility in their schedules.More items...

What are the pros and cons of work from home?

Pros And Cons Of Working From HomeWorking From Home ProsWorking From Home Cons1. More work flexibility1. Costly equipment2. Improved focus2. Risk of lower productivity3. Better attendance and punctuality3. Plenty of distractions4. Social isolation4. Provide technology support to remote employees2 more rows•May 23, 2021

Does working from home have more advantages or more disadvantages?

Working from home is a lot more comfortable for lots of people. Employees can save a great deal of time and money since they do not have to travel so often, which means people will have more time for work and for themselves, too. Less travelling will also help reduce traffice jam and pollutants to our environment.

Why should independent workers choose their locations?

Letting independent workers choose their locations can boost companies, employees, and even the economy , according to research by Prithwiraj Choudhury and colleagues.

How much did productivity increase when working remotely?

Productivity increased 4.4 percent when employees moved from working at home on a limited basis to the location of their choice. Based on a patent's average value, this productivity gain could add $1.3 billion of value to the US economy each year, the researchers estimate.

How did Choudhury study the productivity effects of work from anywhere policies?

To study the productivity effects of work-from-anywhere policies, Choudhury looked for a setting that would allow the researchers to isolate productivity changes among workers with similar job functions under different remote-work conditions. The USPTO provided the perfect opportunity.

How did the examiners benefit financially?

Many of the examiners also benefited financially by bringing their Greater Washington, DC, salaries to less costly regions, effectively increasing their real incomes. Early- and mid-career workers tended to choose locations based on future career considerations, while workers with longer tenures flocked to “retirement-friendly” destinations, such as Florida.

Why is Yahoo not allowing remote workers?

Companies have cited the need for office “face time” and the benefits of spontaneous interaction among reasons to avoid remote work, even for highly skilled, autonomous employees. To Choudhury, a deeper factor might underlie their reluctance.

Can work from anywhere policies increase costs?

However, work-from-anywhere policies could increase costs in work environments that require brainstorming and project-based interaction, says Choudhury, adding that more research is needed to fully understand the implications of remote work in more collaborative settings.

Is work from anywhere for everyone?

Work from anywhere isn’t for everyone. To put their findings in perspective and offer a framework for future research, the researchers emphasized the nature of a patent examiner’s work, which requires little coordination with co-workers on a daily basis.

Why do employers work from home?

When employees work from home, employers save on office space and the expenses that go with it. Employers can forget about location and recruit employees from all across the country.

What would happen if employees chose to stay home?

If employees chose to stay home, Merrill said, employers might just reclassify them as independent contractors, stop paying benefits and thereby save even more money. The ​ Washington Post ​ pointed out that doing that without changing their jobs might violate labor laws.

Why is remote working good?

Remote working is also good for employers because it makes employees happier. Commuting doesn't just use up time and gas money, it's outright stressful for many people. Less stress makes employees happier and healthier. The better they feel, the more likely they are to enjoy their jobs and feel loyalty to the company.

How to build team spirit in remote work?

Contrary to Merrill, Wrike says you can build team spirit even in a remote-working environment. Simple steps include making sure newbies can log on to all work media as soon as they start work; introducing them to their coworkers virtually; and chatting with them by Zoom, phone, Slack channels and other means. Scheduling occasional social events or budgeting for employees to use coworking spaces can help overcome a sense of isolation.

What are the benefits of WFH?

One of the WFH benefits for companies is that employees have freedom to structure the work to better suit their rhythms. As they aren't required to sit at their desk 9 to 5, they can work 8-12 and then 3-7 if that suits them better. Night owls can start work at 9 p.m.

Why is Facebook moving away from remote work?

Facebook said one reason for the move is that it broadens their recruitment pool. Employees who don't live near a Facebook office can sign on; employees who have to move away can stay on staff.

Is commuting stressful?

Commuting doesn't just use up time and gas money, it's outright stressful for many people. Less stress makes employees happier and healthier. The better they feel, the more likely they are to enjoy their jobs and feel loyalty to the company.

What are the benefits of working from home?

One of the benefits of staff working from home for employers is the cost savings. Even if you still rent an office, employees can hot desk, which saves on space. Depending on whether the organization is completely virtual or not, employers can also save on:

What are the benefits of remote working?

Remote working has all kinds of benefits including staff motivation, increased productivity, and employee retention. And remote working doesn’t just apply to staff that work from home (telecommuting). It includes freelancers, contract workers, frontline workers, international workers, etc. In addition, a remote company can still have ...

Why is remote working important?

So another of the benefits of remote working for employers is that employees will use their time more productively if they work from hom e. As well as less time spent traveling, working from home reduces office gossip time, lateness, and time wasted in the coffee shop.

Why do people hire remote workers?

Another one of the benefits of hiring remote workers is that there are no relocation costs for the company , which can run into thousands of dollars. And today’s millennials almost expect to have the choice of working remotely as they’ve grown up with technology that allows this.

Why do remote workers work?

Remote workers appreciate their freedom. They can plan their day to suit both their work and home life, as long as they do the set hours at the right time. Having the flexibility to attend medical appointments, watch the kids’ basketball game, or take elderly parents shopping can lighten the load. And not having to ask special permission or fit in with other team members takes the pressure off too. When an employer allows employees this kind of freedom it builds trust and gives more job satisfaction.

Why is it important to work remotely?

Another one of the benefits of working remotely for employees is that they can work from anywhere. People don’t have to be bound to a city that doesn’t correspond to their standards or preference , which also helps avoid unnecessary travelling.

What does loyalty mean in business?

Loyalty also means employee retention, as staff won’t look for another job if they’re happy where they are. This is a cost saving for the company as it avoids new hires and it also retains skills.

Why is working from home good?

Improved work-life balance. One of the primary benefits of working from home is the freedom to do the things that make you happy. Whether that means being able to spend more time with the ones you love, attending a yoga class or taking your dog on a walk, you can create a work schedule that fits your life and priorities instead ...

Why do people work from home?

In addition to a healthier diet, working from home allows you to take a break to exercise or stretch, activities that are less acceptable in a traditional office setting. In fact, some remote workers leave the house to go on a run or attend an exercise class in the middle of the day. Overall, working from home allows you ...

What is it called when you work from home?

Working from home, often called telecommuting or working remotely , refers to when an individual can complete their job out of the office and in an environment of their choosing. Through the development of technology, this option is becoming available to many professionals in a variety of companies and industries.

Why is it important to create an environment that works for you?

Because you can choose or create an environment that works for you, your focus and productivity will improve. Without the distractions of daily office life, you will be able to accomplish more in less time.

Why is working from home better than working from home?

More time spent actually working. Though working from home comes with its own set of distractions and challenges, it usually improves productivity and performance because there is more time spent working instead of: Commuting. Talking to co-workers. Being distracted by a nearby colleague talking loudly.

Why is it important to work near your colleagues?

Without having to work near your colleagues, it eliminates some of the elements that lead to a hostile or negative work environment. This is because there is usually less gossip and office politics among remote workers.

What does it mean to work remotely?

Working remotely usually means that you can also work from anywhere. Whether it's the coffee shop down the street or one on the other side of the globe, you will still have access to your work. This flexibility will allow you to travel or even move without affecting your employment.

Why is working from home not common?

One of the main reasons why working from home is not as common as it should be is the fact that a lot of employers believe that allowing their employees to work from home would end up making them less productive.

Why does Wendy work from home?

This is because Wendy was able to convince her boss to allow her to work from home. After all, most of her work can be done remotely. She only needs to go to the office about once a week. Like Wendy, working from home is quickly becoming a reality for a growing number of people in the world.

What does it mean to work in the office?

Like Wendy, working in the office means having to deal with a long and stressful commute to and from work each and every day, something that almost every employee hates.

How does eliminating the commute help your business?

First, eliminating the daily commute helps your employees save time. According to an article published on the Washington Post, the average American worker spent about 9 days commuting in 2019. If they didn’t have to commute, this is time they would have spent working on something that actually matters to your business.

What are the costs associated with hiring a new employee?

This is because of the costs associated with hiring a new employee (fees paid to external recruiters, advertising costs for the vacancy, interview and post-interview costs, signing bonuses and relocation expenses), training them, and the opportunity cost of lost productivity while the position remains vacant.

Why is employee turnover a problem?

Employee turnover is a huge problem for businesses, especially small businesses that do not have the financial muscle to compete with larger companies when it comes to offering better salaries and better employee benefits and perks.

How much does it cost to replace an employee?

According to the Society for Human Resource Management, the cost of replacing an employee is, on average, equal to the employee’s salary for about six to nine months. This means that if you have an employee making $60,000 a year, it will cost you between $30,000 and $45,000 to replace them when they quit.

What are the benefits of working from home?

So employers, make a detailed list of your requirements depending upon the needs and make your employees highly productive.

Why is working from home important?

Apart from that, work from home also helps a person to be happy and healthy, which play a vital role in increasing employee productivity and reducing absenteeism from work. Therefore, it transforms a person into a motivated, confident, and responsible employee with high moral values.

Why do employers moralize to the conversion?

Employers possibly moralize to the conversion here because it is costly to lease the office space. For example, if you rent office space using a part of your capital budget you can take some of the costs back but it is still likely to be one of the largest fixed costs the company would have.

How does remote work help the environment?

Conducting online meetings and promoting online contact helps to protect the environment by reducing pollution from vehicles. It also helps in making you healthy, and benefits the community and allows you to role your business as a good steward of the organization.

Why is flexibility important in work?

Higher confidence or morale also has a positive effect on work quality and efficiency , which helps in terms of earnings and providing bottom-line benefits for the company.

Do you get a pay cut off if you work from home?

It doesn’t mean that the employees will be happy if they get a pay cut off in return to get work from home. Though, based on the various surveys it’s proved that people prefer taking flexible shifts than a pay rise. It means instead of expecting salary appraisal, employees prefer working remotely.

Can I work from home 5 days a week?

Accepting work from home doesn’t mean shutting down the shop and working remotely 5 days a week. Employers should split the time between the workplace and home. You can also use various employee productivity monitoring software available in the market that helps you to check the employee productivity in the office and at home. One of the best productivity tracking software which I feel quite accurate is EmpMonitor.

How much does working remotely save an employer?

Experience has shown that working remotely stands to benefit employers and employees in a number of ways: Each remote worker saves their employer an average of $10,000 a year on workspace and related expenses. Employers can tap into talent anywhere around the world since their workforce isn’t location-dependent.

When was work done at home?

From the beginning of human history until the late 19th century, most work was done at home — or at least within walking distance from home. Of course, that was before the age of electronic communications, but the tradition of home-based work is well-established.

How many people work remotely in 2018?

According to FlexJobs , a service connecting telecommuters with employers, more than 4.7 million Americans either worked remotely or telecommuted at least half-time by 2018, which is more than twice the number who had done so just ten years earlier. However, that now appears to have been just the start.

What does "off to work" mean?

Off to work? For a growing number of employees, that means rolling out of bed, sauntering over to a kitchen table, and firing up the laptop. Forget about the commute, forget about business attire, forget about office chitchat. This is the emerging face of work in the 21st century.

How does remote work make an organization more inclusive?

Remote work can make an organization’s personnel more inclusive by enabling people with certain disabilities or chronic illness to participate.

Is home based workforce a global workforce?

At the same time, however, the building blocks of a global, home-based workforce are already in place: a combination of the growing number of jobs connected to computer networks, the near universal ownership of cell phones and ubiquitous availability of personal computers, all linked together by technologies providing connectivity service.

Is a full time employee considered part of the gig economy?

Regular, full-time employees working from home or on the road are only part of the story. In an economy where on-demand or contingent workers — freelancers, contractors, consultants, the self-employed, and anyone else whose work is considered part of the gig economy — form the fastest-growing share of the workforce, ...

Why do people work from home?

Here are some of the best reasons I’ve found for letting your employees work from home at least once a week: 1. They’ll waste less time commuting. Cutting out a commute can be both a huge morale booster and a huge time saver. Employees will also waste less money on gas or public transportation.

What does it mean to work from home?

5. You won’t have to pay for office space. Working from home means either no office or at the very least, a lot less office space. If you don’t want to make the switch to a completely remote environment, try staggering your employees’ work-from-home days to save on office space. Automattic dedicates the money saved on office space ...

What tools do you need to manage remote teams?

Tools like Basecamp and Asana make managing your remote team extremely easy. You’ll be just as up-to-date on your employees’ activities as you would be if they were in an office.

Is it better to work from home or work from home?

Everyone seems to be talking about work-life balance these days, and there’s no better way to improve the work-life balance of your employees than to let them work from home.

Is working from home bad?

Colds and food poisoning make going into the office miserable, but working from home? Not so bad. Employees who are mildly sick can still get work done most of the time if it means not having to go into the office. Another bonus? No sharing illnesses.

Can I work from home every day?

You can be connected to the office every minute of every day if you want to, thanks to the Internet. The concept of working from home might have seemed outlandish 20 years ago, but this is the 21st century. You can find access to wifi almost anywhere, and tools like GoToMeeting and Skype make remote communication a breeze.

How productive are teleworkers?

Productivity — Teleworkers are an average of 35-40% more productive than their office counterparts, and have measured an output increase of at least 4.4%. Performance — With stronger autonomy via location independence, workers produce results with 40% fewer quality defects.

Is remote work a good idea?

Well, yes. The topic of remote work is producing a lot of attention — and research. There are many reports that tout the benefits of remote work from organizations like OwlLabs and Buffer, but privately-sourced data is in danger of biased results.

Is remote work going anywhere?

Based on this statistical analysis, remote work is not going anywhere any time soon. Even further, companies would be wise to prioritize the “remote work revolution” as a strategy to enhance their top objectives in this new decade.

Is remote work beneficial?

In other words, if there is value in telecommuting for organizations, there is value for the world . But whether or not remote work is truly beneficial for organizations ...

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Isolating The Benefits of Remote Work

Work from Anywhere Isn’T For Everyone

  • To put their findings in perspective and offer a framework for future research, the researchers emphasized the nature of a patent examiner’s work, which requires little coordination with co-workers on a daily basis. Examiners perform their work independently, adhering to the same best practices of patent searches—a style of work that prior research...
See more on hbswk.hbs.edu

Looking Ahead

  • As some companies move to adopt broader telecommute policies, others such as Yahoo! have publicly retreated from allowing workers to perform their jobs away from headquarters. Companies have cited the need for office “face time” and the benefits of spontaneous interaction among reasons to avoid remote work, even for highly skilled, autonomous employees. To Choud…
See more on hbswk.hbs.edu

About The Author

  • Kristen Senz is a writer and social media creator for Harvard Business School Working Knowledge. Ailyn Pestana, junior designer and photo coordinator at Harvard Business School, created the charts above. [Image: NoSystem Images]
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