It’s predicted that in 2020, 50% of the UK workforce will perform their jobs remotely. There’s clearly a shift from traditional brick-and-mortar jobs to telecommuting.
But because this transition is in its early stages, there may still be some kinks to iron out. Here are 5 pros and cons of telecommuting or working from home.
1. Pro: Better Productivity
In the office, there are plenty of distractions that can keep your employees from working at an optimal pace. When they can set their own hours and determine where they work from, it allows them to set up a workspace that facilitates productivity.
Plus, this eliminates the need for a lengthy commute. Not only do commutes take up time, but they may also be draining on your employees’ morale.
2. Con: Potential Loss of Productivity
While telecommuting generally improves productivity, there’s a potential for it to go down as well. When employees aren’t in the office, some may be tempted to fill their time with non-work related activities, such as shopping online.
If you’re paying your workers by the hour, you may be paying them for time spent on non-work activities. For example, an employee might be doing online courses to get a job somewhere else – at your expense.
Of course, there are many programs out there that can track their online activities and even take random periodic screenshots. But this communicates distrust right off the bat, which may cause your workers to be unhappy with you.
3. Pro: Less Employee Turnover
When you offer the option to work remotely, it makes your employees happier. In fact, they score an 8.1/10 on happiness surveys, while their traditionally employed counterparts score a mere 7.42/10.
If you can make your employees happier, this improves their loyalty and productivity, which can reduce the chance of them seeking employment elsewhere.
Considering the cost of onboarding new employees can be pricey, this can help you save money as well.
4. Con: Less Face Time
One drawback of telecommuting is there’s less face time between both management and employees. This can be an issue if your projects require lots of collaboration that’s better done on-site.
However, a remedy can be video calls and other management tools. While they’re not quite the same as collaborating in person, they’re still great solutions.
5. Pro: More Flexibility
Remote work means your employees don’t have to work a strict 9 to 5 schedule. This leaves them with more flexibility to spend time with their loved ones, run errands, and schedule doctor’s appointments.
Not only that, but this gives you a workforce that’s spread out across all hours of the day, not just the regular business hours. This means you can offer your clients customer service at all hours of the day, which can give you a leg up on your competition.
Consider the Pros and Cons of Telecommuting
Now that you know the pros and cons of telecommuting, you can better help your employees find a work style that’s optimal for their productivity.
But to do so, you need the right technology in place. Otherwise, not only do you risk a loss of productivity, but also disorganisation.
