Is Working from Home the Future of Work?

Remote working or working from home – the meaning has changed since the latest global pandemic hit us all last year. It has been observed that almost half of the U.S. workforce is working remotely now.

A study has estimated that by the year 2025, almost 70 percent of the workforce would be working remotely at least five days a month. So the big question that we are going to explore today is, ‘is working from home the future of work’?

The coronavirus pandemic has made one thing very clear and that is the significance of the internet in our lives. Be it entertainment, work, studies, recreation, consultation, or literally any other thing, it can be done via the internet and that is the mere reason that we can imagine working from home through and through.

The one thing you must understand before being high-spirited on working from home is the availability of an ultra-fast internet connection. Those who feel distant from this particular information should click here to explore the best and most affordable internet packages and deals and should get behind the idea of great internet right this second.

What’s the idea behind Working from Home?

Working from home, also known as remote working, teleworking, or flexible working has been in practice for the last fifty years however it has gained a large amount of popularity in the last ten to twelve months.

The idea is as simple as it sounds, allowing employees to work from home and having a system to communicate within the company without having to come to the office.

Is Working from Home a Feasible option?

In this section of the article, we would be discussing if remote working or working from home is even a viable option.

Increase in Productivity

The fact that employers were concerned about the probable dip of efficiency in the work-from-home model proved to be nothing more than a miscalculation.

A study conducted by Stanford suggests that the productivity levels have increased by 13 percent during the work from home routine. The credit of this increased productivity is being sanctioned to the comfort and ease given to employees.

Lesser equipment costs

A lot of work types require employers to supply extensive equipment to the employees, however, it has been observed that in the working from home routine, employees pay for their equipment themselves. The overall business expenses are decreased a lot when such costs are deducted.

A Bigger and Better Talent Pool

When hiring remotely, employers have the option to choose people from around the world which increases the talent pool to another level. This also means that the employers have the potential choice to choose the best talent.

Less Absenteeism

The fact that employees do not have to worry about commuting allows them to focus on their work a lot better. Multiple studies show that long commutes make the employees obese and increase exhaustion, blood pressure, and anxiety amongst them.

Retaining Employees

The retention rates boom when it comes to remote workers. The reason is that you would not lose employees even if they relocate.

Employees are likely to work from home even when they are sick or during pregnancy. Flexibility is the key to employee gratification and thus employee retention becomes a bit too easy.

Lower Salary Levels

With remote working, employers would not have to pay extra allowances for transport, petrol, or food and so the salaries would be lowered. This does not take a toll on the mood of employees as well because this variation is easy on them too.

Lesser Operational Costs

When employees would be working from home, the need for office space reduces from little to zero. The rent, electricity, and water bills or other expenses reduce a lot, benefitting the employers and ultimately the employees.

Employee Gratification

Employees who work from home show more gratification than the ones working in the office. This is because of the flexibility and mental peace, remote working provides.

Employee gratification further translates into better productivity levels, if not, these tools can boost your productivity to a new high. Hence, thereby, increasing the levels of revenue generation.

Viability of Working from Home

Now that we have established that working from home is a lot better than working from home, it is essential to understand if this working model can actually work and if it is really the future of the workforce!

Giant companies like Twitter have announced work from home opportunities for employees in the future as well. We have also found that many companies have started hiring ‘Head of Remote Work’ which gives us the notion that organizations have accepted the new work regime at large.

The technological aspects for remote working have also been shaped in a better way since always, and now we can see how tech can change the landscape of our future workforce. To cite a reference, I remember how

I had to attend many physical meetings with no information that an email could not supply, however, the approach towards remote working has overhauled it, and now we have understood that even high-level communication can take place via the medium of Zoom or Skype.

Fast Company has predicted that remote working will prevail highly in the future, even after the virus dies down. This would lead to an increased amount of remote workload, which would also resultantly increase the projected usage of work software and mobile tools.

It has also been suggested by Global Workplace Analytics that almost 37 percent of the employees working remotely now, would accept a 10 percent pay cut in order to keep on working remotely.

Last Thought

Change is inevitable and is the only true reality of this life. Working from home has proved to be better in almost all aspects and therefore, companies should look into accepting this changed way of working rather than challenging it.

While concluding the article, it is also imminent to note that many employees have complained about increased levels of mental stress as well which is due to the increased pressure on them.

If companies do not understand that the core idea behind remote working is trusting employees and looking after productivity rather than checking up on their work hours, things might take a terrible turn!