Many employees would like the flexibility of working from home occasionally - the good news is that times are changing and companies are embracing alternative work arrangements. However, before knocking on the manager’s door with a work-from-home request, employees should consider the benefits of such an arrangement, both to themselves and to the company.
If the company has a work from home policy, employees should read it and check for any requirements that may restrict their ability to qualify for such an arrangement.
Benefits to Consider
Most companies recognize the numerous benefits to be gained by implementing flexible work arrangements where possible. Some of these benefits include:
• Higher productivity
• Better employee morale and loyalty
• An increased ability for the company to attract and retain qualified people
• Better use of office space and lower office-related costs
• Greater flexibility in the employee’s ability to perform their work while balancing work and personal needs
• Lower work-related expenses for the employee
• Reduced employee stress which can lead to a decrease in the number of short term disability claims
Challenges to Consider
While the benefits are evident, the reality is that there are also many challenges the management must carefully consider before approving such work arrangements. Some of these challenges include:
• The manager’s ability to remotely supervise the employee
• The costs of setting up an appropriate and confidential work space within the employee’s home
• The specific job requirements
• The employee’s reduced interaction with co-workers
• The employee’s access to required technology and equipment
Once the benefits and challenges of working from home have been identified, employees should also consider whether their particular type of work is suitable for such an arrangement.
Comments
And for people working from home if they can get their boss to agree to it, they can get out here and there and work in coworking spaces like Outside the Cube, Citizen Space, Indy Hall, and more. They are all over the country and create a great way to work alone but not work alone. Plus you never know the door that will open when you sit next to someone in a space. It could be a new company or a new job or... Coworking is all over the world.
Salt Lake's first coworking space just opened in June, Betaloft(betaloftslc.com). Like MFC mentioned it's a great way to be productive and still work remotely. In our space we constantly have designers, programmers, PR specialists, IT guys and more.
Sometimes a change of scenery can go a long way to increase productivity!
And if there isn't a Work from Home Policy, why not start your own business from home?
I used VAnetworking.com to start my VA business and couldn't have done it without them. I purchased their Virtual Business Startup System which guided me through every step of starting up my own business from scratch. However, even if you're not in a position to purchase this valuable resource, their free networking forum is amazing and there are just thousands of VAs willing to share their experiences or offer their advice to aspiring VAs.
I would highly recommend anyone wanting to travel down this path to review their website for all the information they'll ever need on Virtual Assistance.
Good luck
Gillian
www.bushmillsva.com
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