RedWigWam recently conducted a poll on LinkedIn, raising the question of whether people were for or against working from home. The post gained a huge amount of interaction and debate, garnering over 150,000 views and hundreds of comments, with 83.4% of people completely for working from home, claiming that the benefits far outweigh the draw backs.
Currently a hot topic, the debate about flexible working is ongoing, with RedWigWam’s poll raising a variety of interesting comments, including the importance of trust, productivity and work-life balance.
Popular comments included:
“If you don’t trust somebody to work from home and be productive, then you hired the wrong person.”
“It’s the 21st century and work is about delivery not presenteeism.”
“Everyone is different and have different needs and demands. If you trust your employees, let them decide what works for them. The tech is there to keep everyone connected. For me personally, a healthy mix of both works best.”
Many believed that just because workers are observed in an office setting, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are more productive – with a number of people suggesting they are often more productive at home without the distractions of colleagues.
“Offering flexible working conditions is now a key way to gain employee’s respect, whilst increasing productivity and happiness at work. If employers give people that trust and they appreciate the ‘perk’ of working from home, they are less likely to take advantage.
“The working from home debate raises the question as to whether there is any need for bosses to be micro-managing employees, when advances in technology allow us to better monitor what’s delivered – making life easier for both parties. One commenter pointed out; ‘If you need to juggle the school run, but you get the job done on time or earlier, what does it matter?’ and I have to agree.”
“Of-course, it’s all about finding the right balance, many people focus better in an office environment and enjoy working around other people. One commenter observed; ‘In most cases where home working is possible it removes a really important factor – one to one colleague collaboration an essential ingredient in breeding ideas, project team cohesion and actually finding work enjoyable.’ My advice to employers would be to offer that flexibility and balance- some workers may thrive from working at home but others may prefer to stick to a more traditional working day. As long as productivity is being monitored in both instances, you’re on track for a happier and healthier workforce.”