Working Remote – The Holy Grail

The Holy Grail….those great days you get to spend at home working while drinking much better coffee and wearing that sweet set of pajamas you bought. As employees we tend to cherish our work from home days but why does it seem like our employers hate them?

Stanford recently published a study finding that over a two year period people working from home had a boost in productivity and additionally took less time off, used fewer sick days, and took shorter breaks. As an added bonus the company saved money on the office space these workers would have been using.

So what gives? Why are companies often so stingy when it comes to work from home policies?

For me I had a former bosses bosses boss (chief legal officer) who dictated the company policy based on, and I quote, “If I was working from home I would just screw around.” Obviously this is an extreme example but I believe it does highlight the primary concern, trust.

If our bosses cannot trust us to be productive at home it does beg the question of is your management style flawed and/or why did you hire me in the first place.

Addressing the first issue of the flawed management style if a manager feels the need to be that micromanaging that they cannot tolerate not being able to look over your shoulder or be that involved in your day to day it does make one question working for that boss.

The second question of why did you hire me in the first place means you placed trust in me getting a job or function done when you hire an employee so judge the outcome not the method.

Future of Working From Home

As we move more and more toward our primary work tools being a phone and a laptop with an internet connection I feel working from home is going to continue to become more and more prevalent and also a great selling point for companies. We as employees enjoy not spending the gas money, dealing with traffic, and saving wear and tear on our cars just to sit in a place and use the same tools. I personally have also evaluated job opportunities based on the work from home options as for me it’s a key indicator of company culture.

As workers we also have a responsibility to be the best remote workers we can to help prove the case. You can learn more in The Digital Nomad Survival Guide. Plus for any companies – You can save some money on office space and time away from work! I call that a win win.

If you are looking for a job that allows work from home days or your exploring new career choices or want access to information about prior, current, or future bosses grade your boss or search for bosses here on Boss Report Card.