Remote work enables employees to work from a distance, without having to visit the workplace.
A wide range of studies have discovered that there are attractive financial benefits of remote work. Global Workplace Analytics found that employees that work from home partly, save between $600 and $6,00 per year. In May 2020, Coinbase policy was changed to a “remote-first” structure, which allows 95% of employees the choice to work in the office, work from home, or have a hybrid-remote setup, excluding special cases.
While there are several limitations to remote work, the financial benefit for employees, employers, and society at large is the reason why a lot of people are no longer interested in returning to the workplace.
1. Reduced personal and operational cost
Taking advantage of modern technologies to work from home means traveling long distances to work is fast becoming a thing of the past. People save travel costs, avoid the stress of traffic, and reduce their carbon footprint when they work remotely.
Public transport users in Lagos spend an average of N359.27 daily (1,796.35 per week) according to a survey carried out by Danne Institute. Lagosians can attest to the toll that traffic takes on their physical, emotional, and mental health daily. The inexplicable fatigue also leads to aggravated stress and frustration.
The salvation for many people was working from home. The financial benefits of remote work help reduce the costs of maintenance and repairs of their cars, lunches, taxes, and even buying work clothes.
“In this new era of work, space is wasted if it does not allow hybrid collaboration” – Owls Lab
It’s remarkable that remote workers can work from anywhere worldwide, so business owners no longer have to bear the cost of real estate or furnishing office spaces.
Companies benefit financially when they work from smaller office spaces; save rent, electricity, heating, healthcare, maintenance, transport, and air conditioning.
Several companies that allow remote work has reported financial major economic benefits. At least three times a month were likely to have 10% revenue growth – Harvard Business Review.
2. Increased productivity and profits
Remote work was often believed to cause employees to slack from their responsibilities and work. But current data shows a different story. Apparently, remote workers work longer hours and have been reported to be more productive than their office counterparts.
Scheduling appointments, running errands, and still putting in a full day’s work is the superpower that some remote workers possess.
Why?
When people work remotely, they are more flexible with their time and space. A lot of people are appreciative of this freedom and take advantage of it to create a work-life balance which improves their well-being. In matters concerning flexible work arrangements and productivity, Beth Keyser suggests that managers who lead by example can build trust.
If we consider it, then we can see that not everyone is suited for office work. While some people may enjoy office banter and thrive in such an environment, many others have to deal with a host of issues like social anxiety, inferiority complex, low self-esteem, and so on.
3. Lowered employee turnover rate
People can choose to telework from a cafe, in the bedroom or sitting on a couch. Remote work can be seamless all thanks to video calls and management software, which has reduced the issue of workers’ absenteeism, attrition and turnover. A study showed that over 70% of managers proved flexible schedules were the most effective non-financial means of retaining employees. Many employees that work remotely or hybrid, felt more trusted and cared for, and were less likely to leave their employer.
When employees do not perform as they should due to one reason or the other, it can take a noticeable toll on the business financially. Such cases arise when employees feel disconnected from work, are stressed, and have unmet expectations. It is costly to hire and onboard new employees, and also high risk.
Employers benefit financially when they no longer have to find new hires every other day.
Employers are beginning to understand the logic of employees integrating work life and personal life with remote work and the correlation with making profits. Also, helping their employees find satisfaction in their jobs goes a long way to secure commitment, collaboration, open communication, and loyalty.
When for instance, a person needs to take care of a family emergency in another state. They can balance it with their work responsibility if they work remotely, instead of waiting for a day when they can take leave from work.
4. Expanded talent pool
In the past, people desired to work and remain in certain organizations for several reasons: the founder, the work culture, career prospects, financial constraints, getting needed skills or having no other options. Now, many people are staying at their jobs because they can work remotely, while others are leaving jobs that do not allow work flexibility.
From Africa to Antarctica, employers are able to find the best talents to join their teams remotely and even retain them. Chioma in Lagos can be the team leader for a tech company in Singapore and members of her team can reside in South Africa, Germany, Canada and Solomon Island. This expansion of the talent pool has allowed people all over the world to find organizations that benefit them.
Working from home (WFH) has allowed the export of valuable talent and skills across borders.
Companies get financial benefits from remote work when they factor the cost of living in those regions into salary arrangements, as well as employee benefits. The most important thing is that managers should be able to adopt policies that allow for seamless integration of remote workers of different races without discrimination.
Not only will they be saving the money they would spend on new hires, but they will also be diminishing the cost of losing valuable members of their organization.
Why do some companies have misconceptions about remote work?
Here are some of the reasons giving by Slab for why companies are not willing to take a chance on remote work.
- Leaders feel like the absence of people in the office will upset the power dynamics. The baby boomers fall into this group. They spent most of their lives under the looming shadows of their superiors.
- They believe it will cause a decline in productivity. Overall data has refuted this claim as was noted earlier.
- Lack of creativity. It’s a matter of changing perceptions to see what can be done remotely and what cannot be done,
The financial benefits of remote work will greatly improve the lives of everybody. The time has come to set aside the traditional ways of viewing remote work as an exodus of productive work. A new era of flexible work can be embraced alongside all its many benefits so that workers everywhere can thrive.
