Ten years ago, people might have been surprised if you told them you worked from home. Today they're more likely to be surprised if you don't have some kind of flexible working arrangement that means you can.
"For the longest time, remote working was regarded as a pipedream. As its acceptance slowly built, companies started to see some benefit in reduced costs, but it was probably done more to appease employees and retain someone who might have otherwise left. In 2011, remote working has become 'mainstream,'" says Michael D. Haberman, SPHR, VP & director of HR services at Omega HR Solutions.
As remote working becomes more the norm, the number of people who enjoy the ability to work from home occasionally has also increased. This may be on a formal basis in which the employee can work from home a set number of days a week basis, on an ad hoc basis when there's a childcare issue or a practical need to be at home, or on a crisis basis.
As harsh winters and recent hurricanes have shown, getting employees used to working from home can benefit a company should disaster strike. Bergman notes a trend towards teleworking for business continuity reasons in case of a crisis scenario.
"More employers put telework policies in place after 9/11 and various natural disasters," she says. "Today, employers see remote work capabilities as key to keeping their business operating when there are disruptions."
3. It's Maturing
While early remote workers may have invested considerable time and energy into remaining visible whilst working remotely, overdoing it on the always-on/comms front, and ensuring a higher work output to avoid any suggestion of being less prolific, most modern companies have relaxed into accepting remote workers and trusting them to be productive.
The cliche of the remote worker in their pajamas watching daytime TV is no longer upheld by many, perhaps because as more people experience remote working themselves they see the benefits -- no commute, a distraction-free environment, less office politics -- as offering major advantages.
In fact, recent studies have suggested that today's remote workers enjoy the same access to information as office-based colleagues, but do so without the hassle of interruptions people in traditional workplaces have to contend with.
"The commonly held assumptions regarding remote work continue to be challenged by employees’ experiences and by academic research," reveals Kathryn Fonner, assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
"For example, my colleague Michael Roloff of Northwestern University and I recently conducted two studies that challenge commonly held assumptions regarding some of the challenges associated with remote work. In one study, we found that office-based employees exchange information with colleagues more frequently than do teleworkers working at home at least three days a week, but teleworkers and office-based employees reported the same level of access to quality and timely information. These findings challenge the notion that telework limits access to the information network, and indicate that telework may benefit remote workers by shielding them from workplace distractions and information overload."
"In another study, we found that teleworkers’ frequent communication with colleagues using various technologies did not have a significant influence on their feelings of connection with others, but rather, significantly increased their feelings of stress due to being interrupted. In turn, stress from interruptions diminished their sense of belonging and identification with the organization. This challenges assumptions that working remotely hinders teleworkers’ identification with their organization, by showing that teleworkers actually feel less identified with their organization when constant connectivity to the workplace threatens the expected benefits of their remote work arrangement and generates stressful interruptions," Fonner says.
4. It's Learning New Skills
The increase of remote working also means new skill sets for both employers and employees. We asked Angela Baron, an adviser in engagement and organization development for the UK's Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, for her input in this area.
"We have seen a general increase in remote working in the UK. However whilst technology has enabled remote working, it is more the demands of business that is driving it. As a result, remote workers tend to be professional people based at home for part of the time or people whose jobs keep them on the road for long periods which makes it sensible that their base becomes their home or a more accessible drop-in center," Baron says.
"As a result, much of the remote working we see taking place is ad hoc and informal. However there is undoubtedly a growing group of mobile workers who are working in a number of locations -- their homes, customer workplaces, various sites, etc."
"This is requiring a new set of skills around empowering employees to be more self-reliant and self-motivating, developing managers to manage remotely," she says. The managers, in particular, must "develop the communication skills to keep remote workers connected to the team and ensure adequate knowledge exchange and alignment to team and organizational aims and objectives."
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