Many organizations may dismiss the possibility of offering off-site work options as simply too impractical. The work flow, many would argue, requires a need for on-site accessibility, team consultation, or client contact. While that argument may have been valid 20 years ago, today’s technological advances have made great strides in overcoming those obstacles. So how do organizations go about judging whether or not they are ready to engage in work from home options and can it truly benefit their company?
Foundational Protocol
As with any new procedural endeavor, success is often dependent upon having the right foundations in place before implementation. Take a moment to evaluate where your organization’s strengths and weaknesses are relative to the following three points.
First, an organization must have a clearly established and well functioning communication strategy. A well designed process and procedure system will insure the flow of necessary information through to the appropriate team members. Whether on-site or off-site, effective communication should always be a priority.
Second, team members must have clearly defined accountability metrics. No employee should have to be micro-managed in order to perform their job successfully. By establishing clear performance expectations and timelines, your team members will know what needs to be done and when it needs to be accomplished.
Third, organizations must create and implement a culture of trust and loyalty. If your corporate culture promotes and encourages work performance responsibility and integrity; self-regulation will insure that responsibilities are met.
Organizational Benefits
- Acquire talent outside of geographic limitations. Recruiting top talent can be an expensive and time consuming task. Factor in an organizational location that may require candidate relocation and the cost of finding and hiring the right person has just gone up. Off-site work options both broaden the candidate pool and reduce the need to compensate either in whole or in part for relocation expenses.
- Lower overhead expenses. Organizations have often been faced with budgetary needs to produce more with less. By engaging off-site employees, organizations can reduce the need for designated office space. Rather than spending money for additional office space, furniture, and equipment; companies can invest in areas better suited to directly growing their profitability.
- Increase client access. By strategically employing team members in different locations, organizations can increase client reach without having to create and maintain full satellite offices. Off-site employees allow you to widen the radius of your client base and maintain the personal touch.
- Recruiting and retention advantages. Off-site work opportunities have become a valued benefit for many employees. Whether it is a temporary need or a permanent life change, many employees find off-site work a necessity to accommodate family commitments and better structure work life balance. By working with your employees’ needs you can retain the top talent you worked so hard to find.
- Increase work productivity. Perhaps one of the most challenging notions to overcome in management is the perception that off-site workers will reduce productivity. Ironically, the opposite is true. Employees who do not have to cope with such issues as commute time traffic or co-worker distractions can actually increase their accuracy, efficiency, and productivity.
Operating a lean and efficient organization requires best use of resources and effective communication strategies. By clearly establishing performance expectations and production timelines, you empower your team to self-regulate their schedules and take responsibility for their performance. In an era where multi-generational needs require flexibility, offering off-site work opportunities can create a culture that attracts and retains top talent.
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