Until Covid-19 struck we were not a big fan of working from home. The pandemic forced us to send our employees home and work virtually. Remote work posed a big moment in thriving our lives and helping us sustain the good work.
The rush of giving our employees the access to the tools they needed to work from home was quite sudden for us. But as everything settled in, we could see how things like employees getting productive and deeply focused, quickly became apparent.
We still can’t figure out if sooner or later we’ll go back to running “business as usual” and require everyone to work onsite. As, currently we are convinced how flexible work is the way to go for a long journey.
As long as we have experienced work from home, loads of advantages are seen. Some of them have equally impacted us and our employees. Let us look through one by one:
1. Minimalizing the commute stress
An average commuting time recorded to reach the office is 28 minutes – that nearly costs an hour for each day spent getting to and from work. All of it adds up to work and life. Apart from this, some extreme commuters face longer commutes of more than an hour each time. More than 30 minutes of one way commute leads to stress and anxiety.
Due to which associated health issues like cholesterol and a risk of depression are suspected to arise. Working from home has allowed us to ditch the commute times to support mental and physical health. The time savings led to increased focus on other priorities like getting enough sleep, workout done and more.
2. Surpassing total work life balance
While adjusting to the new normal, we have impacted positively on our personal lives. As our remote working invited flexible schedules, a sincere work life balance is achieved. With free adoption of work timings, our employees get to choose the start and end of the day as per their comfort; which leads to strong outcomes.
This simple control over work schedule has been found invaluable when it comes to sparing time for the loved ones. With or without pandemic, it becomes easy to balance personal schedules, appointments, quick grocery runs and more while being at home. Each of us is able to spend more time with family and cherish togetherness along with work.
3. Embracing an improved inclusivity
With the hiring that took place in pandemic enabled us to pick candidates from different socioeconomic, geographic, and cultural backgrounds. It involves multi-headed creativity to flow in our culture and work. As more inclusivity is promoted throughout, we are exposed to a collaborative vision towards the growth of our company.
By hiring employees from different cities and states we make them feel more comforted and supported while we also support diversity at our company. This remote work opportunity sets off the worry to commute back and forth to the office wherein they can enjoy the flexibility of working anytime they want.
4. Getting all location independent
Among all the benefits this seems to be a little more considerate, as they have access to a broader range of job opportunities that is not restricted by any location. With no set location, employees are free to become digital nomads while still having a meaningful career. Getting location independent is an added perk in itself.
Employees who have to move frequently due to personal reasons are benefitting with a remote job that can be done from anywhere. It has actually saved them from paying high-rents in the sake of relocation. One can pursue the career they love just by sitting at home and saving all types of commutes.
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5. Saving plenty of money meanwhile
Employees who work from home can save up to fifty thousand bucks monthly. It shall include the fuel refills, vehicle maintenance, parking fees, lunches and dinners out and more of all dwelling rents are saved entirely. These savings can add up and put more money in future investments and for emergency family causes.
Plenty of money is saved on our side as well. We invest the same in employee beneficial programs. The cost of reduction has laid off in continuity of operations for management purposes. This major economic benefit we seek to continue for a long term solution.
6. Posing an impact on sustainability
Remote work comes with a variety of sustainability initiatives, right from economic growth to sustainable and responsible consumption. Studies have shown that employees who work from home contribute less to negative environmental impacts. Most of our respondents are concerned about the decreased emissions, less paper waste and energy consumption.
One of the fastest and simplest ways to contribute towards the reduction of carbon footprint is by working from home. The effect on climate change is by reducing commute travel. The world is already seeing a remarkable response on climate i.e. reduces pollution, congestion and traffic. We are lucky to experience the results first hand by driving the remote work for everyone.
7. Striking positive environmental impact
As we observe employees working from home, greenhouse emissions are reduced half the time than before. A whopping number of vehicle miles travelled are cancelled and as a result tons of greenhouse gases are avoided with increased oil savings. By making environmentally sound choices we opt in conserving nature directly or indirectly.
While the world monitors the change, remote workers form a potential impact that equals planting a forest full of trees. Asides from zero commute, employees tend to act less environmentally conscious at office than they now usually do at home. However, conserving energy saves money, which ultimately motivates people to power down computers at the end of the day.
8. Customizing the home office
Working remotely provides an opportunity to tame the work environment at their own place. The ultimate benefit is the employees get to design a comfortable work space that keeps them hooked and focused throughout. By having their own space one gets to minimize distractions and help the brain know when to turn the working mind on and when to turn it off.
While they may be missing the curated art on the office walls, we let them take a creative break and make something unique out of their space. It is a great time to channel the inner artist to add some fun and freedom at home office. They may also find themselves sporting the headphones to make the work environment comfortable.
9. Living a happier & healthier work life
Remote working makes them feel happier and loyal to our company. As a progress, working from home has been shown to lower stress levels, provide more time to pursue hobbies and interests, and improve personal relationships amidst other parameters. Matter of fact, employee retention levels have also increased since they have started working from home.
Working remotely at home leads to better health in a variety of ways. One gets more time for physical activity, eats healthier and recovers from illness (if any). Plus, one is least exposed to illness and thus the ease of caring for any health issue helps in creating a comfortable workspace.
10. Increasing productivity & performance
Claiming increased productivity at home, some think of professionals getting more work done remotely rather than at the office while some say distractions are a part of working from home. Well, here at Openthrive we think, remote working usually leads to fewer interruptions, less office politics, reduced noise levels and efficient meetings. All of it leads to increased productivity serving a huge benefit of working from home.
Remote work when done right allows our employees to focus on what really matters and eventually performance improves. As we overlook the current situation, we have made up our mind for always giving a remote work option to employees to set the priority right. We prefer working remotely as much as possible in the future.
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Stepping a foot forward
While we see pandemic being a catalyst for remote work, the continuity lies in our symposium. As far as we get a single reason to work from home, the equal benefits are rendered in our work. We tend to ensure team alignment while working remotely. Coping with the pandemic, we have been setting agendas, ensuring key objective fulfillments, organizing virtual meetings, checking in on a personal level and implementing the right metrics and milestones.