Working from home guide
Want a way to offer employees flexibility, bolster the business against disruption and reduce the corporate carbon footprint? Allowing employees to work away from the workplace could be the answer.
Flexible working arrangements
Working from home, also called teleworking, flexible working and working remotely, is about moving the work, not the worker. Phones, computers connected to the internet and conferencing, collaboration and document sharing tools can make daily trips to a central office unnecessary. This might involve people working from home, a satellite office or in the field.
Many people work remotely now and then, while for some it is a regular activity. Depending on the nature of your operations and job roles, it could be possible for many employees to undertake some of their work off-site.
Benefits for employers and employees
A flexible working arrangement. can make good business sense as it offers a range of benefits for both employers and employees.
Enabling flexibility with work location could allow employers to:
- Manage disruption – Having staff working remotely can enable business continuity
- Attract and retain talent – Flexibility is an attractive benefit for many employees
- Boost productivity - Remote workers tend to be more productive
- Reduce costs – Reduced demand for office space can reduce operating costs
- Reduce environmental impact – Less staff commuting reduces emissions and can help in meeting sustainability goals.
Flexibility with work location could allow employees to:
- Balance work with family responsibilities
- Reduce the time and cost of commuting
- Get the job done when they are at their peak
- Work while recovering from injury or living with disability.
Flexible working policy framework
Your organisation may already have policy and procedures for staff working remotely. If not, it is worth developing a framework to make the most of remote working. This should provide clarity around why, who and how remote working arrangements can be made with interested employees. The policy might be a single page or a comprehensive document depending on the scale and complexity of the workforce.
When reviewing or developing a policy for working from home/remotely it would be useful to look at what is already happening in your organisation. How many staff work away under a formal or informal arrangement? How do employees and managers feel about remote work provisions? What are similar organisations doing that you could learn from? Be sure to consult with management and employees when developing the policy to ensure it is inclusive and practical.
Setting up for success
Here are some key considerations for making working from home a success for everyone involved:
- Make remote work a normal and voluntary option for employees in appropriate roles. Working away from a central site might not suit every person or position, so an assessment is needed. Self-motivated people who process or analyse data, review or write content, manage projects or engage with people on the phone or online may be able to telework well. In cases of disruption, there may be a need for many staff to work remotely for a time.
- Manage employees based on performance not presence. Having an agreed workplan with clear outputs and ensuring regular communication between managers and employees will assist with remote working.
- Enable connection between team members to foster trust and cohesion and reduce isolation. Book time to chat online or by phone and in-person catch-ups too, where possible. There are conferencing and file sharing tools to support collaboration.
- Set up the workplace and use technology for productivity and security. A quiet workspace at home, an ergonomic desk and chair and the right hardware, software and network access are important. Protocols to safeguard privacy and data security need attention too.
Resources
You may find these external links on principles for and practicalities of working from home useful:
How to work from home (and do it well)
How to make remote working work for you
More information
If you need further information or advice, please contact the Your Move team on 08 6551 6040 or email yourmove@transport.wa.gov.au