The Rising Trend of Remote Work
The COVID-19 epidemic has forced more and more workers to work from home. However, do the statistics think it is a good idea? There are significant benefits of working from home. Workers will not have to endure the daily grind, and they would be able to spend more time with their families. If they want, they can wear pajamas, pants, or no pants at all, and no one can stop them.
A study by Gartner suggests that roughly 80% of the companies allow their employees a choice to work remotely, at least on a part-time basis, after the pandemic hit. And around 47% of the companies will go as far as offering full-time work from home option to its employees.
Another survey by PwC suggests 78% of CEOs believe that the remote work culture is here to stay for a long time.
However, the real question, and the hot one in the minds of employers who look after their employees, is simple: does working from home increase productivity? Offshore sponsors say employees can do more in an open environment, enjoying improved flexibility and high satisfaction. Opponents say workers without supervision would waste time due to a lack of discipline.
There are reliable angles in both arguments, but the default ideas have never been as important as the metrics of purpose, as in all other matters. Let us look at some hard evidence that explores this possibility.
Does Productivity Increase When Working from Home?
According to various studies, working has significant benefits and can help the business in several ways. Due to higher employee satisfaction and ease of working, they are able to produce greater results for the company. In addition, the company saves a lot of time and money that it would have wasted in a physical setting.
Here are some statistics that support this claim:
Working at home leads to a 13% increase in employment.
One of the most famous studies about working from home and productivity is the one conducted by Stanford, which monitored 16,000 workers within a few months. One of the most important takeaways is that home-based workers see a 13% increase in performance, including more minutes spent and more work done per minute.
This statistic is probably the most important figure on this list because it is the most extensive study done (so far) on the productivity of working from home, and it produced such eye-opening results. There are some points of criticism to consider in this study, including that it involved only one company in China. Most of these employees were employees of call centers.
People also point out that this work from home productivity growth may be natural – that is, home-based workplaces produce high-quality products themselves – but it may also be the product of people who work hard to showcase their skills. In other words, people may use extra effort to continue enjoying the benefits of working from home.
However, it should not matter whether this is true; Importantly, this study found a significant increase in productivity when people were working from home.
Remote work leads to 50% lower attrition within employees.
The same study found that long-distance work leads to a sharp reduction in work pressure of employees due to higher job satisfaction. When people retire, it is usually because of some degree of dissatisfaction.
However, working from home is considered a great benefit and may increase the overall satisfaction of the workplace. On-the-job staff gain more experience and reduce the need to train new employees, ultimately increasing the overall team productivity. Moreover, employees will also start retiring early since they’ll have reduced stress and won’t feel the same need for retirement as they previously did.
77% of remote workers report high productivity.
In another survey reported by employees, 77% of remote employees reported high productivity and efficiency. This metric is not as accurate as the Stanford study because it does not say how much productivity growth there is. There is also the issue that people tend to highlight the increase in their productivity while working at home.
Still, more than a third of the population says that they feel very productive, which proves some of the evidence we see. So, there is no reason to avoid such a high figure and even though we don’t exactly know how much the productivity precisely increased, it’s enough knowing that it did to some degree.
Remote workers are 52% less likely to take time off work.
The same study shows that remote workers are 52% less likely to take a break from work, probably because work becomes much easier when they can get out of bed and work rather than deal with traffic congestion and infertile office space.
Taking vacations is still a good thing for mental health and total productivity, but a few unnecessary days of illness should positively impact productivity.
Telecommuters make lots of money.
According to a study by Penny Hoarder, Telecommuters make around $100,000 a year, which is $ 4,000 a year more than their non-telecommuting peers. There are a few different ways to interpret this, the most prominent being that people who work at home tend to do a lot during the day, coupled with higher income levels.
It is also possible that people who are likely to press for long-term employment benefits may also be seeking higher incomes and bonuses, which has resulted in higher incomes. In any case, working from home has some obvious financial benefits for those who do.
Remote work has grown by 115% over the past decade.
The same report found that jobs that allow for remote work have increased tenfold above all other workers. Also, there are a few ways to translate this metric.
Employers may be beginning to see how productive employees are when they work from home, and as a result, they can add more remote positions for their employees. It is also possible that many people desire to create their positions to work from home.
86% of people choose to work alone.
To achieve maximum productivity, 86% of employees choose to work for themselves, according to a survey by Ask.com. Working from home does not mean working alone; people can come together and work in small groups. However, most people who work remotely like to work alone, which means they benefit from this increase in productivity.
Working alone means they do not have to deal with unnecessary distractions or distractions from other people, so it makes sense that they see momentum in production.
61% of people say that their colleagues are their biggest distraction.
The same report showed that many people find noisy colleagues to be their biggest distraction at work. Everyone likes to say that they are busy with productive work all the time, but anyone who has ever worked in an office knows that is not the case.
People make too much noise and always mediate through conversations on and off-topic. Employees that work from home can control their environment without distractions if they so desire.
72% of people choose email as a means of communication.
Instead of talking in person, talking on the phone, or texting, 72% of people choose to send an email when communicating. Email has many benefits. It gives them the ability to take their time and write what they want to say clearly. It also gives them a digital paper trail so they can go back and review previous conversations.
It is fast as well and does not require the other person to be available immediately. Emails are becoming a primary source of communication for employees all over the world. With the right email writing tools, anyone can quickly become an email master. What does this have to do with working at home? The email will usually be the primary communication channel when working from home, prioritizing personal conversations and meetings. Therefore, most people work better in this area.
82% of telecommuters report low pressure.
Stress is a significant factor in increasing productivity, with 82% of remote workers reporting low stress levels while working from home. Various reasons can account for this sentiment. These reasons can include the comfort of one’s own home, the ease of joining work daily without the daily commute or just being in their own space.
Whatever the root of the effect, it is powerful, and it is difficult to resist. Employees face minimal stress working from their homes. This stress reduction improves their mental well-being and leads to increased productivity in minimal time.
People who work from time to time are happy.
A study at OWL Labs found that home-based employees have a 24% chance of feeling happy at work at least once a month. As suspected, happy and satisfied employees are very productive (not to mention the reduced chances of leaving).
Also, there are many reasons why someone may not feel very happy working at home, but the fact is that the increase in happiness is consistent across the board.
Turnover is less than 25% in companies with remote positions.
The same report found a 25% lower turnover for positions that allow for remote work. This percentage is most likely contrasts to the different aspects of the job; if people appreciate the opportunity to work from home, they are less likely to give up.
Companies with remote employees employ 33% faster.
If a team is entirely remote, the business is likely to recruit 33% faster than its competitors. This increase in speed affects the team’s overall productivity because it means the business will spend less time filling vacancies and more time on high-level collaboration and production. Consequently, the business would see a significant impact on the bottom-line results in the HR department. However, the increase in productivity will extend to all other departments.
However, forming an utterly remote group is not easy, especially if the group members come from different regions worldwide. In order to be effective, it is essential to establish a culture where everyone feels comfortable and shares specific values.
Employers lost $1.8 trillion a year due to a lack of employee involvement.
It is estimated that employers lost $ 1.8 trillion annually due to low employee involvement. This is due to a combination of factors; Divorced employees are less productive, take unnecessary days off, are more likely to quit, and are more likely to take aggressive action against the company. Remote workers are often very involved in their work, helping you to avoid many of these losses.
Conclusion
Remote work has been slowly becoming a part of the professional world for a long time now, especially when it comes to IT companies. However, with the advent of the coronavirus, things have gotten pretty heated up. Due to restrictions such as lockdown and safety measures, companies are being forced to offer their employees facilities like work-from-home in the last year.
While it certainly isn’t the most preferred scenario for most companies, it’s not all bad out there. Along with some obvious disadvantages like employees cheating the working hours or not putting in the required time, there have been some reports that show an increased level of productivity of employees.
Throughout the article, we have seen some of the top statistics that show how work from culture could be quite productive in comparison to on-site working. Generally, work from home reduces stress and boosts employee happiness, which positively affects productivity.
References
https://emailanalytics.com/15-working-from-home-productivity-statistics/
