When people talk about the benefits of working from home, they usually focus on how it helps employees. After all, just getting rid of rush hour traffic and time-waste associated with commuting sounds like a dream come true for the average office worker. But what people rarely talk about is something that might be of interest to your company — namely, that employers can benefit just as much from remote work arrangements as their employees do. 

work from home   

4 Ways Remote Work Helps Your Business

With the number of telecommuting remote workers increasing by 115% in the last decade, companies are discovering the many advantages of having a remote workforce.

The most obvious cost savings that results from having employees work from home is reduced overhead. In fact, one study found that if a company allowed an employee to work from home just half of the time, it would save on average $11,000 per employee.

Here are the other benefits:

  • Real estate needs are significantly reduced when only a handful of vital staffers need to be on site.
  • Remote employees reduce the costs related to computers, phones, electricity, heating and air conditioning and all the other little necessities that keep an office operating.
  • The average U.S. Worker spends almost an hour a day commuting to and from work. That lost time can be spent on work-related projects.
  • Hiring remote employees who work in various strategic locations allow enterprise companies to have a greater presence in that region — employees who know the local language, culture and customs.
  • Employees save up to $4,000 per year working from home half of the year. 

1. Cost savings

There are clear financial benefits that come with employees working from home. According to Global Workplace Analytics, employers can actually save over $11,000 per half-time telecommuter per year, which is a lot of money when you think about all 3.7 million employees who currently work from home at least half the time.

Working from home is also a great option for small business owners who want to forgo on the hassle of renting out an office, buying office supplies, and the overall preventive maintenance that comes with renting a space

2. Larger pool of talent

There are nonmonetary benefits as well. When companies have the freedom to hire outside of the hub of corporate HQ, the talent pool grows and — as we all know —  better and smarter workers means greater productivity and innovative thinking.

3. Better global converge

With employees spread out all over the country or even the globe, you’re able to operate in more time zones, meaning there really are more hours in the day. By hiring Californian employees, a New York company can operate from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. without anyone working overtime. 

4. Higher productivity and employee retention

Allowing your employees to work from home can reduce absenteeism, tardiness and their associated costs. In fact, a majority of professionals like work from home call center agents say they would be more loyal to their employers if they had flexible work options that allow for a better work-life balance. If employees are happier, turnover rates will be lower and new-hire training costs will decrease. Not to mention that with a more motivated workforce, you wind up getting more work for less money.

How to Enable Your WFH Team With Technology

A forecast of employment trends by the World Economic Forum called flexible work, including the opportunity to work from home and be a part of virtual teams, “one of the biggest drivers of transformation” in the modern workplace. So companies that aren’t willing to invest in technologies like video conferencing that allow employees to work efficiently from home are leaving money on the table. By offering your employees the flexibility of working remotely and the best technology to help them succeed, you can easily beat the competition by having a better, more motivated staff and saving a small fortune in overhead.

High-quality video conferencing

Video conferencing helps strengthen remote teams and build team camaraderie by allowing coworkers to communicate face-to-face, similar to in-person interactions. Unlike chat-based communication or audio-only calls, video conferencing makes it easy to read facial expressions, body language and other nonverbal cues that are essential to effective communication. In fact, studies show up to 93% of communication is nonverbal.  

Team messaging tools

Dedicated instant messaging tools like Slack or Microsoft Teams are a great way to keep remote employees connected while keeping data safe and secure. Like most enterprise-grade tools, these apps are designed for ongoing text-based conversations among multiple people and help keep inbox overwhelm to a minimum.

Project management tools

When you switch to a remote work arrangement, you will need an agile management tool designed to help you and your team track who is doing what and the status of ongoing projects. This not only helps you keep tasks on track, but it also provides stakeholders a single destination for monitoring the progress of various initiatives.

Conclusion

By hiring employees who work from home, organizations can easily find a bigger pool of qualified talent from all over the world as well as stay competitive by having a foothold in foreign markets by employing local talent. Cost savings, better productivity, global coverage, and a diverse workforce makes remote work one of the best business models a growing company can implement.