3 things to keep in mind when considering remote work policies

These days, technology has made working from home a viable and attractive option for both employers and employees. Some companies are eager to make this change, considering the modern philosophy of presence equaling productivity to be misguided at best. Most, however, are reluctant to make this change, concerned that allowing employees to work from home will lower productivity and foster an overly lenient work environment. However, according to Forbes, the evidence is clear; allowing your employees to work from home can benefit a small or large business in many ways. While it's not necessarily perfect for every company, remote work policies should never be off the table; instead, three aspects, in particular, should be weighed before deciding whether telecommuting is a good fit for a business.

Type of work
The first thing to consider when pondering the possibility of remote work is what type of work is being done at the company. As Small Business Trends explains, client-facing roles are challenging to adapt to a remote work style, due to the need for employees to meet in-person with clients and customers. This goes double for roles that have no set level of interaction with clients; for instance, an administrative assistant will need to be present during work hours to assist any and all guests who arrive, whether they are expected that day or not. The inherent unpredictability and personal nature of client-facing roles means that they are a poor fit for remote work. This also means that jobs that rely strongly on collaboration can suffer when the in-person nature of the work is removed. On the other hand, roles that involve solo work, such as a writer, programmer or data analyst, fit remote work very well, especially if the work can all be done on a personal computer.

Of course, choosing to implement remote work is not an all-or-nothing decision. As Sara Sutton, founder and CEO of FlexJobs wrote in a guest piece for Entrepreneur, there are many ways to adapt the practice to roles that might not fit it. Implementing a system where certain customer-facing roles can work from home during slow parts of the day is always a possibility, as is allowing account managers to coordinate with willing clients over the phone or a video chat instead of in-person meetings. In addition, having employees use a corporate chat application like Slack can allow teams to collaborate from the comfort of their own homes.

Remote work can increase both productivity and personal happiness.

Technology
An oft-overlooked aspect of remote work is the technological resources available to the company and employees. Do the right employees have access to home computers and printers? Are they employed in an industry that requires strong computer literacy; if not, are they still generally comfortable with technology? Does the company have the right tools and applications to make coordinating remote work a breeze? These are all questions that should be asked before implementing a remote-work policy.

According to Shama Hyder, founder and CEO of Zen Media, in a piece for Inc., staying connected through chat and project management software can go a long way to keeping remote workers organized, on-track, and happy. Communication and recognition does not become an obsolete need when telecommuting; in fact, it becomes even more important. Yet, if the average employee only has enough technological knowledge to get them through a typical day at the office, transitioning to a remote work style may be challenging. Telecommuting is made possible by the internet and associated technologies, so a passing proficiency in both hardware and software is recommended for anyone working remotely.

Level of oversight
For small businesses especially, oversight is often a chief concern when considering remote work practices. While working from home can lead to an increase in productivity due in part to reduced supervision, this commonly cited benefit does not imply that the practice can be viable with minimal oversight. Companies that have shallow hierarchies and fewer managers with which to supervise telecommuting employees will suffer from the implementation of these practices; poor utilization of the aforementioned technological tools can also make the control of remote workers challenging. A lack of a pre-existing "in-person" relationship between employee and employer is likely to exacerbate these issues. By contrast. LinkedIn states that companies with appropriately-trained management who can coordinate and direct employees without interfering with their own duties are sure to prosper with remote work.st,  Business owners should consider whether they have the manpower and the skills to handle a remote workforce without being overly detached from process.

Remote work may not be the panacea to all of a company's problems, but it is an important idea to consider. Small-business owners know their companies best, and if telecommuting seems to fit on paper, trial programs can go a long way in determining whether they work in practice. Not every business or role is suited to it; these three aspects should all be weighed when considering the change.

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