Around 4 in 10 people in the EU started working from home as a result of lockdown. As we start to slowly creep back to a new normal, it’s inevitable that businesses will start to look at their structures, their staff and how they operate.
Various studies and surveys suggest that broadly speaking the majority of people do prefer working from home and certainly, there appears to be no mad rush to get people back into the office if they can work from home. I have spoken to clients and friends in various office based sectors who say that things are likely to change for good.
“I used to spend at least half of my week travelling around the country to go to meetings,” one senior BBC manager told me. “We’ve discovered that’s just not necessary and there is no appetite to get back on the road.”
An NHS manager said: “We’ve been toying with the idea of remote consultations for years – we’ve done it now. We can’t go back to the way things were as this is so much more time and cost effective for the NHS.”
Well, all I can say is – welcome to our world! Here at Manchester based public relations company Republic Relations we have been well ahead of the curve and have been totally switched on about the benefits of home working for years.
Cost
When we established the business nine years ago we came from various Manchester city centre offices and understood that high rents are essentially paid by client fees. In order to be more cost effective and affordable, we ditched the swanky offices in favour of home working.
Envrionmentally friendly
We all know how travel pollutes the environment. Do you really need to travel between 30 – 90 minutes a day, simply to sit at a computer – when your computer is just as effective at home? No.
Home/work balance
Working from home gives a much better home/work life balance if properly managed. We can operate flexible working hours that suit our individual lifestyles and our clients. If we have to write something on a Friday night at 10 pm we do – and we can also work 9 – 5 if we want to. Providing all work is completed on time and to a high standard – we don’t care where where it's done.
Welcome to our world everyone!