Telecommuting & Employee Morale

Employers are always looking for easy, cost effective ways to improve employee satisfaction. Many cost money – such as improving salaries, dedicating time to training, and so on. One way that may not be nearly as costly and may have a profound impact on employee satisfaction is telecommuting – allowing employees to work away from the office in order to do their work.

Recent studies have shown that telecommuting does increase satisfaction. There are many reasons that this may have a positive benefit: Control – Employees that are able to work at home (or at least away from the office) are going to find that they enjoy more control over their workplace, and as a result will feel that they are more independent and less controlled by the company. Freedom – Certainly there is also a freedom associated with telecommuting, because it allows people to work without worrying about appearances.

There is also the freedom to work at a time that is best for them (eating and taking breaks when needed), and most employees understand that they are responsible for getting their work done, but they are free to do it throughout the day. Pressure – Telecommuting, provided that the person works hard on their projects, also allows for much less pressure on the employee. They do not have to worry about appearances or about management looking down at them.

They can also avoid meetings and not worry if they get distracted for a short period of time. Researchers also found that, in general, very little harm comes from allowing employees to occasionally work from home. In today’s technologically based workplace, there is little reason to have face to face contact, and often the person has all of the tools they need to succeed simply by having access to their computer and the network.

It also allows people to focus solely on their projects, and if the right safeguards are in place, it will be easy for management to evaluate talent and make sure that their work is being completed as needed. The researchers in the article did not find any negative consequences to telecommuting, and although there is a chance it may exacerbate problems with workers that do not work hard anyway – and it may not work for jobs that need to be easily accessible – for many jobs, it appears as though allowing employees to telecommute may be a simple and easy way to both improve employee loyalty and satisfaction.