The concern is understandable, but working from home may actually increase productivity. For instance, Stanford Business School released a study of call center employees who volunteered to regularly work from home. The results bolstered the fact that working from home may increase productivity as they saw a 13 percent performance increase in the teleworking employees. Nine percent of the performance increase was attributed to working more minutes per shift, with fewer breaks and sick days, and 4 percent was attributed to the employee’s fielding more calls per minute due to quieter working environment. Home workers also reported improved work satisfaction and experienced less turnover. Learning more about telecommuting, establishing a clear and concise workplace policy that addresses employee and management concerns, and offering telecommuting as an option for positions where it is sensible would be a good way to begin implementing, or at least testing, this type of flexibility in your workplace.
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