Though work-from-home (WFH) sounds really enticing for most employees but let us also consider the employer’s concern regarding the bad effect of WFH. Though these may have solutions or workaround, just keep in mind not to get heart-broken if the company will still stick to the regular work-at-the-office scheme. Below are the probable reasons why companies will stick to the traditional working scheme.
Data-breach
Data is very important and for some companies these data are the bread and butter. Especially BPO and companies in the financial industry. They always make sure that they stick to the standards and comply with the global information protection policy or standard. So if your tasks are critical for them, either they will in-house you or not let you work-from-home in any way.
Reduce Social-Engagement
Humans are social animals, probably for now that there’s a community quarantine or a government mandate to stay home that’s why we are enduring it but perhaps, in the long run, we may not like being alone all the time. We may get bored and feel “boxed” when our routine becomes sleep>work>sleep and interactions become difficult. If we are in the office, even for a small period we laugh with our peers, chitchat during breaks, coffee or eat together and those activities may be insignificant back in the days but surely are impactful in employee’s sanity.
Communication Barrier
Microsoft Teams, Google Hangout/Google Meet, Zoom, and other communication tools may be helpful in communicating with your peers in the office. However, despite the feature’s accessibility it’s not yet enough. We, humans, are used to communicate in person and there’s something on that connection that is lost in virtual.
Recently, I hosted our town hall and there’s this video presentation where I need to do some live voice-over. For me I’m not satisfied and I feel I did not deliver it well, there are portions that I missed to say because of the lag. It could have been easier to quickly resolve or make an instant workaround if it’s not virtual since facial expressions or gestures as the cue is easier between me and the operator.
Reduced reliability and retention
When you are working remotely, the internet is the only way to connect with your supervisor/boss as well as the team. Some of our applications can be accessed remotely thus the internet is necessary. Because majority of the work relies so much on the internet this has a risk in your productivity as internet sometimes fails us.
Some companies are skeptical about the employee’s reliability. We know that it’s easier to monitor someone’s behavior and attitude when you see them in-person than only in virtual. Some companies don’t just need their employee’s output but for them the relationship is important as well. Losing people because of not being careful is difficult for every organization.
Difficulty in Accountability
Because of the risk of attrition and reliability of the remote workers that the company feels. Giving them heavy responsibilities will be difficult for companies. The company needs time to test their remote workers for their trustworthiness before giving it to them. Companies are aware also that it’s easier for remote workers to wash-hands and sometimes gone in the wind when things are going south. Because of this, they rather want their workers to be within their offices as they can monitor as well as nurture them and let the workers feel that they are important. Everyone knows that nothing beats the personal touch.
It’s not the end of it, don’t worry!
For employees and employers, this may be a hindrance for now but with the current situation with COVID that has no vaccine yet as of this writing, we are required to face this. Organizations will surely find ways to resolve the above and then perhaps in the future 70 – 90% will employ remote workers. For sure technology and process engineering will always find a way in resolving these problems. COVID-19 rapidly changes the landscape of how we work and forces companies in all industries to be creative. I believe that this 2020 is the start of a new era in lifestyle and in working.