Working from home presents some major challenges to productivity and engagement. It’s easy to fall into the trap of playing computer games, watching videos, and browsing social media rather than focusing on getting your work done effectively or building relationships with other members of your team. If you’re thinking about adopting a telecommuting policy in your company, think long and hard about these negative effects before jumping on the bandwagon!
If you work from home, it’s easy to disengage from your coworkers and become isolated. Your physical separation can have a detrimental effect on your professional relationships, as well as overall workplace engagement. If possible, take a daily break from working at home and go into an office. However, if that’s not an option for you, stay connected with frequent phone calls or team meetings. You should consider spending time in person with team members at least once a week. Telecommuting destroys culture.
See more from CNBC about why Telecommuting is bad.
The days of bringing everyone together in a conference room are over. Companies need to embrace new ways of working and find new ways to engage their employees. We’re not saying don’t meet at all—just don’t use these meetings as a crutch for your less face-to-face time with coworkers. Telecommuting is destroying company culture.
Employees working from home have a lot of control over their schedules, which can be both positive and negative. This means, there’s less pressure to come into work because no one will notice your absence. However, working from home also means you don’t have coworkers who rely on you—or hold you accountable for making an appearance in the office. To combat these problems, make sure that expectations are clearly stated before anyone starts working remotely.
If your team members work from home or in separate offices, it’s easy for them to lose touch with one another. To make sure you’re fostering a productive culture that encourages open communication and collaboration, you need regular opportunities for everyone on your team to meet face-to-face . This can be as simple as a weekly meeting or as involved as a retreat.
If you’re working at home, it can be easy to slip into a cycle of routine and isolation—it’s not uncommon for employees who work from home to feel like they don’t have any professional relationships. In other words, staying connected with your team is essential for creating trust and fostering company culture. The best way to do that? Try making weekly or monthly calls with your manager.
Even though telecommuting destroys culture, see why a 4 day work week is awesome here.
You can see more about telecommuting’s impact on culture here.