Dive Brief:
- While 35% of employees working from home full-time are happy to not be commuting, 41% of employees who work from home frequently are dissatisfied with the experience, while 19% are fully satisfied, according to a Jan. 21 report released by Steelcase.
- The study found that when people are dissatisfied with their work from home experience, engagement drops, productivity decreases and innovation declines slightly as well. Steelcase estimates a 5% average reduction in profits for large companies.
- Of those working full-time from home, 37% report a worsening sense of isolation and 20% say they have diminishing productivity and engagement. Additionally, 36% of workers lack a distraction-free environment to work, while 28% do not have a physically comfortable work space.
Dive Insight:
Remote work is expected to remain a major part of the workplace environment, even after pandemic-related shutdowns and office closures end. In order to combat issues of isolation, connection and productivity, the CHROs at Chevron and Blue Shield of California recommended making intentional effort for virtual engagement and organizational flexibility.
IT support is another issue hampering the productivity of remote employees. Workforce strategy leaders may benefit from developing a stronger relationship with IT counterparts in order to optimize support for remote workers, experts have said.
For employers, the continuation of remote or hybrid work along with the expansion of locations that people may be working from will present added compliance risks, according to multiple attorneys that spoke with HR Dive.
That said, many employers are seeing value from expanded remote work policies, otherwise they wouldn’t be keeping them intact. A recent PwC report called remote work an "overwhelming success," noting that 52% of executives said that productivity improved while working from home.
