UK BUSINESS PROFESSIONALS REVEAL THE BENEFITS OF WORKING FROM HOME

AS SOCIETY reopens and lockdown restrictions lift further, with many employees being encouraged to work from the office, a new study has revealed the positive benefits that the shift to homeworking has provided and why some business professionals aren’t ready to return to office life.

Research published in The New Art of Business, a report by RADA Business, the organisational performance arm of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, has found that 68% of UK adults were working from home at the beginning of the national lockdown, with 41% on a full-time basis.

Despite this drastic change to the working environment, many have enjoyed the freedom working from home affords them, with saving time (58%), saving money (54%), having more flexibility (50%) and spending more time with family (42%) being reported as the major benefits of homeworking.

In addition, 35% said that they have more rest, 25% have healthier habits, while 20% feel more productive, demonstrating how this shift in working culture has impacted individuals’ overall wellbeing.

It’s clear that communication hasn’t suffered for many organisations either, with technology filling the gap and compensating for the lack of face-to-face contact between employees – the research found 1 in 5 homeworkers used online collaboration tools, such as Trello or Slack, to help maintain links with their colleagues.

Online business-networking also saw usage rise, with up to 26% of homeworkers making use of these tools during lockdown.

Many of these benefits and the ability to successfully communicate with their team from home has resulted in 45% of workers saying they are either extremely or very interested in making a permanent shift to homeworking post-pandemic.

Even for those that don’t want a permanent change, 80% say they want the option to work from home, even if it’s only an occasional arrangement, showing how accustomed workers have become to this flexibility.

The research found only 20% of workers would be reluctant to say goodbye to a permanent office-based role.

Charlie Walker-Wise, Tutor and Services Director at RADA Business, comments on the findings: “It’s clear from the findings that there are numerous benefits to working from home, with many workers realising they can be time-rich, reduce their financial outgoings, make time for personal wellbeing and be better connected with friends and family.

“Communication has had to adapt significantly during the pandemic and organisations have had to utilise the technology available to mitigate this loss of face-to-face contact, whether that be to help teams connect or simply taking their business offering online, as RADA Business did with virtual training. As long as we adjust to this setting effectively and adapt our communication styles, then we can still successfully work with others both virtually or in-person. And the next challenge will be navigating hybrid working, partly from home and partly from the office, and supporting employees to find the right communication method and style for different settings.”