Working from home – a chance to plough through your ‘to do list’ without distraction or an opportunity to watch daytime TV with your feet up while occasionally responding to an email?
Perhaps Yahoo! considers it to be the latter, after last week circulating a memo to all staff, banning them from working remotely. Unsurprisingly this didn’t go down well with everyone.
In today’s high-tech age when we have super fast broadband, webcams and more mobile devices than you can shake a stick at, it’s never been easier to ‘telecommute’ so why has Yahoo taken such a strong stance? It’s especially perplexing given that they operate in the very sector which has helped create these technologies which have improved flexible working.
They argue that "speed and quality are often sacrificed when we work from home" and "some of the best decisions and insights come from hallway and cafeteria discussions, meeting new people, and impromptu team meetings."
At the risk of sitting on the fence, I can see both sides. Working in a creative PR agency, we constantly bounce ideas off each other. It’s an integral part of the way we work and something which is far more difficult to achieve when you’re sat at home alone.
However, there is surely an argument for balance? We recently conducted a survey on behalf of our client Saint-Gobain Ecophon which asked 2,000 office workers questions about their working environment. As manufacturers of acoustic ceilings, office design is a topic which is very much front of mind. Almost 80% of those surveyed worked in either an open plan or shared office yet more than half (54%) said that working like that sometimes made it difficult for them to concentrate and do their job.
As Ecophon’s survey illustrates, open plan working is the norm for most people yet there is clearly a need to limit the distraction caused by background noise. Yahoo’s reasoning that speed and quality are sacrificed when working at home can surely be challenged based on the fact that home working is likely to be much quieter.
However, there’s no doubt that open plan working also has its advantages, particularly when it comes to helping promote collaborative working. You simply cannot re-create this kind of environment at home and if you’re struggling with a campaign idea for a new business proposal, having three of four colleagues on hand whose brains you can pick is very valuable.
I can count the number of times I’ve worked from home on one hand but every time I’ve done it I’ve found it productive and worthwhile. Without the distraction of phones constantly ringing or getting drawn in to a conversation about what happened in last night’s episode of Homeland, I was able to concentrate deeper, for longer.
So, will Yahoo’s actions signal the beginning of the end for remote working with other companies following suit? Will their zero tolerance approach make them a less attractive employer? They clearly think it will have a positive effect on their business but I’m not sure taking such a hard line will have the desired effect. In the words of Oscar Wilde, everything in moderation.
Bethan Simkins
Account Manager
