The majority of small businesses are set up to allow staff to work from home but less than half of their employees currently do so.
According to a survey by telecoms firm Thus, 80% of small firms have the necessary technology and processes in place to allow staff to work remotely and there has been a 45% rise in demand for homeworking by employees.
But the poll also found that just 45% of workers ever work from out of the office, with the main hindrances being a lack of technical support out of hours, cited by 73% of respondents, and disputes over whether the employer or employee pays for expenses such as telephone calls and electricity bills (57%).
“People want to work more flexibly. For example, with the right technology in place, working parents now have the choice to leave work earlier to spend time with their children and then continue working later in the evening from home,” said Dan Cole, head of product management at Thus.
"Similarly, business travellers can utilise communications solutions to access the company network regardless of location, providing them with a mobile office. It's a case of SMBs recognising and accommodating this change.”
According to business psychologist Kate Keenan, staff working remotely will only prosper if the company is prepared to alter their traditional expectations of staff.
"For remote working to be effective, managers need to put a greater emphasis on employee communication and group activities to ensure there is a strong sense of team spirit,” she said.
“Businesses will also need to change their management style, to focus less on management by supervision and more on setting clearly defined objectives agreed between the employer and employee,” she added.
