Jun 10, 2013
It is no surprise that tech companies in the Silicon Valley such as Google, Facebook, Netflix, Twitter and Microsoft offer their employees flexible work arrangements, allowing them to telecommute on a regular basis. Yet, the surprise decision by Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer to ban Yahoo! employees from working from home was met with equal parts dismay and praise both within and outside of the company’s Sunnyvale, California campus. The decision has sparked a debate about the value, benefits and downside of telecommuting.
Do the best ideas germinate organically at the water cooler or through in-office meetings? Does working remotely hinder productivity, freeing employees from a manager’s all-knowing gaze? Is personal contact overrated?
Research from the past five years reveals the answer to these questions may actually be no.
In many cases, telecommuting can be beneficial not only to the employee (less stress), but to the employer as well (less overhead, higher employee retention). Take a look at the numbers behind telecommuting to see the trends in who is working from home, why US workers desire the ability to work from home, and how telecommuting is growing globally.
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For a complete list of sources, please view the infographic.
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