The lockdown in the corona crisis is unintentionally the largest experiment in working from home ever. Recent research, conducted by Tilburg University in collaboration with Veldhoen + Company, shows that working from home pays off. People experience that working from home is more in line with their own social preferences, that they can work more efficiently and that they have more control over their working day. The survey was conducted among 5,000 respondents from all over Europe.
The respondents can be roughly divided into two groups. One group indicates that they work more hours and experience more pressure, while the other group indicates that they work the same or fewer hours and experience less work pressure.
Pros and cons
The research shows that the benefits people experience from working from home clearly outweigh the drawbacks. 57.4% of respondents experienced benefits. The biggest advantage is seen as:a better connection with one's own social preferences (think of the atmosphere in which one works, making contact with others). In addition, working from home is experienced as more efficient and employees are happy with the control they have over their working day.
The biggest drawback is experienced as the long-term virtual work. Some of the respondents indicate that they find the work less meaningful and that they have insufficient resources at home to do their job really well.
Conclusions and recommendations
1. Everyone experiences the current situation differently. There is no universal approach to working from home. An approach must be situational and offer room for individual needs.
2. The advantages greatly outweigh the disadvantages. Moreover, the benefits are both hard (productivity) and soft (well-being).
3. Most of the disadvantages experienced by home workers can be solved. By looking specifically at the type of work, the appropriate workplace, and making the right tools available, the most important disadvantages can be minimized. Virtualization probably requires the most attention.
