10 Telecommuting Benefits You Should Know About

Telecommuting, or simply remote working, is the practice of working outside a traditional office space. There are a multitude of benefits of telecommuting that enhance the employee experience, we're using this article to look at the benefits of telecommuting for the company. 

The evolution of technology and connectivity has increased opportunities for remote work, which has evolved into asynchronous work and the birth of remote-first companies. Telecommuting can be a flexible, full-time, or part-time work arrangement, hybrid or fully remote, depending on the needs of the role. The main benefits of telecommuting for employers:

• Operational cost savings
• Employee payroll cost saving
• Remote work tools
• Increased productivity
• Additional working hours coverage
• Access to the global talent pool
• Employee retention
• Contribution to employees' mental health
• Positive impact on the environment
• Setting a progressive image for your company

1. Operational cost savings

The more remote work your company conducts, the smaller the office space you'll need. Telecommuting allows the employer to keep only essential employees at the office or even none at all, so the office you'll need to rent will be smaller and, therefore, cheaper. Real estate is not the only cost that will be reduced. Smaller office spaces have smaller utility bills, so that's another thing you will be saving money on.

This cost-saving approach is great for small businesses as every dollar you save on expenses is a dollar you can invest back into your company. This will give you that much-needed starting capital at the beginning of your professional venture. Additionally, as your business grows, you won't need to increase the size of your office and further stretch your budget. Needless to say, you will save a pretty penny by implementing a teleworking program.

Is this the first time you will be managing a hybrid or remote team? We've got you covered.

2. Remote workers are usually cheaper

Another reason why you should switch to teleworkers over traditional office employees is that remote workers will usually work for less.

Working from home is not just cheaper for the employer. It is also more economical for the worker as commuting costs are reduced and time is spent more efficiently. This contributes to remote workers being more likely to accept a lower salary than office employees for the same job. Depending on the employee's responsibilities and duties, a business can save between $5,000 to $15,000 per worker every year.

Calculating the total cost of a worker depends on several factors, including salary, statutory employee benefits, taxes, and company perks. Businesses need to understand some additional variables that impact the actual cost of an employee.

Use our Global Hiring Guide to explore the costs of hiring beyond borders.

3. Ease of using telecommuting tools

Another telecommuting advantage is that there are various solutions (free and paid) you can use to manage your virtual team. Tools such as Skype, Zoom, or Slack, provide an easy way to communicate with your team, whether it is via instant messaging or video conferencing.

In addition to this, with online task boards, mind-maps, and other useful remote work tools for a productive team, you can simulate a face-to-face meeting with your team. Most of the apps you can find online have a free option, and you can choose to upgrade once your business starts growing.

There are plenty of ways you can communicate with your team, as long as you make sure they check the designated communication platforms regularly and reply in time. Tracking your employee's productivity when working from home, or managing HR processes, can also be made easier with increased visibility using online tools.

4. Productivity benefits of telecommuting

Boosting productivity has always been one of the most critical challenges for employers everywhere. How do you get the most out of the resources you have available? Well, it seems that telecommuting is one way to make it happen.

Remote work team managers report a significant increase in both daily and weekly goals achieved by their team members. In addition to this, fewer mistakes are made, and smaller amounts of the workload need to be redone.

The traditional office setup is not everyone's idea of a productive environment as it is impossible to cater to each employee's specific needs. Luckily, when you are working from your own home, you can set up your home office the way that allows you to be the most productive.

It seems that giving each person their own "office space" at home creates a more productive work environment and allows each employee to give their maximum during working hours. In addition to being more focused and working more quickly in general, employees working from home will provide a better quality of work than those in a traditional office setting.

The benefits of increased productivity are many, but the main one is that you can accomplish more with fewer resources. Which can save your business money and open possibilities for growth. If all it takes is to start a telecommuting program, it is very much worth it. Just make sure you have a good remote work policy in place.

Read more about how to increase productivity in a remote team.

5. Additional working hours coverage

Office based staff traditionally only cover the time zones of where their office is located, working standard hours. By giving your team the option of telecommuting, they will more likely accept working unusual shifts, as they can switch between tasks and have working hours flexibility. With the rise of a nomadic approach to work, telecommuting remote workers also work across different time zones and in an asynchronous manner which means, as we see at Deel, you can become a company that operates around the clock.

Allowing people to work remotely also means you will get fewer sick days. For example, a person with a cold will still be able to do their job from home, while coming to the office might be too draining for them. Having a telecommuting arrangement with your employees is also proven to reduce absenteeism and ensure they are working according to a set schedule.

6. Access to the global talent pool

If you are looking for the best person to fill a position in your team, having more potential new hires overseas will let you get the best person for the job. This is perfect when you need a part-time team tailored for a specific project, even though it might be a bit more difficult to onboard remote employees.

Additionally, with your global choice of employees, you can build a team of high-performing professionals, no matter where they live. The usual factors that would prevent you from hiring beyond borders, such as accommodation and plane tickets, not to mention a competitive salary, do not apply to telecommuters. As long as you maintain proper communication, you can make a full-time global team of experts for basically anything you might need.

The ability to hire anyone, anywhere allows your business to establish a global presence. Having teleworkers in multiple countries means you can cover different time zones (as we already mentioned) and access different cultures, which is a great asset if your business is offering global services.

7. Increased employee retention

One of the most advantageous results of telecommuting is that it allows you to keep the employees you would otherwise lose to circumstance. Telecommuting facilitates global mobility, which is truly the future of work. Employees can relocate with a spouse, can work as an expat with ease and improved satisfaction, and means you can keep a valued member of the team.

There are certain compliance areas that we have addressed for you:

• Can Non-US citizens work for US companies and live abroad as digital nomads?
• How to establish international employment contracts
• Managing remote worker taxes

8. Benefits of telecommuting for the employees' mental health

Employees' morale and satisfaction should be pretty high on an employer's list of priorities. An employee with positive mental health can deliver better results more consistently. On the other hand, a stressed employee will not only underperform but can cause problems in the workplace.

Telework is proven to improve morale and be generally less stressful for most employees, and here's why:

• There is no dress code - people find it stressful having to dress up for work every day. And no wonder! We are all constantly evaluating each other and ourselves based on the way we look. Instead of worrying about what they put on and how they look when they come to the office, telecommuters can focus all of their attention on the job.
• Remote workers get more sleep - working from home means that instead of having to get up early in order to have breakfast and commute to work, an employee can get enough rest and be in peak performance when it is time to work.
• More time for themselves - workers that don't have to spend hours commuting to and from work can invest that time in what they like to do, leading to a better work-life balance and job satisfaction. More time to decompress or make a home-cooked meal after work definitely spells less stress.
• Workplace drama is filtered out - since the communication is reduced to a minimum, it contains only relevant, work-related information. This means that things are less likely to get sidetracked, and more work will get done. Also, introverts who find it difficult to communicate with their co-workers benefit greatly from telework.

9. Environmental benefits of telecommuting

When everyone has to go to the office each day, the carbon footprint left by your company increases. Whatever means of transportation (apart from a bike) your employees take to the office will have some sort of impact on the environment. Naturally, the most harmful emissions are those that come from cars, which are the most common means of transport used by employees making their daily commutes to the office.

By opting for remote work arrangements, employers reduce the number of commuters, and this reduces the effect their company has on the environment.

Additionally, by reducing the number of people commuting to work each day, the potential for car accidents is reduced. The fewer people on the roads, the smaller chance someone will have a road accident. This is a little unlooked-for public service bonus to embracing telecommuting.

10. Setting a progressive image for your company

Saving financial resources for your business development and maintaining a low impact on the environment while keeping a strong telecommuting program leaves an impression of a progressive company whose values are not selfish or centered around profit. Embracing the future of work early on can lead to extraordinary opportunities in the future.

Tips for managing a good telework team

As you can see, teleworking has many perks for employers. However, there are a few challenges you can run into with telecommuting employees. These are primarily focused on oversight and security. Here are some tips that will come in handy if you are trying to manage a telecommuting team.

• Set clear expectations - give your team members clear and unambiguous telecommuting rules
• Keep strong communication - set a daily or weekly meeting where you will talk with each team member and address the challenges they are facing in performing their job or having proper communication. Be forthcoming with your employees and allow them to ask you what they need to know
• Address security issues - right at the beginning, set clear rules about handling sensitive data and keeping their personal and professional networks apart
• Be consistent - stick to what you agreed on with your employees

Key considerations

The following resources will answer many of your questions:

• A breakdown of international employment contracts
• Manage health insurance for remote workers
• Ensure payroll processing is not overwhelming
• Avoid worker misclassification
• Accurately filing international taxes for remote workers
• Implement global employee benefits
• Pay international employees in foreign countries
• Pay foreign independent contractors
• How global teams can protect intellectual property
• Legally hire independent contractors worldwide

Build a remote team with Deel

Building an international team can be time-consuming, especially when compliance is involved. There are different local labor laws, taxes, and mandatory employee benefits for each country to keep up with. Luckily, Deel keeps up with it all for you.

Deel lets you hire anyone, anywhere in the world, within minutes. Plus, you can rest assured legal experts vet your contracts to be completely compliant, so your new hires are set up to work correctly in no time.

Want to learn how it all works? Book a demo today to find out.