What are the advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting?

• History of telecommuting
• Telecommuting benefits for employees
• Benefits of telecommuting for employers
• Disadvantages of telecommuting

History of telecommuting:

The history of this working formula goes back to the United States. Telecommuting involves doing professional work remotely. The employee is able to perform his duties whether at home or in a place other than the company where he is employed as long as he has access to the Internet.
 In 1950, this concept first appeared in America. Also, this way of working was experienced by an architect who remotely supervised the construction of a building in the United States using his knowledge and information transfer. In this way, until about 52 years later, i.e. 2002, the concept of remote work became more widespread in the world and millions of remote workers were employed in Europe.

Benefits of telecommuting for employees:

• Better lifestyle:
People who work remotely are less stressed because they deserve a more suitable environment to work in terms of work, family and personal. There is no need to rush to get on the subway and get to the office, because everything is done at home. This lack of travel makes the employee more efficient and more productive in terms of work. In addition, telecommuting enables better management of daily life. Thanks to working time flexibility, people can devote more time to their family and interests. This allows them to live a relaxed and less stressful lifestyle.
•    feeling of freedom:
In addition to the difference in the working style of a telecommuter with an employee, telecommuting is associated with a greater sense of freedom. As long as the work is not delayed and done, everything goes like clockwork and there will be no problems. The telecommuter can give himself the right to sleep an hour or two more than others, relax in front of his computer a little more than the employee and create a good working day for himself.
Research shows that telecommuting is more efficient for employees who are creative because with the freedom of the mind, better ideas come to their mind and they are not distracted by external factors such as the movement of colleagues and phone calls; Therefore, this distance from the company leads to good work performance and a real sense of empowerment, without any excessive activity. Employees are free to determine their working hours and adjust their work schedule, and at the same time, the tasks assigned to them are being performed in the best possible way.

•    Saving time:
Commuting to work is a waste of time for many employees. In some cases, this figure reaches tens of hours lost per month in a private car, metro, taxi or bus. Working at home gives you the opportunity to save those hours and use them to do what's important to you.
• More work independence:
A telecommuter benefits from independence to the extent that he can organize his workday as he sees fit. For some work cycles, there is also geographic independence; Depending on what has been negotiated with the employer, some telecommuters can work from wherever they want and there is no limit on their geographical location and distance and proximity to the city of work.

Advantages of telecommuting for the employer:

• Cost reduction for the company:
Telecommuters aren't the only ones benefiting from this shift. For companies, allowing employees to work from home saves them money. One of the most basic of them is the cost of providing desks and office furniture for employees; Therefore, telecommuting represents a reduction in costs related to rent, electricity, water, heating, maintenance costs, transportation, etc. for companies that grant this way of working to their employees.
People with disabilities or diseases:
With telecommuting, it's easier for a company to hire disabled or sick people who can only work from home.
• Simpler and more efficient management:
Remote work makes an employee naturally more autonomous and responsible; Therefore, the duties of the company manager as the person who has to report the job duties to the employees on a daily basis are reduced. In this case, he can devote himself to other productive activities that were previously neglected and there was no opportunity to do them.

•    Increase Productivity:
Working remotely reduces unnecessary work meetings and prevents distractions such as employees talking to each other, people's movement, etc., to prevent employee concentration, as a result, efficiency increases. Productivity resulting from remote work will be more visible, especially in matters that require higher concentration, such as design and programming.
Another point is that during working days, it often happens that your employees ask you for a daily or hourly leave and leave their work for various reasons and are absent for hours; But in remote working mode, employees are obliged to perform their duties and because they can set their own working hours, they will have less absenteeism.

Disadvantages of telecommuting:

• Risk of isolation:
Working alone at home without seeing colleagues is an aspect of telecommuting that is hard to bear for some people who may feel a sense of isolation and loneliness or even depression. This point is also true for people who work as freelancers.
• Requirement for intellectual independence:
A telecommuter does not have a schedule or a supervisor who constantly monitors his work or can ask his work questions to the supervisor; Therefore, telecommuters should be intellectually independent and able to manage things remotely so that there is no disruption in the process of doing things.
Remote employees should be able to organize their own affairs and find their own framework to achieve the goals set for the employer.
Feeling of missing opportunities:
A telecommuter may occasionally feel that he is missing out on opportunities for advancement within his company because he is far from where decisions are made.
• Possibility of reducing team work:
Because remote workers do not work together, therefore, the possibility of doing things as a team may decrease in this way of working compared to face-to-face work.

Telecommuters must be intellectually independent and able to manage things remotely.