No doubt this is a topic that burns in the minds of many parents, myself included!
I became a mother while in college and studied hard to one day have a career to help support my family. After college, I fell into a great job opportunity and my son was at the perfect age to enter daycare full- time. So I began my career as a working mother! However, I quickly realized how difficult it is to hold down a full-time job and be the mother I want to be. I chose to make a position change in 2008 which, at first, was the perfect solution to my problem. I was able to work from home which allowed me to spend more time with my son... definitely an ideal situation. But as the company started to grow (moving to a new office and an expansion on top of that!) and I got a promotion, the need for me to come back to the office increased.
Even with all of the changes that have occurred over the last few years, one thing remains constant... the fact that my company has adapted to the wants and needs of its employees (specifically me) first and foremost. It's truly amazing because now I sit here working from home, 3 weeks away from delivering my second child!
So you ask... why the trip down memory lane? Who really cares about one person's testimony about their company? Maybe a few more than you'd think. I accompanied my son to a birthday party a few weekends back and struck up a conversation with a fellow mother about her working situation. She discussed how she has a successful career and feels she can be a good mother, too, all thanks to the option of working from home. She had a corner office in a nice space in downtown Dallas, but was commuting from McKinney every day to get there. Towards the end of her pregnancy her doctor put her on bed rest which happened to be the same time her company was downsizing their office space. She gladly gave up her corner office to work from home and has never regretted it. She commutes to downtown once every few weeks when she is needed, but does the bulk of her work at home. The most important thing about this story is EVERYONE WINS! The company held on to one of their best employees, she enjoys the balance of a great career and the fulfilling life of motherhood, and her son gets to see his mom more hours of the day. Who could ask for a better situation?
What I am constantly shocked to hear is not all companies believe in allowing employees to work remotely if a situation calls for it. Unfortunately there are many business owners who: a) don't trust their employees to be disciplined enough to work without supervision and b) don't possess the technology to allow for the opportunity. My question to these two points is, why? Yes, on a few occasions I have seen people take advantage of the "work from home" privilege, but I have seen many more success stories in which people are 10 times more productive!
In small defense for those companies, I do realize this setup depends greatly on each individual employee and there are some who just aren't disciplined to work effectively and efficiently from home. At the end of the day, you have to make the choice to hire the right people of whom you can trust. I've also seen companies who didn't possess the technology to even make it possible for people to work remotely. My suggestion... GET IT! This is 2010 and there are more opportunities than ever for your company to find a solution for remote workers. You'll reap the benefits immediately and it will help ALL employees to be more effective and efficient, whether they work from home, in the office or run appointments all day.
You may be asking yourself if this is a blog about working mothers or working from home. My answer is both... at least for me. I didn't say having a career and being a good mom can't be done... because I KNOW it can! I am saying that spending 40+ hours a week in an office and being a full time mom isn't necessarily an ideal situation if you want to be successful at both. Working remotely seems to be a great solution for everyone. The biggest challenge is finding a company that can provide you with the opportunity and flexibility to do both! I know they are out there so don't settle for less than what you, your family AND your company deserve!
Kimberly Kelly, Director of Marketing
Unified360
Work email up and running? Check. IM with co-workers, status: available? Check. Blackberry next to me forwarding office calls so I don't miss a client's call? Check. At home with a fever and sore throat? Check. I am one of the many people who are working from home today because Unified360 understands and supports the importance of being able to work remotely.
Working from home is quickly a growing segment of professionals and entrepreneurs. 21% of Americans work from home on a daily basis, and over 35% of employees work from home, even after they leave the office. Having the ability to work remotely offers the benefits of saving time and expenses by avoiding frustrating and lengthy commutes, flexibility, and being able to answer a sales call in your pajamas! (just kidding). My benefit today is that I myself have hardly ever called in sick, whether it was from school as a child or at work in my adulthood. I was always worried about all the work I would miss and have to catch up on, therefore I would push myself to present, no matter what the excuse should be. My thought process was simple: never miss school or work and be successful. Unfortunately, I usually ended up making myself sicker than before. With the ability to work remotely from home, I can still accomplish what I need to in order to be successful at work without feeling the pressure of going into the office when I feel like my head could very well explode. I can take care of work and myself and not skip a beat.
Work- from- home programs are becoming standard practices for many companies. In fact over 40% of private sector businesses have some form of telecommuter policies in place at their company. It used to be thought that if you let your employees work from home they would use that time to grocery shop instead of actually work. However, studies show that working from home increases productivity, produces happier employees, lessens turn over and lessens the amount of time and money that is spent on recruiting. If given the opportunity, many employees will view working remotely as a reward or benefit, and in turn end up working harder and more productively because they want to give back to the company who trusts them.
Unified360 has many different solutions to offer companies who desire to allow their employees the ability to work from home. Please contact us today to learn more about this great benefit! Don't worry... I'll answer my phone and return my emails, because had I not told you, you wouldn't even know I wasn't at the office!
Amber Leatherwood, Account Manager
Unified360