As employees break through the cubical barrier and expect more workplace flexibility, more employers are answering that call and finding that they’re benefiting from the change in a myriad of ways. For those companies that haven’t set up a remote work program yet, here are some tips to get started.

Workplace flexibility is expected to continue as a growing workplace trend in 2015, according to PayScale.com. Recent research indicates that employers who make flexibility available to employees will reap considerable residual benefits.

How Remote Work Programs Benefit Employers

Consider these five employer benefits to introducing workplace flexibility:

1. Increased productivity. Employees with increased flexibility are less likely to complete personal tasks on the clock, and those who telecommute are far less likely to report to work late.


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2. Loyalty. Flexibly scheduled employees report a stronger loyalty to the employer and an affinity to staying long term, according to the Families and Work Institute study Employers in the U.S.: Five Surprising Trends.
3. Training. Because employees with flexible work options tend to stay in their positions longer, the employer has less cost in training new hires.
4. Reduced paid sick leave. Work-from-home employees report using less paid sick leave each year.
5. Less equipment, overhead. As more employees transition from working in the office to home, the employer’s equipment requirements and overhead could go down. Consider the possibility for employees to use their own Internet access and laptops for assignments, and research the cost benefits for renting less office space to house fewer in-office employees.

How to Set Up a Remote Work Program

When introducing workplace flexibility as an option for your employees, ask your human resources department or managers to implement the following:

1. Create communication protocols. Work with the transitioning employees to develop a communication plan with the home office. Discuss the communications tools required and the expected number of in-person meetings needed per month to maintain the workflow and employee engagement.
2. Determine scheduling. Develop a structure for core hours so telecommuting employees and in-office employees have an overlapping schedule for interacting each day.
3. Engage with human resources. Establish a strong channel of communication between human resources and offsite employees to ensure the arrangement is working as anticipated for both parties.
4. Plan to review and revise. Map a follow-up plan to discuss how the transition has been going for the employee and for the company. Work together to develop a strategy for improvement, if necessary.

To find out more about the employer benefits to providing workplace flexibility, go to the SHRM Foundation’s publication Leveraging Workplace Flexibility for Engagement and Productivity.

Readers, does your company already have a remote work program established? If not, what are you doing to help make that happen? Leave a comment and let us know!

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