5 Ways to Plead Your Case for a Telecommuting Policy

Telecommuting is now an accepted norm in many industries. However, some employers remain behind the times by declining requests from their workers to develop telecommuting policies. If you want to begin telecommuting but are afraid your employer will turn down the request, the following are five ways to plead your case.

Claim Your History of Work Independence

If you have an independent working style and have displayed this during your years of working for a company, claim this as a reason why your employer should let you telecommute. Independent workers are often best suited for telecommuting since they don’t need a manager’s guidance with every aspect of a work project. Of course, you’ll need to show solid proof that you’re an independent worker for management to take this claim seriously. 

Cite the Company Cost Benefits

Often, employers don’t want to know why an employee stands to benefit from a telecommuting policy, they want to know how the company will benefit from the change. While pleading your case for telecommuting, cite the most likely cost benefits the company will receive by accepting your request. From lowered in-office resource expenses to less PTO usage, companies often save in many ways after creating telecommuting policies.

Discuss Expectations for Performance Improvements

A major fear of many employers regarding letting their employees telecommute is that the telecommuters will slack off while working from home. To thwart this fear, discuss your expectations for why this change will improve your workplace performance. From not being interrupted by coworkers to eliminating a long daily commute, there are many reasons why work performance often improves with telecommuting.

Make an Accountability Plan

While you can give a thousand reasons why you expect to become a better employee through telecommuting, your employer will want to know how you’ll be held accountable for those expectations. Before requesting to telecommute, make a plan for how you’ll report to management on project progress while telecommuting. This plan will ease management’s worries to increase the chances of your request being accepted.

Request a Trial Period

Often, employers don’t become truly comfortable with the idea of their employees telecommuting until they see this change in action. If your employer is still on the fence regarding your request, suggest a telecommuting trial period. Suggest a week when you will temporarily work from home so that both you and the employer can experience the changes this will bring. This trial period will ensure your telecommuting expectations are reasonable and will ease management’s worry regarding the change.

Telecommuting offers immense rewards for employers and their workers. From discussing how your work performance will improve while working from home to citing the company’s cost benefits, there are many ways to plead your case for a company telecommuting policy.

Author Bio: Shayla Ebsen is a full-time freelance writer and graphic designer with more than seven years combined experience from her time in the corporate world and through her freelance work. Shayla’s education includes a Bachelor of Arts degree in News/Editorial Journalism from South Dakota State University and a Master of Arts degree in Communication Studies with an emphasis in Organizational Communication from the University of South Dakota. Learn more about Shayla and her services at shaylaebsen.com.

Comments

[Julie]

Great article. As an employer I have always had a good experience with having them telecommute. As long as the work is done and done well, it doesn't matter to me what kind of hours they have. The proof is whether the job gets done or not.