Chapter 6: Conclusions, Discussions & Recommendations
6.3. Recommendations
Approving working from home requests
ORGANISATION X stated that the number of days employees work from home will not be added to their employment contract. Agreements will be made orally between the different managers and employees with regards to how many days they are allowed to work from home. The author believes that this will cause an imbalance between departments in who gets to work from home and who doesn’t. There will be differences in how the new policy is interpreted and implemented. The author recommends that the wishes of employees or work from home applications be handled by one person or one department.
Increase mobility with wireless headsets
The second recommendation is that ORGANISATION X should look into the possibility of providing employees with wireless headsets. This will give them the freedom to stand and walk around more during online meetings.
Flexibility in deciding when to work from home
Employees hope they get more flexibility when deciding when to work from home. They have indicated that they do not want to be forced to work in the office or at home on predetermined days per week. They want the freedom to choose. The number of days they work at the office or at home could therefore also differ per week. The author recommends that ORGANISATION X allows employees to have this freedom.
Work from home compensation
ORGANISATION X is saving money on travel allowance and employees are not using any resources at the office while working from home. The fourth recommendation is that ORGANISATION X follows the Nibud advice and compensate employees for costs made while working from home. The compensation is €2 per day, until a new indexation is made.
Stimulate quality time at work
Research has shown the impact of fewer social interaction on employees’ mental health. The author would recommend that ORGANISATION X encourage employees to have more social interaction with each other i.e. quality time at work. However, they should make sure that employees know to schedule the interaction beforehand to prevent it from being disruptive. Also do additional research on how employees would like to have quality time at work while working from home.
Share tips and tricks for better work-life balance
Employees have indicated that they find it difficult to create a healthy work-life balance. They find it difficult to not only set boundaries, but also to make a distinction between workplace and place to relax. The author would recommend ORGANISATION X to share tips and tricks on how to create a good work-life balance
Train managers in distance leadership
ORGANISATION X has already indicated that managers will receive additional training in distance leadership. The final recommendation is that the managers at ORGANISATION X do more frequent mental health checks or just show personal interest in their employees instead of telling employees to come to them when they have problems.
Create and rent out community hubs
With the reorganisation of office space, it could happen that there is a surplus of m2. Instead of downsizing, consider creating community hubs for rent. It can be used by start-ups or employees from other organisations looking for a place to work together closer to home.
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