Working remotely benefits both you and your employees. Here’s why.

Remote work options are among the top priorities for today’s workforce. According to employment search engine website Indeed, 83% of respondents felt ‘work from home’ was essential to their job search.

However, despite the clear demand, many companies worldwide still do not offer remote work as an option. According to Owl Labs, a US video conferencing device manufacturer, 44% of companies globally still require employees to come to the office, with no option to work from home at all. If your team is still on the fence on this working style, here are three reasons why it might be time to reconsider.

Working remotely is cost-saving

One of the main reasons why the majority of employees prefer to work from home is because it helps them save money. In a study conducted by online job service site FlexJobs, they found that those who work from home save as much as $4,000 a year, saving money from commuting to work, as well as things such as coffees, meals, and work clothes. At the same time, the companies themselves also save on costs tied to the physical workplace, such as maintaining facilities, electrical bills or even rent. Instead, companies can invest in workplace technology to enable remote work, which guarantees to be a much more cost-saving solution that can still ensure business as usual.

It’s good for the environment, too

Aside from saving on costs, remote work can also play a vital role in creating a more sustainable work environment. Cutting on commuting does not only save costs, but it also helps decrease global carbon dioxide emissions (with transportation adding as much as 28.9% as of 2017). Cutting down on office space can help the environment too, as it removes the need to use electricity to heat or cool the office. With a digital tool enabling remote work, teams will also see a huge cut on paper use - which currently accounts for 70% waste from offices. Using digital workflows reduces this significantly while also cutting down on the operational costs of printers and papers.

Plus, it creates an engaged workplace

Attracting and retaining employees are two things many companies struggle with—and offering remote work is one of the top solutions to these challenges. Employees today consider flexible work options as a topmost benefit, as it enables them to have a better work-life balance. With that in mind, Indeed found out that over half of companies they surveyed who offered work from home as an option saw an uptick in employee morale, as well as reduced employee turnover rates. At the same time. 72% of companies said their remote-work policies made their employees more productive. Overall, it’s clear that employees feel happier with the setup, resulting in greater results and output for the company as a whole.