Increasing numbers of businesses are allowing their staff to work from home as many struggle to justify the cost of town centre offices.

Businesses fleeing high town centre rents are assessing ways of reducing their overheads. And although many have relocated to offices on the outskirts of town, there has also been a move towards bosses enabling their staff to benefit from remote working.

Remote working has seen an increase in popularity during recent years, aided in part by the onset of cloud computing which allows staff to work anywhere where there is an internet connection. Many have also concluded that working from home increases productivity as there are fewer distractions and commuting times are eradicated.

Richard Buxton, Technical Manager at computing and communications specialist Node4, said, “Businesses who have previously wanted to allow their staff to work more flexibly in order to boost productivity now have the tools to do so. And as more people resent paying over the odds for their business accommodation, they now have the incentive to pursue ways of helping staff to migrate to remote working.

Cloud computing is scalable, meaning that accessibility is available to any business regardless of their current size and growth plans. Workers no longer have to travel to the office to do business and given the current economic climate, this will be welcomed by many.”

Richard, however, advises against a sudden switch to remote working that completely replaces office working.

He said, “It is vital for businesses employing remote working to phase in the process, we usually suggest a period whereby staff work from home a couple of days a week and report back to the office for the remaining days. We also speak to businesses about desktop assessment, which is an important element that people often struggle with. Desktop assessment is ensuring that people have the right environment to work in. Creating adequate space that is designated as their office will ensure that productivity is maximised.”