Today’s business employees have more options than ever before for their work arrangements, and this is largely possible with modern tech such as phones (mobile and landline), the Internet, Cloud data storage, laptops, and more. Not only is this highly convenient for some employees who have complex needs for their home life or travel, but it has also proven cost-effective and beneficial for the company and manager as a whole, too. Many modern managers are exploring remote work options for their employees, and for good reason. An employee today, for example, may work customer service jobs remotely, such as at a stay at home call center. Flexible careers for moms may be like this, for women who can’t easily leave their households every day. A person may choose to work from home for insurance company business, and this arrangement may bear fruit. What is there to know if someone chooses to work from home for insurance company business or otherwise work remotely? And what is an independent contractor capable of?
Working Over the Phone
It is true that e-mail and text messaging are now common forms of remote communication, but talking over the telephone is still relevant and quite important for business. A technology invented in the 1870s very much has a place in competitive business, and in fact many studies have confirmed that good phone skills make an employee much more productive and profitable for the company. This is an entire field in itself, but in short, customers are sensitive to how they are treated over the phone, and even one instance of bad customer service may cause a customer to give up on that company. The numbers show that it is 25 times more expensive to bring on board a new customer than to keep a current one, so many profits may be derived from treating current customers well over the phone. Not that new customers should not be garnered, but a business’s existing client base is a vital asset. No employee would want a steady customer to get angry over one bad phone call and quit, so profit margins are protected with good phone service.
This applies at a call center and remote home work alike, and someone who chooses to work from home for insurance company business may have an advantage over an office worker. Why is that? This may be just one example, but when an employee opts to work from home for insurance company business, they are not in a crowded office filled with employees who are also on the phone and talking loudly. Bad phone service may be the result of too much background noise, and the customer may be upset if they have to keep asking the employee to repeat themselves, or vice versa. Telemarketing is a major part of business, but interfering factors may slow this down. Some offices build one or more soundproof booths in them to give employees a quiet place to talk, but in other cases, remote work at home is the finest solution. An in home agent can work distraction-free all day long, and this works well for single parents who can’t easily leave the home. An employed single parent can have it both ways: they do their work online and over the phone, and can take care of the household as well. This may be a big relief for single parents looking for a job that doesn’t take them away from home.
Remote Work
It is clear that working at home provides the advantage of a quiet environment for phone calls, but there is more. Working at home also means that the employee is not exposed to airborne dust or contagions at the office, or dirty surfaces such as door handles. Many employees call in sick every day because of infections that spread around the office or poor air quality. Airborne particles in the office have even been proven to lower cognitive function in adults. Working at home also means that the employee does not have to take the time to commute anywhere, neatly avoiding any traffic jams or crowded subways or high-speed trains. This opens up more time for the work itself, and that, plus a low-stress environment, drives up productivity every single work day.
