How to ask your boss to work from home

Thanks to technological advances, remote working has been on the rise for the past decade, with around 18% of the workforce working from home on a regular basis. And in a post-pandemic world, those numbers are set to climb even higher, with research from the CIPD showing that employers expect 37% of people to work from home regularly.

Giving up a stressful and expensive commute is reason enough for most professionals, but some employers may need a little convincing before they see the plus side.

How does remote working positively impact business?

The workplace has changed dramatically since the 20th century, when most employees clocked in and out of their workplaces for their allotted hours. Whilst technology and working practices have moved forward, an old world belief that people only work when they are watched can still be found in modern workplaces. Thankfully, this couldn’t be further from the truth...

• Remote workers are productive workers - It’s simple: a bustling office environment has far more distractions than a quiet home office. And with studies showing that it takes an average of 25 minutes after an interruption to return to the original task, remote workers could stand to gain many more minutes of concentration in the working day .

• Remote workers are less stressed - A huge source of stress for the modern worker comes in the form of the daily commute. Millions of us are daily sufferers of traffic tailbacks or rail delays and, over time, this has an impact on our mental health. Commutes are also associated with increased blood pressure.

• Remote workers are healthier - Nothing spreads illness as quickly as being in close proximity to other people. Busy offices often mean illnesses pass from employee to employee. What’s more, remote working has also been shown to improve absenteeism, with workers able to fit health appointments around their work more easily.  

• Remote workers are more loyal - Despite its increased popularity, until very recently remote working was not the modus operandi of most businesses. This means organisations that allow for remote working are more appealing to employees. Happy employees = lower staff turnover. 

• Integrating remote working increases hiring prospects - If you get your management to open their eyes to the notion of remote working, they'll stand to benefit from a vastly increased talent pool when making future hires. Suddenly, they're not just looking for job applicants within a certain catchment area, but rather from anywhere in the world!

• Reduced carbon footprint - Businesses have to have a consideration of their environmental impact these days, and for good reason. With 2018's revelation that we only have 12 years before climate change becomes irreversible, it's now incumbent upon all companies to consider how they can be more green. Employee commuting is a massive indirect cause of company emissions so encouraging greater levels of remote working can reduce this.

Whilst all the above is true, many of us are still unsure how to approach our bosses with a request to work from home. But before you fire off a quick email, it’s worth considering a few of your manager’s concerns, so you can address these directly in your request.

Start with:

• Your weekly schedule - To help your boss take your request seriously, you need to show you have thought about how this could work. Which days are you proposing to work from home? If you have regular meetings on Mondays, it’s best to flag that you’re still proposing to be in the office for those.

• Your workload - Think about your typical day/ week/ month. How would remote working help you to perform these better? Are there certain tasks that you often need input from different departments or team members? Do you need to be in the office for those? How could you complete these effectively if you were working remotely? Your request needs to show that you’ve thought about the impact remote working could have on your workload - both the positive and the potential downsides. 

• Your team - It will be important to your manager that you’re not only responsive to your colleagues, but also that there is still a sense of teamwork. How will you ensure that you still feel like part of the team, even if you’re not in the office?

Once you’ve considered the above, you can open up the conversation with your manager. A personal approach is always best, but use the letter template below as a starting point.

Letter template

Hi [manager name],

I wanted to see if we could find a time to discuss the possibility of introducing some remote-working days into my role at [company name].

I have given serious thought as to how this might work, and even improve my overall performance. I’d be very happy to share my initial proposal with you, and start a conversation as to how this could work for you and the rest of the team. 

I’m available next week at [inset dates and times available] if any of those times work for you?

Looking forward to speaking with you soon.

Very best

Things to bear in mind

Once you’ve arranged a time to speak, be prepared with your proposal. Remember to think about your manager’s most likely objections and spend some time thinking of solutions ahead of time. 

• Not all jobs can go remote - You'll probably have quite a good sense of this in advance of asking, but some jobs simply can't be done remotely. Before sending a request, try to think unbiasedly about whether it's feasible for you to work remotely.

• Is it what you really want? - Remote working might seem like the ideal working environment, and for many people it really is. If you know you find it hard to focus on your own, then perhaps this isn’t the best working style for you. You can always ask for a trial period if you’re unsure.

• The accountability question - One of the main reservations employers have surrounding remote working is the notion that, if not watched, people will be lazy and unproductive. Bear this in mind when proposing remote working to your manager. Have you built up a strong relationship of trust already? If not, it might be worth sitting on the request for 6 months while you develop a fundamentally solid relationship. You're a lot more likely to get the 'green light' when a good dynamic is in place.

A final note

Nothing compares to face-to-face. 

Ultimately, we're wired to interact with one another in person. Anywhere from 70-90% of our communication is non-verbal. So, while phone calls and internet contact are essential shortcuts in the modern world, we'd recommend making sure you're still going into the office regularly enough to touch base with people in person. 

Above and beyond the communication benefits, doing so will reinforce the notion that you're still very committed to the company and to your teammates, and will ensure you don't inadvertently slip out of people's minds.