The future of working: Home sweet home

A study by Virgin Media Business suggests a significant increase in people working from home within the next 10 years, especially with the numbers of businesses investing in superfast connectivity.

According to the study, more than half (60%) of employees will work from home within the next decade.

The research, which involved 5,000 company bosses, revealed that over 70% said face to face meetings of any kind will be replaced by technology. Additionally, 62% of people expect to commute less thanks to remote working.

The chief operating officer of Virgin Media Business, Tony Grace, says that technology advancement will make working home a norm.

"There's a change coming to the way we work," he said. "Remote working isn't anything new, but with technology providing the right tools for the job, the acceptance that is will soon be the norm is," he said.

According to a 2011 report by BBC, The British Telecom began a telework scheme in 1986 and now has 15,000 people working that way, out of their 92,000 employees. They argue that their employees working from home save nearly £6,000 a year each, take fewer sick days and are 20% more productive.

HSBC also reported that 15,000 out of the UK bank staff have the ability to work from home.

"There will always be a case for having a main office, but if you can make your staff happy by allowing them to work remotely, reduce their commuting time and give staff the freedom to work in a way that suits them, then why wouldn't you take it," said Grace.

As the UK government is encouraging Londoners to stay at home during the 2012 Olympics, the amount of businesses embracing employees working from home may see a significant increase.

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