Introduction
If you’re looking to work from home, you may not need to search for a new job to achieve that. Half of employees in the United States work from home intermittently. If your employer isn’t already offering a remote work option or flexible schedule, you can make a strong case for making it an option by proposing to work from home.
A well-researched proposal can convince your supervisor that working from home is a beneficial arrangement for both you and the employer. It also demonstrates your ability to work independently and produce quality output – essential skills for a remote employee.
What Will Your Perspective Be on Working From Home?
Before making a final decision about remote work, consider how this step will fit into your job and home life.
Responsibilities: What are the daily, weekly, and monthly tasks of your job, and how can each be accomplished from home? If you’re proposing to work remotely part-time, specify the tasks that will be done at home versus those that will be done in the office.
Work Hours: Will you be working at different hours than you did in the office? What will those hours be? Even if your work hours will remain the same, write them down as a precaution against the expectation that you’ll be available at any time. If your hours will be different from the rest of your team, touch on how you will be available during official working hours.
Technology: What technology will you need to make this arrangement work? If you already have a laptop, tablet, or work phone, specify that you will continue to use them. If you plan to use your home computer, detail what software or adjustments you will need to fulfill your job responsibilities. Can you currently access the company network from home? If not, specify what you will need to provide that option.
Cost and Logistics: What will the new technology cost, and who will pay for it? Are there low-cost or free options for software and communications you can utilize? Be sure to mention if there are services that the employer is already paying for that you can continue to use from home. This should also be the section of the proposal where you describe your workspace (like your home office) while working remotely.
Communication: Lay out a plan for communicating with your coworkers, clients, and supervisor. Will you be available via phone, email, or text? Will you use project management software or chat programs like Slack? In addition to setting up a plan for daily communication, you might suggest a regular phone meeting or video conference with your supervisor and other team members. You’ll also want to mention any events that require face-to-face communication.
Accountability: Provide a plan for reviewing your remote work status, such as a meeting with your supervisor every three to six months. This will allow you to assess how the arrangement is working, request changes, or suggest improvements to communication. Whether you include this in your proposal or discuss it in person, ensure that you and your supervisor have clear expectations of what constitutes successful remote work and what will need to be reassessed.
Effective Components of a Remote Work Proposal
Present the proposal with a brief cover letter, especially if it will be distributed to several people. The proposal itself should be inspired by a business proposal. Consider your employer as a client you are trying to convince, and use the proposal to sell your idea of working remotely.
Introduction: Explain what you want and why it would be good for the company. If you are proposing a trial or arrangement for part-time remote work, mention that as well. You will have space to expand your points in the following sections, so your introduction should be a brief summary.
Background:
Mention any positive information about yourself, such as qualifications, positive performance evaluations, or years of experience. This is the place to include information about remote work policies or flexible working arrangements that exist within the company.
How Working from Home Will Work: Explain in detail how this arrangement will function. This part of the proposal is likely to contain a lot of information, so you may want to break it down into bullet points or subheadings. This will not only make the proposal easier to read but also allow you to highlight the most important information for your argument. Detail the elements you considered when planning for remote work.
Benefits: This is not the time to talk about how you personally benefit from working remotely; instead, make a case for how remote work will benefit your employer. How can working from home help you perform better in your job? Will it save the company money? Will it improve efficiency? Will it make it easier to coordinate your hours with clients in different time zones? Use sales tactics to show how the features of remote work provide tangible benefits.
Potential Problems and Solutions: If there are obvious challenges arising from working from home, especially if they have already been raised by your supervisor, address them and include how they will be solved. If there are no clear problems in the written proposal, jot down a list of potential challenges and how to address them.
Childcare: If you have young children at home, it’s best to assume that childcare arrangements will remain as they are and leave your children out of your proposal. However, if your employer has already expressed concerns about the overlap between working from home and family responsibilities, you might want to clarify your childcare arrangements to assure them that you won’t be paid to do two things at once.
Next Steps: Provide your supervisor with a clear step to take after reviewing the proposal. This will help move the proposal forward and avoid months of waiting for a response. Suggest a time to discuss the proposal in person to answer any questions about it. Thank your employer for considering your request, and let them know when you will follow up.
How to Turn Your Current Job into a Remote Job
Not all companies or jobs will be compatible with remote work. However, with the increase in options for remote work and remote collaboration, more employers are considering remote work as a regular part of employee schedules.
If you want to turn your current job into a remote job, start by preparing a proposal for working from home. Even if the discussion ends in a more informal manner, the proposal will help you organize your thoughts and present the strongest possible argument for your new arrangement.
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Sources: The Balance uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts found in our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and maintain the accuracy, reliability, and quality of our content.
Gallup. “Remote Work Persisting and Trending Permanent.”
Source: https://www.thebalancemoney.com/write-a-telecommuting-proposal-3542552
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