In the past, most people used to travel to their place of work. With increased use of computers, the internet and smart phones, more and more people are starting to work from home. What are the advantages and disadvantages of this development?

The advent of technology in our everyday life has inevitably impacted our way of living. Working modalities are, by far, a central theme that has split people between who encourages more work from home and who would rather stick to the traditional ways of commuting to their office. It goes without saying that, just like with any innovation, working from home will bring its positive and negative aspects. Firstly, working from home could have a positive impact on overall productivity. People who commute to work, spend an average of two hours, hopping from train to train. This includes a considerably amount of energy that is spent in the morning, which is amplified if we considered the fact that a large share of workers needs to wake up early in the morning just to catch a train. Decentralizing jobs from a central office could diminish levels of stress and general happiness of each employee. On the other hand, it should be considered how the lack of first contact could out balance the same increase in productivity cited above. For instance, relying on just conference calls whenever meetings take place cancels the benefits that are derived from sharing a room with other people. Additionally, effective communication can be hindered, given that video conferences limit our potential of expressing emotions when talking. Furthermore, a lack of a central office shared by all the employees could be detrimental to the general sense of belonging to a common cause, thus demolishing what the company itself stands for. In conclusion, PCs, smartphones and online conferences can bring their advantages but such upsides should be complemented with the idea of working in a centralized place.