How to keep 'work from home' employees accountable—without spying

Posted: April 02, 2013

If you are part of a business, and you have the option to work from home, there is an easy way that your employers can keep tabs on you to make sure you're working.

If you are part of a business, and you have the option to work from home, there is an easy way that your employers can keep tabs on you to make sure you're working.

Working from home. Working remotely. Telecommuting. No matter what you call it, working from anywhere other than your company’s office has gotten a bad rap lately. With Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer instituting a ban on the practice, and Best Buy setting strict limits on its work-from-home policy, the news has been negative for both managers and employees who rely on the flexibility that telecommuting can offer.

Telecommuters and the bosses who employ us, take heart. Today, telecommuting is easier than ever, thanks in large part to a host of free and low-cost products that can help keep remote employees productive, accountable, and in touch. Most of the tools are so cost-effective and easy to use that even the smallest of small businesses can rely on them.

Flexible work arrangements have thrived since the advent of high-speed Internet, and they’ve gained further steam with the rise of the smartphone. Sometimes the scheduling entails letting on-site employees work from home one or two days a week; but frequently companies hire employees who live in distant states and different time zones. Unfortunately, Yahoo’s new telecommuting policy, which is set to go into effect in June, casts these arrangements in a bad light.

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