The internet is buzzing with a plethora of work-from-home tips, tricks, and toolkits. But how do we know if what we’re reading is actually good advice?
Behavioral science at Hill + Knowlton Strategies believes in evidence-backed recommendations and strategic communications. So we looked at some of the top tips to see which of them are backed by science — and which might be bunk.
01. Facetime is key.
What people are saying:
“Use video chat for face-to-face communication whenever possible.”
What behavioral science says:
"YES! But... "
Why the science agrees:
Social presence theory holds that the more physical the presence of the person you are communicating with, the more satisfying that communication will be. Studies show that the richer the medium of communication, the higher the employee performance and job satisfaction – and face-to-face is by far the richest medium, even if it’s digital.
We all know those meetings that could have been emails. But now that you’re working from home, those meetings should be meetings. Get on Microsoft Teams. Facetime, Zoom, Skype, walkie-talkies, whatever it takes. At the same time, too much of a good thing can cause video-call fatigue because of increased screen time.
Our behavioral scientists recommend:
Figuring out ahead of time which meetings are video and which are voice only—and letting employees beg off of video if they need to. Besides, sometimes you don’t want to know what you’re not seeing.
02. Provide additional support to encourage productivity
What people are saying:
“Employees will be less productive as they transition to working from home.”
What behavioral science says:
Not quite.
Why the science disagrees:
Toolkits assume that working from home means less work gets done. However, research shows that people who work from home are typically more productive than their office-bound counterparts. This isn’t because remote workers doing more work per hour—it’s because they’re putting in more working hours overall.
In fact, one experiment showed a 13% performance increase in home workers compared to those who stayed in the office as a result of a 9% increase in the number of minutes employees worked while at home.
Our behavioral scientists recommend:
Worry more about overworking and burnout than underworking and boredom. Boundaries. Create guardrails…
03. Use objective criteria to evaluate performance
What people are saying:
“Working from home requires clear expectations and outputs.”
What behavioral science says:
YES!
Why the science agrees:
Impression management is what we call the non-conscious behavioral cues that we use to tell others who we are and what we care about. At the office, we send signals with observable actions—like keeping work tasks up on monitors, checking-in throughout the day and getting to the office early or staying late.
Those aren’t possible when working from home, so knowing exactly how to make the boss happy without these cues will make everyone happy.
Our behavioral scientists recommend:
Especially when things are so unsettled, it’s important to offer clear and consistent feedback, keep to scheduled meeting times, and have people check in when they’re “at work.”
04. Keep up the water cooler chats.
What people are saying:
“Stay in touch with your colleagues beyond meetings.”
What behavioral science says:
YES! (And...)
Why the science agrees:
Studies show that short, frequent communications with purpose help employees feel connected and included. Why? Because they help create so-called ‘weak ties’ with colleagues outside our usual social network. Weak ties are what you create with that co-worker you always see during your 11am coffee-run. Research tells us that these weak ties foster creative collaboration and encourage us to work with colleagues outside of our typical teams.
Our behavioral scientists recommend:
It’s easy to sit in on other teams’ meetings when you’re at home – why not learn something about new about what other teams do? Does a colleague have a picture of her dog on her desk at the office? Well, at home she has the real thing. Ask her to introduce her dog on the next video chat!
05. Do everything you can to be more organized.
What people are saying:
“Diligence and organizational skills are more important when working from home.”
What behavioral science says:
Not quite.
Why the science disagrees:
Work-from-home recommendations invariably assume that employees need additional organizational tools to overcome increased autonomy during the workday—implying that workplace autonomy leads to laziness. Research shows, however, that the freedom people have when working from home doesn’t mean they are suddenly less diligent or organized. Behavioral science tells us that what will make a difference in work-from-home success is the type of task. The research is clear: productivity goes up when working on a creative task, but falls when the task is menial, repetitive or boring.
Our behavioral scientists recommend:
Company-wide emails and toolkits should ask employees to apply the same level of office-tested diligence to how they work from home. Managers should then follow-up with tasks and recommendations tailored for the type of work their teams do.