The rise in this style of working isn’t unique to the travel industry, with the number of UK homeworkers increasing by 45% over the past 15 years, and those that are self-employed by 30% – accounting for three million people in the UK and 15% of the adult working population.
We at Travel Counsellors have seen more than 300 people set up their own business with the company over the past 12 months.
Work Wise Week, organised by the not-for-profit campaign group Work Wise UK, was a celebration of flexible working practices across the UK, culminating in National Work from Home Day on Friday May 18.
Work Wise Week’s campaign highlights the benefits of working flexibly, including reduced commuting times, working hours that suit family commitments and the ability to work out of hours for the customer’s benefit.
Surveys of homeworkers revealed that 80% of respondents reported a better work/life balance; 82% stated they would be more loyal to their employer if they had flexible working arrangements; and 91% said they get more work done working remotely.
In a recent survey of our 1,800 Travel Counsellors, 92% said they would not return to their previous job – a powerful statement given that the vast majority have left a salary to work on a self-employed basis.
But while the benefits of flexible working and homeworking are evident, the team at Work Wise Week also recognises that homeworking can cause people to miss human contact.
As business owners and leaders, it’s our job to enable travel professionals to work from home successfully by providing the right support and technology, and a culture conducive to a more empowered, personally connected and trusted way of working.
It’s also clear this type of working is exactly what travel professionals of the future are looking for: 54% of millennials want to work on a flexible or alternative work schedule, for example, and 85% of them want to work remotely 100% of the time.
Digital connectivity and social media networks now mean there are no limits to scaling a leisure or corporate travel business for those with the ambition to do so, and with the support network in place to help them.
And the growing trend isn’t just isolated to the UK travel industry, with the American Society of Travel Agents stating that “the fastest growing segment of the US travel industry is homeworking agents making use of the latest technology”.
The future looks flexible, but ultimately the real winners in the trend for homeworking should be the customers. As the old adage goes, ‘happy employees make happy customers’ – a message supported by customer-focused brands globally, including Starbucks. As chief executive Howard Schultz once said: “We built the Starbucks brand first with our people, not with the consumers”.
The long-term winners in travel will always be those that put people – their employees, franchisees and customers – at the heart of everything they do.
Steve Byrne is chief executive of Travel Counsellors
