Promoting effectiveness of working from home: findings from Hong Kong working population under COVID-19

Purpose Working-from-home (WFH) practice has been adopted by many companies of a variety of industries in a diverse manner; however, it is not until the recent outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic WFH gains worldwide popularity. With so many different views out there and based on work-family balance theory, this study aims to find out the factors which affect peoples' WFH effectiveness and whether they want the extended WFH practice when the pandemic crisis is over. Design/methodology/approach This paper adopted an online survey approach by posting questionnaires on the university website and different social media channels to collect views from full-time Hong Kong workers who have had WFH experience during the coronavirus outbreak. A total of 1,976 effective responses were collected for the data analysis. Findings The findings of this study indicate that WFH effectiveness is improved by personal and family well-being but reduced by environmental and resource constraints. When workers are experiencing higher WFH effectiveness, they have a higher preference for WFH even after the pandemic; the female workers preferred WFH twice per week, while the male workers more often preferred WFH once per week. Finally, workers from the management and the self-employed levels demonstrated a lower preference for WFH, compared to the front-line and middle-grade workers. Originality/value This paper fulfils to provide a timely reflection on workers' post-pandemic WFH preference, the factors affecting their WFH effectiveness and the demographic differences inducing to the differentiated preferences.

Automated summary

This study found that personal and family well-being can improve WFH effectiveness, while environmental and resource constraints can reduce it. Workers who are more effective at WFH are more likely to prefer it even after the pandemic; female workers prefer WFH twice per week, while male workers prefer it once per week. Additionally, workers in management and self-employed positions showed a lower preference for WFH compared to front-line and middle-grade workers.