Work from home in the snowThe Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) estimates that £600 million will be lost by British business during the icy weather due to employees not being able to get to work or having to stay at home to look after their children because of school closures. It’s also suggested that 2000 businesses may go bust as a direct result of the bad weather.

That is very bad news in an already struggling economy and I have huge sympathy for the individuals affected. I also hope that there may be some longer-term beneficial consequences if more British businesses start to realise that allowing staff to work from home is not just a nice perk but actually makes sound financial sense.

Businesses would be so much more able to cope with any kind of unexpected situation, whether internal, local or national, if more of their staff had a home office already set up and were familiar with the demands of working from home. I’m not naive enough to think everyone can do it, but I do believe it’s time to let go of the old suspicious attitudes and the need to manage people by having them physically present.