Telework Uncovered: Employees’ Perceptions Across Various Occupations in an Industrial Company
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Study Design
2.2. Participants
2.3. Data Collection
2.4. Analyses
- Step 1: Identifying the Phenomenon
- Step 2: Selection of significant statements
- Step 3: Group Statements into Categories
- Step 4: Analyzing the Categories for Structural Relationships
3. Results
3.1. Individual Level
3.1.1. Telework Promotes Well-Being and Work–Life Balance
I find it positive that this flexibility is available. As an employee, it’s reassuring to know that I have this option, and as a manager, I see its value—for instance, if something urgent comes up at home or if I feel that I’m not in the best shape to go into the office on a particular day—Lars.
3.1.2. Telework Improves Individual Performance in Some Work Tasks
In terms of security, you lose far too much compared to being onsite—Karl.
3.2. Team Level
3.2.1. Telework Challenges Collaboration in Some Work Tasks and Increases the Workload Onsite
If someone is looking for a person who is teleworking, we (at the worksite) usually have to take care of that errand. It usually works out, but it becomes a moment of disturbance—James.
3.2.2. In-Person Relationships Make Telework Easier
We had several new people who had joined the office, and ultimately, one ended up quitting after about two months because she wasn’t getting the support that she needed. We didn’t have a strong relationship with people (or culture) to know who to reach out to. If you’re sitting next to someone in the office and you can just say, hey, how do I do this, it makes the learning curve a lot less steep. It’s a lot easier to start in the office, and then you get to know the people, and then it’s easier to work with them remotely—Nora.
3.3. Organizational Level
Unclear Expectations of Telework Practices Create Additional Demands on Management and Employees
(When teleworking) You lose track of the pulse—how the staff is doing… When a person is teleworking a lot, it can create a sense of being left out or disconnected from others. It’s important to be proactive and engage that person in the group—Amanda.
Telework is positive for the staff—Amanda.
3.4. Model/Summary
4. Discussion
4.1. Experiences: Benefits
4.2. Experiences: Challenges
4.3. Job Demands–Resources (JD-R Theory)
4.3.1. Telework as a Resource in Independent Work Tasks and Global Collaboration
4.3.2. Telework as a Demand in Interdependent Work Tasks, Relationship Building, and Support Tasks
4.4. Practical Implications for Management
4.5. Limitations
5. Conclusions
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Managers | Years in the Company | Days per Week Telework | Interview Made |
Lars | 2 | 1 | 2022 |
Mats | 10 | 12 | 2022 |
Lasse | 24 | 2–3 | 2022 |
Tom | 30 | 4–5 | 2022 |
Amanda | 18 | 0–½ | 2022 |
Karl | 12 | 0–½ | 2022 |
Niklas | 14 | 2–3 | 2023 |
Employees | Years in the Company | Days per Week Telework | Interview Made |
Sam | 5 | 2–3 | 2022 |
Johanna | 18 | 4–5 | 2022 |
George | 20 | 2–3 | 2022 |
James | 5 | 2 | 2022 |
Nora | 2 | ½–1 | 2023 |
Josefin | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
Kalle | 11 | 2–3 | 2023 |
Structural Relationship | Category | Description of Category | Significant STATEMENTS |
---|---|---|---|
Individual level | 1. Telework promotes well-being and work–life balance | This category highlights the benefits of telework, with interviewees noting improvements in well-being, reduced stress, and a better balance between work and personal life. | 1. (Telework) is good for motivation—Lasse 2. I feel much more healthy in my life to work more from home. It would become stressful otherwise. We have built our lives around it—Kalle 3. It is more flexible. It is not from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. If I have a time space between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m., I can be with my daughter or I can go for a bicycle ride, which brings me more joy and helps me stay flexible and dynamic throughout the day. Otherwise, I would have sat in the office—Tom 4. I feel calmer and happier—I have more free time, and I am less stressed (when teleworking)—Johanna 5. Stress is different when you’re at the office. You’re constantly interacting with people in person. It takes a lot of time when you’re at work—Niklas |
2. Telework improves individual performance in some work tasks | Improved performance in some work tasks can be a consequence of better well-being and work–life balance, being able to work without disruptions when teleworking, being more available in collaborations across time zones, and reducing business travel. | 6. When I feel well, as a result, I have a completely different performance at work—George 7. Writing or reading reports is beneficial to do at home—James 8. I don’t have people popping by my desk to talk about personal things. The best part about working remotely is having the flexibility to work when I’m most productive—Nora 9. You can make more critical and equal decisions for the whole group—you are unaffected by others (when teleworking)—Niklas 10. There are significantly fewer trips now due to telework, which is an advantage. It includes packing and traveling which takes a lot of time,—it would lead to some inefficiencies—Tom 11. (In my work) It’s a lot of coordinating with people in India or Malaysia, and with the project manager who’s sitting in the US. It’s probably a positive impact for them because I’m more available. It works really well (to telework), especially in this global role—Kalle | |
Team level | 3. Telework challenges collaboration in some work tasks and increases the workload onsite | Some problem-solving work tasks require more effort when teleworking, and onsite workers experience an increased workload. | 12. If you are onsite, you can go down together and look at the issue we have in production. However, if they are at home, it may require even more photos and explanations at times—Amanda 13. If someone is looking for a person who is teleworking, we usually have to take care of the teleworker’s tasks at the worksite—James |
4. In-person relationships make telework easier | Building relationships in person simplifies the transition to telework since office bonding contributes to a better understanding of each other’s work and facilitates learning within teams. | 14. It’s really hard to reach out to people if they’re all virtual. Whereas if you’re sitting next to someone in the office and you can just say, hey, how do I do this, it makes the learning curve a lot less steep. It’s a lot easier to start in the office, and then you get to know the people, and then it’s easier to work with them remotely—Nora | |
Organizational level | 5. Unclear expectations of telework practices create additional demands on management and employees | When company policies are not fully supported throughout the operations, it leaves room for different practices and creates additional demands on management and employees. | 15. It was communicated that coming to the office was a solution to problems. They were aware of who was coming in and how often. I was stressed knowing it would likely be perceived negatively that I wasn’t at the office—Nora 16. Our management for the XXX department wants people to be in person in the office and work there most of the time. I think it’s for the visibility—Kalle 17. You lose track of the pulse—how the staff is doing (when teleworking)—Amanda 18. I trust my employees—I know them—I can follow them from a distance without any problems. I don’t need to sit in the office for my employees. In the end, it is the performance that counts—Niklas |
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Korkeakunnas, T.; Lohela-Karlsson, M.; Heiden, M.; Rambaree, K. Telework Uncovered: Employees’ Perceptions Across Various Occupations in an Industrial Company. Adm. Sci. 2025, 15, 56. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci15020056
Korkeakunnas T, Lohela-Karlsson M, Heiden M, Rambaree K. Telework Uncovered: Employees’ Perceptions Across Various Occupations in an Industrial Company. Administrative Sciences. 2025; 15(2):56. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci15020056
Chicago/Turabian StyleKorkeakunnas, Tea, Malin Lohela-Karlsson, Marina Heiden, and Komalsingh Rambaree. 2025. "Telework Uncovered: Employees’ Perceptions Across Various Occupations in an Industrial Company" Administrative Sciences 15, no. 2: 56. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci15020056
APA StyleKorkeakunnas, T., Lohela-Karlsson, M., Heiden, M., & Rambaree, K. (2025). Telework Uncovered: Employees’ Perceptions Across Various Occupations in an Industrial Company. Administrative Sciences, 15(2), 56. https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci15020056