Working from home - cameras on laptops?

[bbcessex]

I work from home at least two days a week, and regularly have conference calls etc.

In the past, it's not standard to have laptop cameras switched on for conf calls as we are a financial services company and it's not been common, but that's changing with teams about to regularly work more remotely due to corona policy.

I actually much prefer seeing the person / people I'm talking to and i think it helps with connecting / focus / communication. I've given my team notice that as we are all going to be working from home more (not formally told to yet but likely) I'd like to have work laptop cameras on during team calls wherever possible going forward.

Most people are fine - I've had the obvious comments 'oh no, I'll have to get dressed, ha ha', but a couple of people are really not happy about it (without being specific about why).

It's not mandatory of course, and i can't / won't enforce it, but I will encourage it.

Does anyone else have a view on this? Is it unreasonable to encourage?

If you really need to see peoples faces to connect, then just use a static photo.

If you wanted that with me, I'd ask you to send the office cleaners round first.

If you can manage to be dressed appropriately for work when you gage to travel there how is it harder to do from home?

I WFH part of the week as a reasonable adjustment to manage a medical condition, and one of the benefits is not having to expend the energy I have to when I'm in the office on getting ready to the same standard (and if you don't think getting ready for work takes much effort then you're lucky enough not to be chronically ill with this or a similar condition and I envy you). I'm usually dressed in exercise wear when WFH as I take short breaks to carry out some of the physio exercises I can't do in the office. My boss knows all that and is fine with it so wouldn't expect me to have video enabled, but I don't only have meetings with her and I'd rather not have to share my personal medical history with Malcolm and Derek from the office 300 miles away in order to explain either my appearance or why I'm not using video. Luckily it's left to each individual to decide here.

If you really need to see peoples faces to connect, then just use a static photo
We do this now - but about 10-15 years ago I had a manager for a few years who I never met in person, just communicated by email and a weekly phone call. Which was absolutely fine - it really wasn't till some time after he left the company and we connected on LinkedIn that I saw his photo and realised I'd not had a clue all before what he looked like and that it hadn't mattered in the slightest.

Wow I thought I was a paranoid lunatic. I have tape on my computer built in camera as well.

I have an asymmetrical smile/bite, I hate seeing myself talk in video calls like this. I don’t record videos of myself talking in my personal life so I would find it unfair to have you force this on me during work life. Obviously I just get on with it whilst speaking in person - but I’m also not simultaneously watching/broadcasting myself either. You might find video calls more productive but frankly, others don’t, so why are your wants more important? Especially if it makes others uncomfortable?

I work in a senior finance role and my bank would never implement this as a mandatory requirement. Working from home doesn’t mean that you have to stay in your house all day, nor does it mean that you have to dress in corporate attire or put on makeup etc. Video calls essentially force you to. And no, that doesn’t mean that I spend all day “scratching my arse in PJs” - shockingly my highly paid job gives me the freedom to buy casual clothes. And my performance has never been an issue - hence the promotions.

It's not necessary. Your main aim as a manager/leader is to get the best out of your team. If they are working well and doing what needs to be done then I'm not sure what real value adding video in will do.

If you physically can't be in the same place for weeks on end maybe it would be nice but a weekly call, not needed IMO. Maybe choose once a month or bi-monthly to make it video if you really feel strongly about it.

My camera has been off and covered after discovering a system update meant it turned on automatically. This was not a good look when I was called out at 3am one time. I have sometimes had it on for calls in normal office hours, in front of my books on feminism (just where I work,) but I don't usually, because I have been on a couple of calls where people are really pixel and their voices break up. Far more annoying than no picture.

Most of the techy calls I join are camera-free. A lot of the women's network calls I join have cameras on. Calls with the US often have cameras on. A lot of the time, you can barely see the tiny heads, because the screen is taken up by PowerPoint or shared screen showing something else.

I wouldn't make it policy that you have to show cameras, because often we're not looking at people, but spreadsheets or something, and technical capabilities means it's just not always practical if you want a functional call.

And apparently it's not polite to tell your manager you'd rather see his cat than him. (True, though!)

Having cameras not disabled can lead to security breaches.

" you support your local economy at lunchtimes"

If you're allowed out, yes. If I have to work from home to self-isolate, I suppose I won't be.

I have tape over the camera and do voice only

It’s partly personal and privacy reasons, but I also feel really distracted by the images and usually keep my head down and take notes anyway.

All those saying not being able to see visual cues (not that the visual is all that, especially over domestic Wi-fi) reduces the ability to communicate effectively, have you ever run this past any visually impaired colleagues?

Good luck with that.

We're pretty relaxed about where I work. We usually do video calls but sooner people prefer just audio and that's fine. I quite often see people not made up, hair a bit messy in their home environments but who cares as long as the work gets done.

I suppose it's down to company culture. Our software team pads around the office in what looks like pyjamas and socks no shoes 🙄

I’m with a lot of people here and actually relieved to find I’m not alone! So if nothing else thank you OP for this post for reassuring me of that!! I am happy in face to face meetings, or telephone conferences. However Skype or or video chat makes me uncomfortable, I find myself more preoccupied with where the camera is pointing and if I look weird or have a double chin. The getting dressed/makeup/hair wouldn’t worry me, I’d just be distracted as I hate having photographs taken, let alone being on video (even if I know it’s not recorded). I don’t even FaceTime my family, i prefer to just voice call

Why do you need to see their faces ffs? Are you a complete control freak?

I'd utterly hate this. I'd do it if I had to, and I've had to do it as part of a job before, but for me it impairs communication as opposed to a phone call - not through vanity but insecurity as I end up focusing on my own camera. So instead of getting information across effectively I end up with my focus elsewhere and looking at that. I find it incredibly distracting. Unfortunately I have OCD and used to have problems with having to get the set up absolutely right which could take a long time. I'm lucky enough I could set it with a blank wall behind me so it wouldn't be the privacy aspect so much but more having a camera pointed at my face recording me. I find it almost like those phone calls where the phone repeats back to you what you're saying and it's impossible to concentrate fully.

I HATE being on camera in work meetings. I’ve just got a new manager who insists on it and it’s just so awkward for everyone

The worst part about Skype meeting is the stating who is present in the meeting name by name bit for the minutes...that awkward wave/smile at the camera (whilst wishing you’d broken your leg that morning and was in hospital)

I work full time remotely.

Generally we encourage people to use their cameras, but it depends a lot on the meeting type.

If I'm having a small meeting say with 1 - 3 other people, we'd generally expect to be able to see each other.

If it's a huge conference call with 20+ people, less people tend to turn on their camera and I sometimes don't either.

Work at home and use Skype for Business all the time. None of us have our webcams on, hell I don't even have a profile picture on there. It's not expected for us to put them on.

A large client I'm working with at the moment is the same, we have regular con calls and their cams are off.

Wow. I had no idea so many people would object. Never realised that people would refuse/ put tape over the camera.

I have only worked for one company and we all did it.

And I've interviewed for a few positions recently.

Had no idea it was NOT the norm!

What @elenacampana said - with a few exceptions though

I think it makes your job less isolating if you wfh. We do it all the time. I used to work for a company who did not do it and it is interesting how much more connected I feel on these calls

I totally agree with you OP. Working from home should mean just that, you are at home rather than the office. If you don't have a meeting and can stay in your pyjamas, than that's a bonus, but it's a privilege, not a given. Shocking the number of people who clearly see it as an entitlement.

I do many teleconference calls and Skype video and I totally agree that the latter is much easier for rapport and concentration. I really don't check whether the person is wearing a pyjamas bottom, or if they've applied their make up properly.

I wouldn't impose it if working from home was a policy of the company, but if the person is opting to work from home rather than coming to the office, than yes, I would demand that they join by Skype video.

All of our non in person calls are via video call, if you choose not to (rather than malfunction) you are required to make up the time elsewhere and given a verbal warning. Just as you would if you dodged any other aspect of your job.

When we enforced video conferencing calls became shorter as people can no longer get away with being lazy during them.