Updated September 2026: this post began as my March 2020 diary of waiting for my manager to allow work from home as Covid-19 spread. Remote work is now a normal, negotiated arrangement, so I have rewritten it as a guide to asking for work from home well, with what that period taught me.
In early 2020 the coronavirus was spreading city by city. Traffic on my commute thinned, colleagues were quietly asking their onsite counterparts about working from home, and when I asked my manager, he said he would wait and decide. Within weeks the question was settled for everyone by lockdowns.
Six years on, work from home is rarely an emergency request. It is a negotiation over days, roles and trust. The lessons from that spring still apply.
Why did so many managers hesitate in 2020?
Mostly uncertainty. Few had managed a fully remote team, client contracts sometimes specified where work could be done, and nobody knew how productivity would hold up. The hesitation was less about distrust of individuals than fear of being the manager who got it wrong. Understanding that helps, because the same worries sit behind most refusals today.
How should you ask for work from home now?
- Know the policy first. Most large IT companies publish a hybrid policy with a minimum number of office days. Ask for something inside it, or explain clearly why you need an exception.
- Lead with the work. Say which tasks you do better remotely, such as focused documentation or late calls with overseas teams, and which you will still do in person.
- Offer a trial. Four to six weeks with a review at the end is easy for a manager to agree to and easy to extend.
- Put it in writing. A short email after the conversation avoids "I never agreed to that" later.
What should you avoid?
Asking in a crisis, when the manager is already stretched. Comparing yourself to a colleague who got approval, which makes it about fairness rather than work. And disappearing once approved. Being reachable during agreed hours is what keeps an arrangement alive.
What if the answer is no?
Ask what would change it. Sometimes the answer is a client requirement you cannot influence; sometimes it is a concern about a specific task that you can address. If you have a genuine need, such as caring for a family member, say so plainly and ask HR what formal options exist. A written refusal with a reason is more useful than a vague "not now", because it tells you whether to wait, adjust, or look elsewhere.
Looking back at March 2020
My manager's "let's wait and see" was frustrating then. What would have helped was a concrete proposal on my side: which work, which days, how I would stay reachable. It is the same proposal that gets a remote arrangement approved today.
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