Alignment, staffing and culture are often more critical than software and apps
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Topic: Business Culture
Christine Taylor
says:
Some large corporations may be ramping down on telecommuting but others are ramping up. To your point, those are overcoming bandwidth and security issues by deploying broadband WANs for telecommuters.
Team interaction can be an issue, probably my biggest personal issue. I telecommute in a virtual company; we all work from home and are scattered across the U.S. We have to be careful to communicate frequently through email and the phone. We also see each other a few times a year at tradeshows.
Still beats fighting traffic to drive to the office though! Been there, done that!
David Shull
says:
I have been a telecommuter for many years and I learned a long time ago how to manage the work-life-balance, probably too much shaded to work. However, I think one of the more challenging sides of telecommuting is - are your coworkers in the office prepared for telecommuting? By that, when one or more individuals go on a telecommuter program, are the office staff prepared and skilled in that area? It's a two way street and collaboration becomes one of the biggest challenges. Being in the office allows for a lot of face-to-face or indirect collaboration which is very valuable. When individuals start telecommuting then there needs to be a way to collaborate so the telecommuter isn't isolated from the office staff (coworkers) and vice versa.
Kelon
says:
Like all things, this is a balance. I miss the comradely but not the commute. I'm hear to watch my three and five year olds grow up...but can still be MUCH more @ home versus what I was in the office. My team is virutual...San Jose, India, Boston, England... so collaboration works on my phone here at home just like in the office.
Bill Trussell
says:
I would be very cautious about drawing conclusions from those enterprises that are now cutting back on telecommunting. It is my belief that they are doing so in response to negative feedback from those who remain in the office full time. While I would not agree with creating an environment filled with animosity I do believe that if such a policy is in place it should be noted to all concerned that telecommuting is being fostered for many reasons, not just as a benefit to a privilaged few. I have been experiencing the advantages of telecommuting for nearly three years and find most of the excuses for it not working to be just that, excuses. While I support efforts to colaborate with others, I would point out that it is very difficult to do so with outsourced partners and internal staff in offshore locations, but the expectation is there nonetheless. I have also found that functional managers tend to enjoy having their assigned resources in the office rather than offsite. For whatever reason it makes many managers feel more important to see their "charges" around more.
Michael Hackmer
says:
I think your selection of large companies unfairly devalues the benefit of telecommuting. With gas prices at all-time highs, saving employees from long commutes keeps their costs down and stretches the income of your salaried employees.
Some of the companies you mentioned have more permanent telecommute structures, with people working a vast majority of their time at home offices. I know, b/c I've worked with a lot of these people at HP, Intel and elsewhere.
I think more research into maintaining a 1 or 2-day telecommute policy for small to mid-sized corporations is more in order, because traffic congestion and gas prices are a main source of discomfort for employees, and retention of skilled workers, especially in an economic slow-down, is an important issue for small businesses.
I know I, for one, would love to telecommute one day a week. I would get more done, work a little longer, but still have time to handle other things for my family as needed. It works for my other colleagues...
Working Remotely and Loving IT
says:
I love working remotely. I get 10X more work done than I did in the office when I went to more meetings that I really needed to. Also, the office chit-chat does eat into your time during the day... and we all know everyone does it -- the American Idol water cooler debates etc. I agree that sometimes I do work more hours than I would in the office but it becomes a lesson in self-discipline which working remotely is anyway. I have a supportive boss and co-workers which does help. I think the experience has taught me about how to get creative to stay in touch and not feel isolated and how to really get things done regardless of the environment.
OR Bloggerette
says:
Im a former IT manager at Intel and can say, first hand, that Intel is not a GPTW (great place to work) for its employees when it comes to work/life balance and telecommuting. I wouldnt bother blogging on this topic if I was alone on this matterbut Im not many employees have voiced their complaints and some have lost their jobs over it. Unfortunately, Intel (and other companies like it) missed a cost-effective way to retain good employees and still get very high-quality work completed (regardless of the geographic constraints) by reneging on the telecommuting benefit . I quit my management job at Intel in November 2007 and am now working for a company that truly practices what it preaches. The managers where Im at now seem to be very skilled in virtual team management and in keeping project momentum in a virtual/remote environment. Their basic theory is to treat employees like adults by allowing them to adjust their schedules to get the work completed. Project slips are documented and factored into the employees annual review. As far as I can tell, project slips have occurred but they are few and none have been attributed to working from home.
Topic: Telecommuting
Telecommuting offers welcome workforce flexibility to both employers, workers
Blog: What the Government Can Learn from Google
Article: Green and Beyond: The Hard and Soft Benefits of Telecommuting
News: Federal Telecommuters Hindered By Budget Crunch, IT Security
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I agree that telecommuting is not for everyone, nor is it a cure-all, one-size-fits-all solution. You have to be very disciplined and organized to make telecommuting successful. I have found that it has vastly improved my home life and my attitude toward my job. I went from driving a two hours round-trip to the office to working from home. It was a tremendous blessing, so please, when you publish anything negative about telecommuting, make sure to point out its benefits for those who have the ability to telecommute and maintain job performance while improving home life. I don't think I ever want to go back to working an office!!!!