WhyTelecommute
From IckyWiki
Telecommuting and the Advantages of Electronic Communications
- Also see WhyChatRocks
- Also see TelecommutingLinks
- Time article on Flexible Work Schedules
- Washington post article Telecommuting Interest Soars
- Money, 5/11/2006: Men at Telework
Telecommuting has become, in recent years, one of the most desired benefits of working in a computer-related field. Desired, that is, by those being managed; some managers still seem leery of this arrangement, sometimes for good reason and sometimes not. A discussion of the advantages and pitfalls of telecommuting may be beneficial in deciding what kind of work environment will best motivate a particular group of people.
Bring up the topic of telecommuting to workers who don't, and you may see the misconceptions start to surface. 'It must be nice not to have to deal with work all the time.' 'You must sit around and watch TV half the time.' 'Don't you feel isolated sitting at home without ever talking to anyone?'
The truth is, most telecommuters work just as hard and long as those in an office--oftentimes longer, because they're not limited to working within defined hours and can work extra hours whenever the urge strikes them. Most teleworkers have defined hours during which they always work, but such an arrangement can be more flexible in case of unplanned occurrences--family obligations and other personal issues. When it's easy to make up the work, such time off tends not to interfere with the completion of work projects.
If home workers were, in fact, sitting around all day not working, it would quickly become obvious they are not getting any work done--or at least, it would be obvious to the manager who is fully aware of what work they're supposed to be doing. If an employee is avoiding work at home, you can be sure they are not going to be much more productive in an office--instead, you'll be watching over their shoulder regularly. When a worker is disciplined enough to get their projects done on time, it matters very little where they are physically located---and most employees in this category will greatly appreciate not being treated as untrustworthy by their managers. That is, a manager shows a great deal of trust by allowing employees to work from home. In many cases these employees will reward this trust by working even harder than if they had to come into an office every day.
Occasionally, people do find that working from home can be an isolating experience. Some think they won't get the information they need to get their work done. Some worry that they won't have the equipment they need to work properly. Some just feel the need to see someone face to face in order to work with them. In a work environment that actively promotes and accepts telecommuting, such issues need not be stumbling blocks.
In an age of electronic communications, nobody needs to feel as if they're not getting the information they need.
Email is available to every teleworker and is used regularly. Some people object to a volume of email, feeling that it's not conducive to 'work'. However, in many cases email can be a much more effective and time saving tool than picking up the phone. For one thing, both participants have a written record of a conversation, which the company can also archive and review should the need arise. There is much less chance of misunderstanding or intentional misconstruction of a conversation if it is written. Second, both participants have time to respond when it is convenient to them, which gives time for both to produce a more reasoned, thought-out response. This can be especially important in the case of personality mismatches or other conflict. Not only do participants get the chance to self-edit, but they may be more judicious if they know their email could be forwarded to their manager later. Third, group communications can be more effective via email than during the average conference call, because every participant gets a chance to respond and contribute.
This is not to say that the phone is not available; people who feel more comfortable using the phone are as free to do so as they would be at work, especially given the proliferation of Voice over IP services that allow their phone number to be physically located wherever the worker is.
Another very useful tool is instant messaging (IM) or internet relay chat (IRC). This is often a highly misunderstood tool but can be one of the most important ones in promoting group awareness and camraderie. First of all, it is important that the server that hosts such chats be internal to the company, so that confidential information is not shared with others. Second, connections to such boxes should either originate from a company machine or be encrypted. If such precautions are taken, electronic messaging or chatting can be just as secure and protected as a phone conversation--and again, a written record of conversations can be stored and retrieved later. IRC especially is a very valuable protocol, because participants can join groups related either by organization, project, or even mutual work interest. They can simultaneously monitor conversations on several topics, which would be nearly impossible via phone. Best of all, they can safely ignore it for hours at a time while doing other things, and still catch up on past conversations by checking the 'scrollback'. It's very possible that individuals and groups that communicate in this fashion have a much *better* idea of what's going on than those who are physically located in the same office and don't have this type of system.
So what about seeing workers face to face? Not everyone needs to see their co-workers every day, and in fact many find it less distracting not to be in an office environment. Still, most people need to talk face to face with someone at some point, and this can be easily arranged for if needed. Groups that are physically located within the same region can get together for work or even recreation regularly, if they need or want to do so. It's just not forced to be an every day occurrence. In some cases, people get more work done if they *don't* have their co-workers hanging over their cubicle wall every few hours. Some people have been in office environments that are noisy, fraught with overheard personal conversations, phone conversations, personal conflicts, and other non-work distractions. In cases like this, work from home can actually be far less distracting than the office. Any personal conflicts can much more easily be avoided or ameliorated if the individuals involved are not in the same physical location.
This leads to a discussion of the home environment. It is a misconception that a home office is any more distracting than a communal office arrangement. For one thing, there are bound to be far fewer people, and if their personal conversations are limited to the phone or electronic means, people who actually want to accomplish some work can avoid overhearing them. In many cases, home workers have a separate room dedicated to work and can close the door on any distractions that may exist at home. Those who have children are required to make arrangements for others to care for them during work hours. Those who don't have children are likely to have even fewer distractions at home.
Access to work resources (specifically computer networks) is not a problem, or at least not an insurmountable one. With SSL, VPN, and tunnels, machines at home can as easily and securely be connected to internal systems as those physically located within an office.
There are other issues that come down to cost savings for the company and for the worker. Telecommuters are not taking up valuable corporate real estate. They are not wasting as much money on transportation, which is also better for the environment at large. They are probably safer at home and less likely to be injured in transit. They can even save on work attire, plus valuable management time doesn't have to be wasted on enforcing dress policies and other trivialities of that sort.
The bottom line is, telecommuting is good for the company. A worker who is in a comfortable, flexible environment where they feel their management trusts them, will generally respond with loyalty and an even higher volume and quality of work than they would have if they worked in an office. And if they aren't working out well, it should be immediately obvious in the lower quality and small amount of work they get done.
Addendum: I am not against the use of the telephone. I prefer electronic communications because:
- I am not forcing someone else to conform to my schedule when asking questions or seeking information
- I am able to get a more thoughtful, complete response when someone has had the time to think about it and answer when they have the time to do so
- I don't have to leave messages and wait for people to call me back; I have already told them what I need or want to talk about and they can answer back when it's convenient.
