Is Teleworking Better for the World?
Talking to friends and family about their winter commutes makes me think about how tough it is for people who work in offices this time of year, many unnecessarily.
There are many jobs where you have to be physically present, but there are also many jobs where you could just as easily work from home given the right technical setup. I am wondering if more people had the opportunity to work from home, it might help the environment and the economy.
What are the advantages to teleworking?
- Carbon Footprint - Think of all the greenhouse gasses put out into the world but daily commutes, flights to meetings, heating huge offices, and so on.
- Costs - When I worked in an office I would spend over £100 a week on fuel alone, and that was before diesel was £1 a litre. There are costs to businesses to house and equip workers too, over and above the basics needed to do office work.
- Productivity - Each morning I can be at my desk within seconds because my office is downstairs from my bedroom. When I worked in an office it would mean driving for an hour or more, getting more and more stressed, through roadworks and traffic jams. Many times I would get to the office only to have to hop back into transport to get to a meeting, so my entire day would be spent traveling all apart from a 30 minute catch up meeting with a client 300 miles away. Video Conference calls would just require those 30 minutes, without all the travel time.
- Oil dependency - OK, I might overplay this one a little, but perhaps fewer unnecessary journeys would reduce dependency on oil?
- Family flexibility - Many work days are lost through to having to leave work due to family commitments, but in many cases you could quite happily get work done if only you were available at home rather than stuck in an office.
Obviously many companies worry that if there employees are not watched 24/7 they will not do their job, but in fact many organizations in practice have found this is not the case providing obvious checks and balances are implemented. Working remotely doesn’t have to mean out of touch.
All this doesn’t take much in the way of expensive technology either, it’s the kind of stuff most families will either have or be getting in their house:
- Decent spec computer - Doesn’t have to be top of the range, just enough to run Microsoft Office
- Broadband - This can be a sticking point for people in rural areas, but I imagine if they are within commutable distance of an office the majority will have broadband capability
- Webcam - Most computers come with these now but they are cheap if not
- Headset - To make conversations clearer it is useful to have a Skype headset, prevents background noise and echo.
- Software tools - Lots of virtual assistants now get by just with Google Docs, but of course it all depends on the work you will be doing. In terms of cost savings in IT, it helps if these applications work in the cloud or remotely so home IT visits are not required.
So there would be fewer gas-guzzlers crowding up the roads spewing out toxins, happier and more productive workers, and companies could save some money in a tough economy … Am I nuts or would more teleworking be better for the world?
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Posted on December 24, 2008 by Chris Garrett
Filed Under Enterprise 2.0
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10 Responses to “Is Teleworking Better for the World?”
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I agree. I would much preffer to work from home, especially in terms of more flexibility in my family life and travel time!
Not too sure actually - I think the discipline of getting dressed and going to an office can put you in work mode - there are too many distractions at home, even if you’re in the study/office.
I think Gareth has a good point about productivity but my concern is about the social consequences of spending so much time alone.
Absolutely agree with the idea of more teleworking - saves time and energy. I’m a Second Life developer and work with clients worldwide without needing to fly around to see them.
Sometimes face2face is good but doesn’t need to be all the time. If we cut 50% of commuting that would help costs and the environment.
I agree with Andrew on the social consequences - it was the one thing that I missed when I left my last job to set up on my own however if people were only telecommuting part of the time then they would have some face time (and therefore social time) in the office. Maybe that way everyone wins.
In my case my new social network is picked up through Twitter, Facebook, IM etc - it is possible to be in contact and have a natter without being in the same room!
I’m one of those people that loves the combination of heads down work from home and social interaction with office mates for limited times. Rather than being an either or, the concept might be more useful as a fluid choice.
For organizations to realize the benefits of telecommuting there is probably a beautiful middle ground where meetings, check-ins and collaborations are set-up for both scenarios - dial in and live - allowing workers to make the best choice for themselves.
That seems to be the core issue - self empowerment of the workforce. It’s a good thing. Seems to be a great way to boost productivity.
I, personally, would like to have 100% telecommute (I’ve actually heard it referred to as telework as well) but I think that is a bit unrealistic. There are meetings and other functions that require a physical presence so a split of 80/20 would be ideal for me.
There are also many people who need the social interaction at work. I think that can be achieved through social media and socialization outside of the workplace though. It would require a re-thinking of the way we work and socialize.
There are also some down sides to telework. The biggest one is family intrusion. It takes family a while to realize that even though I’m in the house I’m “at work”. There is also the risk of distraction and lack of motivation.
The lack of distinction between at home and at the office can also be a problem for the worker who either doesn’t work enough (too much “at home”) or works too much (too much “at the office”).
Telework is an important step forward but there is a lot of education and mindset changes that need to happen before it can really work. Employees, employers and families all need to learn new ideas and there need to be new ways of measuring productivity rather than just hours on the job.
I’ve been working at companies that allow telecommuting (and working at least one day from home) for much of the past 10 years. The ability to work one day a week from home was a negotiating point for my current job; within 4 months I went to two. With a 40-mile one-way commute, I wouldn’t have stayed if I couldn’t work from home twice a week. (On the days I go in, I take public transit.)
Many of my current co-workers telecommute on day a week (usually Friday); quite a few telecommute two days a week. Some, like Gareth (above) find that they have too many distractions at home and use “getting dressed and going TO work” to provide the discipline of working. Telecommuting isn’t for everyone.
I would advise against 100% telecommuting. At least in my work (internal technical communication and web support) it helps a lot that the team really knows who I am. Out of sight may not be out of mind, especially with IM and email, but it is out of familiarity.
Social interaction with work mates can be more important than you might think (more than I would have realized) especially when you have to collaborate. Avoid the “Who IS this person (and why should I care what s/he’s telling me)? effect. I’ve done 100% on site, 100% remote and balanced onsite/offsite and the latter seems to works best for me and many of my co-workers.
What I would love to see is more companies embracing a company-wide telecommuting policy. I’d love to see more companies setting policy of one (or more) specific days when telecommuting is accepted, encouraged, and largely assumed.
Practice conference calls with video. Experiment with 4-day in-office work weeks (either work 10 hours 4 days or telework on the 5th). Cut back on services one day a week. Provide incentives for telecommuters.
And, especially, understand that “time on site” does not equate to productivity.
Great question:
Here’s 3 things I like about telework:
1. I can create my own workspace that suits my personal preferences, and optimizes my productivity
2. It’s quiet, and I can focus on the task at hand
3. I like being treated as an adult and trusted to do my work
Here’s 3 things I don’t like about telework:
1. I can’t spontaneously brainstorm, face-to-face with my colleagues
2. My tribe feels too dispersed and disconnected, despite the technology that links us
3. My office is 20 steps from the kitchen. I’ve gained 7 pounds!
I have a 70 mile commute one way and would love to be able to work from home at least one day a week, but my company still believes that you must be in their facility if you want to get paid. I worked for a large financial company in New York previously, and it was understood and expected that if you were sick, had a daytime appointment, or had to be home for any reason, you could do so. I found that I was just as productive at home as I was at work because I could take a break when I wanted, I could start earlier and work later if necessary. Phone calls rang at home, so the caller had no idea that you were not in the office. It was a sweet set up that worked very successfully. Not being able to do that now is a huge adjustment for me. When I’ve mentioned it to my boss, he just says that law firms are notoriously slow to change. I say they need to realize that not everyone needs to be in the office every day to be a productive worker. I resent the fact that they feel that people who work from home wouldn’t do their job. I’m an adult and have always given 100% to every job I’ve ever had. Working from home wouldn’t change that.
I’ve been in a 100% work from home job for the last 2 years, except for a few weeks commuting at the start. I’m moving back to the UK in 2009 and I will definitely miss working from home, but I also miss meeting people through work - I don’t meet anyone where I am now. Of course, it would be great if I found a UK job that allows me to work from home, I’ll just have to see how it goes.