A telecommuting pioneer's call center revolution
Nina Iannacito has been an Alpine Access call agent for seven years, working from her home in Arvada, Colo.
By Jennifer Alsever, contributing writerFebruary 23, 2010: 12:52 PM ET
(CNNMoney.com) -- When Jim Ball ran a traditional call center in Golden, Colo., in the late 1990s, employee turnover was rampant. Often, Ball was forced to hire just about anyone who walked in the door because few people were willing to commute to the call center and sit in a sterile cubicle for minimum wage.
When Ball and his partner Steve Rockwood sold the call center in 1997, they decided the next business would be radically different: Customer service agents would work from home.
Alpine Access co-founder Jim Ball.
"We said, 'It's the holy grail,'" Ball says. "It's the only way you're going to keep and retain people."
The idea was slow to catch on with customers. EAS Sports Supplements was the first to sign on with the new business, called Alpine Access. Then a few others followed, including My Twins, Checks Unlimited and several direct marketers.
Fast-forward 13 years. Alpine Access now has 3,000 employees in 1,000 cities that take calls for clients such as America Online, Office Depot and Fortune 100 financial companies. The company booked sales of $53 million last year -- and employee attrition is about half of what it was under the bricks-and-mortar setup, Ball says.
"It's gone from a trickle to a stream to a raging river," says Christopher Carrington, who became the company's CEO three years ago.
Standing out from scammers
The work-from-home field is rife with scams, where job seekers are asked to pay for "training" or supplies. Alpine Access is one of the few companies with a proven track record of being legit.
Alpine's job applicants go through an extensive interview process, just as they would with a traditional company. The 2% of applicants who are offered jobs pay a $45 fee for a credit and background check, but they don't pay for training or for "monthly service fees," as some work-from-home jobs charge.
Those the company hires make a starting salary of $8 to $12 an hour, and have access to benefits including a 401(k) and health insurance. Alpine Access doesn't contribute to health care costs, but it does offer a corporate match to the retirement fund.
Employees don't have your typical 9-to-5 schedule. Their shifts vary: a worker might clock in from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. and then again later in the day from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Employees must work 20 to 30 hours a week -- or at least four hours a day and five days a week.
A custom computer system enables Alpine Access' workers to clock in and field phone calls, but it also contributes to a company culture. Call center agents can mingle in chat rooms to gossip about work and life, sharing everything from recipes to baby pictures.
"We chat about our kids, how we're doing," says Don Noblin, a 47-year-old Alpine Access employee who takes calls for AOL (AOL) from his Phoenix home. "You bond with the people you work with even though some are 2,000 miles away."
Alpine Access managers, meanwhile, check in electronically, monitoring calls and wait times to measure productivity and using customer satisfaction surveys to gage employee performance. Workers also touch base with managers through instant messaging and video conference calls.
A changing market
Hundreds of companies moved their call centers overseas over the past decade to cut costs, but Carrington says the center of gravity for U.S. businesses is shifting back: "Seventy-five percent of our revenue growth is from companies that came back from India and the Philippines," he says.
In the past four or five years, things have really picked up for the entire industry, says Peter Ryan, an analyst who follows the call center sector for Ovum, a London-based research and consulting firm.
Today at least 20 call centers companies -- including Convergys (CVG), TeleTech and LiveOps -- have adopted the same work-at-home model.
One key driver is companies' ability to hire older, more educated -- and typically more stable -- agents who can handle longer, more complex calls. Companies also cut the overhead costs of having workers in buildings.
Ovum projects that around 48,500 people are now working from home answering customer phone calls, a number it expects to grow to 83,100 by 2012.
Despite the growth, not everyone is sold on home-based call centers. Some corporate executives worry that if calls are taken at home, workers will have too many distractions and too little supervision, Ryan says. Concerns about the security customer information also abound.
Just 1,700 of Cincinnati-based Convergys' 70,000 call center employees work from home. But that home-agent business is growing 20% a year at the $2.1 billion company, says Brad Kinhop, a vice president in charge of Convergys' home division. Convergys' home agents also claim 5% to 10% better customer satisfaction than their cubicle counterparts.
"I think Jim Ball and Steve at Alpine access were pretty visionary to come up with the idea," says Krinhop, who once worked at Alpine Access. "It just makes sense. Fast forward two to three years from now, and people will say, 'Really? You have to drive into work? You can't work from home?'"
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Why Flexible Hours and Telecommuting Are on the Rise
Beyond the 9-to-5
Why Flexible Hours and Telecommuting Are on the Rise
BY JOSEPH BEDNAR
Brenda Olesuk says the accounting industry has been smart about using flex time and telecommuting as a retention tool.
In 2003, about 4.4 million Americans were telecommuting, to some extent, instead of showing up at the office. In 2010, that number is expected to surpass 100 million. At the same time, the trend toward allowing employees to work flexible or non-traditional hours has also risen sharply in recent years. Why the surges? As it turns out, even during a recession, companies still value their best talent and are increasingly willing to let them craft a workday around their personal and professional needs. Employers say they benefit because happy workers are productive workers.
It’s no wonder accounting is such an attractive field for women, considering what a leader the industry has been in providing work-life benefits like flexible schedules and telecommuting.
“It’s a retention tool,” said Brenda Olesuk, director of marketing for Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C. in Holyoke. “In fact, accounting firms, as a rule, have employed flex time, technology, and telecommuting as a both a recruiting tool and as a retention tool.”
Part of the shift has to do with the rise of women in the accounting field; they make up more than 60% of all accountants nationwide.
“That has changed the complexion of the industry over the past couple of decades,” Olesuk noted. “Women, of course, have families and often want to have the flexibility of being able to have a family and a career. These are highly educated, accomplished people, and the industry has been very smart about using technology and flex time to attract and retain talent, especially women.”
But it’s not just accounting, and not only women who are reaping these benefits. Across the board, aided by advancements in communications technology, workers are increasingly being given the option of working at home, or coming into the office for only part of their workweek, otherwise staying connected by phone, e-mail, and Internet.
The upward trend has been pronounced. In 2003, according to a report from the American Interactive Research Group, about 4.4 million Americans telecommuted from home. A year later, that number had almost doubled, and in 2010, it’s expected to surpass 100 million — almost a third of the country’s entire population, working or not.
That’s a startling increase, but it doesn’t surprise Lorie Valle-Yanez, vice president and chief diversity officer at MassMutual. That’s because the Springfield-based financial-services firm has long been recognized as a leader in providing work-life benefits to its employees, even being named to Working Mother magazine’s 100-best-companies list 10 times.
“I like to think we have a culture of flexibility here. If you walked through the halls and talked to people, you’d see it’s less of a formal program and more a part of the DNA of the company,” she explained. “We have a long history of supporting the work-life balance of employees, helping employees meet their obligations inside and outside of work.”
It’s a trend that should continue as a perfect storm brews, with employers increasingly recognizing the benefits of keeping their top talent happy, and a generation of 20-somethings entering the work world expecting such treatment to a degree not seen before.
But working from home and setting one’s own hours isn’t a right, say those who spoke with BusinessWest; it’s a privilege earned by the most valuable, productive workers. And used correctly, such flexibility is proving to be a classic win-win for companies and their employees.
Doing Their Homework
Employee retention is no small matter; depending on the industry and the position, the replacement cost of an entry-level staff position — including money spent on recruitment, hiring, training, and orienting a new employee — can top $10,000, and often much more. And that doesn’t include the lost time and energy that management must expend on such efforts.
That’s why keeping top talent happy is critical, even during a recession.
“Absolutely, it’s attractive for people who want to come work here,” Valle-Yanez said. “One of the selling points when you come to this company is its flexibility. It certainly demonstrates that this company cares about employees’ well-being, and it shows in increased productivity, improved morale, improved engagement, and improved loyalty across the board. People know they can come into this organization and be able to manage their work-life challenges.”
Smaller companies are also starting to recognize the benefits of giving employees an alternative to the 9-to-5 cubicle shift.
“Offering flex time and mixed telecommuting arrangements is something we’ve done for a number of years,” said Michelle van Schouwen, president of van Schouwen Associates, a Longmeadow-based advertising and marketing firm.
“Back when we started, it was born of various necessities — so a valued employee moving to a different state could still do most of their work, or for a parent whose child care ended before our office hours did,” van Schouwen explained. “As we began to work with it, we realized it was a good fit with the type of staffing we had.”
Specifically, she said, her firm typically hires people who have an independent streak and know how to manage themselves, rather than needing lots of hand-holding. “They tend to be the kind of people who would stay late and do the job at the office, people who know what they’re responsible for and want to get it done. They have that internal sense of professionalism that means they’re going to get their work done.”
That’s an important factor, Valle-Yanez said, because not everyone has the discipline to stay focused on work when no one is looking.
“I believe flexibility is not an entitlement; it’s an earned privilege,” she told BusinessWest. “It’s not one size fits all. Not everyone is able to work from home. If somebody is not performing, it’s probably less likely they’ll have the same flexibility as someone who performs very well.”
The type of job someone has obviously makes a difference, too, she said, noting that a call-center representative would need to work largely on site during regular business hours. But those whose jobs allow them to work from home, on their own schedule, are likely to appreciate the privilege — and that’s good for productivity.
“People who are good performers have earned the right and earned that flexibility. They value that flexibility a lot, and they’re very productive employees,” Valle-Yanez said. “If you think about it as an earned privilege, you don’t want that privilege to be taken away. So employees who have that privilege tend to be highly motivated.”
Small World
Olesuk noted that home offices and corporate offices are more connected by technology than ever before, and many tasks can be performed at night or on weekends, allowing employees who have children or other responsibilities to set their own schedule.
“In our firm, we have all sorts of people, men and women alike, who are able to work from home or from their office equally well,” she said. “Technology is an enormous component allowing us to do our job from any location, and the flexibility of being able to manage our hours, whether it’s full-time or part-time, and still serve the client and meet the firm’s needs, is a very significant tool. If we were to go back to everyone doing 8 to 5 from this office, we’d have real retention issues.”
Being an accounting and business-consulting firm, Meyers Brothers Kalicka (MBK) is able to observe this move toward flexibility outside its own walls, too.
For example, James Calnan, partner and director of the firm’s Health Services Division, sees a definite increase in telecommuting in the medical field, especially for key staff hired for their specific skill set and judgment.
One of his clients employs a director of finance who’s scheduled to work from home two days per week, with the company supplying the computer, cell phone, and other technology. Another client has field reps in multiple states, and staff meetings are conducted through a dial-in format. While it’s usually key personnel who have more ability to telecommute, Calnan said, most levels of administrative staff are utilizing flex scheduling — again, perhaps spurred by more women in the workforce having to juggle work and home responsibilities.
Donna Roundy, MBK’s senior audit manager for its Not-for-Profit Division, says nonprofit organizations are increasingly allowing telecommunicating as a way to attract and retain skilled individuals in key roles. Outside of these key positions, she said, most clients typically want their staff on premises.
Meanwhile, Kris Houghton, a partner and Director of the firm’s Tax Division, says the service sector most successfully utilizes technology for recruitment and retention, with fields such as accounting, law, engineering, medicine, human resources, and computers services best equipped to operate in that ‘virtual-office’ environment.
Sales forces also benefit from technology and ability to telecommute, she added. While support-level staff may not always have telecommuting opportunities, Houghton said, there has definitely been an increase in flexible hours across the board.
Telecommuting can also serve specific budgetary purposes, Houghton explained. For instance, instead of bringing a medical coder on board full-time, which a practice may not need, it can hire a coder part-time who does the practice’s work from home at night — a more efficient use of resources.
Homeward Bound
At MassMutual, Valle-Yanez said, while scheduling and workplace flexibility is built into the philosophy and culture, each decision on where and when someone works is typically made between that employee and his or her manager, taking into account both outside circumstances and the employee’s work habits and productivity. When the arrangement works, everyone is happy.
“It’s a nice option,” she said. “You don’t have to face a snowstorm. You can do your work at home. In some cases, people are more productive at home; there are often less day-to-day interruptions, and they’re surprised how much they get done from their home office.”
In terms of productivity and retention, van Schouwen had similar thoughts.
“It’s all positive — again, when using the right people,” she said. “For example, among our employees, we have parents of younger children who likely stay with the job in part because it allows them a work-life balance. In addition, we’ve been able to keep people who have moved away with a spouse or made other life changes that would have made an ordinary commute inconvenient.
“For a small company,” she concluded, “it’s a benefit that’s both affordable and valued, and that’s a precious thing.”
Joseph Bednar can be reached
at bednar@businesswest.com
Why Flexible Hours and Telecommuting Are on the Rise
BY JOSEPH BEDNAR
Brenda Olesuk says the accounting industry has been smart about using flex time and telecommuting as a retention tool.
In 2003, about 4.4 million Americans were telecommuting, to some extent, instead of showing up at the office. In 2010, that number is expected to surpass 100 million. At the same time, the trend toward allowing employees to work flexible or non-traditional hours has also risen sharply in recent years. Why the surges? As it turns out, even during a recession, companies still value their best talent and are increasingly willing to let them craft a workday around their personal and professional needs. Employers say they benefit because happy workers are productive workers.
It’s no wonder accounting is such an attractive field for women, considering what a leader the industry has been in providing work-life benefits like flexible schedules and telecommuting.
“It’s a retention tool,” said Brenda Olesuk, director of marketing for Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C. in Holyoke. “In fact, accounting firms, as a rule, have employed flex time, technology, and telecommuting as a both a recruiting tool and as a retention tool.”
Part of the shift has to do with the rise of women in the accounting field; they make up more than 60% of all accountants nationwide.
“That has changed the complexion of the industry over the past couple of decades,” Olesuk noted. “Women, of course, have families and often want to have the flexibility of being able to have a family and a career. These are highly educated, accomplished people, and the industry has been very smart about using technology and flex time to attract and retain talent, especially women.”
But it’s not just accounting, and not only women who are reaping these benefits. Across the board, aided by advancements in communications technology, workers are increasingly being given the option of working at home, or coming into the office for only part of their workweek, otherwise staying connected by phone, e-mail, and Internet.
The upward trend has been pronounced. In 2003, according to a report from the American Interactive Research Group, about 4.4 million Americans telecommuted from home. A year later, that number had almost doubled, and in 2010, it’s expected to surpass 100 million — almost a third of the country’s entire population, working or not.
That’s a startling increase, but it doesn’t surprise Lorie Valle-Yanez, vice president and chief diversity officer at MassMutual. That’s because the Springfield-based financial-services firm has long been recognized as a leader in providing work-life benefits to its employees, even being named to Working Mother magazine’s 100-best-companies list 10 times.
“I like to think we have a culture of flexibility here. If you walked through the halls and talked to people, you’d see it’s less of a formal program and more a part of the DNA of the company,” she explained. “We have a long history of supporting the work-life balance of employees, helping employees meet their obligations inside and outside of work.”
It’s a trend that should continue as a perfect storm brews, with employers increasingly recognizing the benefits of keeping their top talent happy, and a generation of 20-somethings entering the work world expecting such treatment to a degree not seen before.
But working from home and setting one’s own hours isn’t a right, say those who spoke with BusinessWest; it’s a privilege earned by the most valuable, productive workers. And used correctly, such flexibility is proving to be a classic win-win for companies and their employees.
Doing Their Homework
Employee retention is no small matter; depending on the industry and the position, the replacement cost of an entry-level staff position — including money spent on recruitment, hiring, training, and orienting a new employee — can top $10,000, and often much more. And that doesn’t include the lost time and energy that management must expend on such efforts.
That’s why keeping top talent happy is critical, even during a recession.
“Absolutely, it’s attractive for people who want to come work here,” Valle-Yanez said. “One of the selling points when you come to this company is its flexibility. It certainly demonstrates that this company cares about employees’ well-being, and it shows in increased productivity, improved morale, improved engagement, and improved loyalty across the board. People know they can come into this organization and be able to manage their work-life challenges.”
Smaller companies are also starting to recognize the benefits of giving employees an alternative to the 9-to-5 cubicle shift.
“Offering flex time and mixed telecommuting arrangements is something we’ve done for a number of years,” said Michelle van Schouwen, president of van Schouwen Associates, a Longmeadow-based advertising and marketing firm.
“Back when we started, it was born of various necessities — so a valued employee moving to a different state could still do most of their work, or for a parent whose child care ended before our office hours did,” van Schouwen explained. “As we began to work with it, we realized it was a good fit with the type of staffing we had.”
Specifically, she said, her firm typically hires people who have an independent streak and know how to manage themselves, rather than needing lots of hand-holding. “They tend to be the kind of people who would stay late and do the job at the office, people who know what they’re responsible for and want to get it done. They have that internal sense of professionalism that means they’re going to get their work done.”
That’s an important factor, Valle-Yanez said, because not everyone has the discipline to stay focused on work when no one is looking.
“I believe flexibility is not an entitlement; it’s an earned privilege,” she told BusinessWest. “It’s not one size fits all. Not everyone is able to work from home. If somebody is not performing, it’s probably less likely they’ll have the same flexibility as someone who performs very well.”
The type of job someone has obviously makes a difference, too, she said, noting that a call-center representative would need to work largely on site during regular business hours. But those whose jobs allow them to work from home, on their own schedule, are likely to appreciate the privilege — and that’s good for productivity.
“People who are good performers have earned the right and earned that flexibility. They value that flexibility a lot, and they’re very productive employees,” Valle-Yanez said. “If you think about it as an earned privilege, you don’t want that privilege to be taken away. So employees who have that privilege tend to be highly motivated.”
Small World
Olesuk noted that home offices and corporate offices are more connected by technology than ever before, and many tasks can be performed at night or on weekends, allowing employees who have children or other responsibilities to set their own schedule.
“In our firm, we have all sorts of people, men and women alike, who are able to work from home or from their office equally well,” she said. “Technology is an enormous component allowing us to do our job from any location, and the flexibility of being able to manage our hours, whether it’s full-time or part-time, and still serve the client and meet the firm’s needs, is a very significant tool. If we were to go back to everyone doing 8 to 5 from this office, we’d have real retention issues.”
Being an accounting and business-consulting firm, Meyers Brothers Kalicka (MBK) is able to observe this move toward flexibility outside its own walls, too.
For example, James Calnan, partner and director of the firm’s Health Services Division, sees a definite increase in telecommuting in the medical field, especially for key staff hired for their specific skill set and judgment.
One of his clients employs a director of finance who’s scheduled to work from home two days per week, with the company supplying the computer, cell phone, and other technology. Another client has field reps in multiple states, and staff meetings are conducted through a dial-in format. While it’s usually key personnel who have more ability to telecommute, Calnan said, most levels of administrative staff are utilizing flex scheduling — again, perhaps spurred by more women in the workforce having to juggle work and home responsibilities.
Donna Roundy, MBK’s senior audit manager for its Not-for-Profit Division, says nonprofit organizations are increasingly allowing telecommunicating as a way to attract and retain skilled individuals in key roles. Outside of these key positions, she said, most clients typically want their staff on premises.
Meanwhile, Kris Houghton, a partner and Director of the firm’s Tax Division, says the service sector most successfully utilizes technology for recruitment and retention, with fields such as accounting, law, engineering, medicine, human resources, and computers services best equipped to operate in that ‘virtual-office’ environment.
Sales forces also benefit from technology and ability to telecommute, she added. While support-level staff may not always have telecommuting opportunities, Houghton said, there has definitely been an increase in flexible hours across the board.
Telecommuting can also serve specific budgetary purposes, Houghton explained. For instance, instead of bringing a medical coder on board full-time, which a practice may not need, it can hire a coder part-time who does the practice’s work from home at night — a more efficient use of resources.
Homeward Bound
At MassMutual, Valle-Yanez said, while scheduling and workplace flexibility is built into the philosophy and culture, each decision on where and when someone works is typically made between that employee and his or her manager, taking into account both outside circumstances and the employee’s work habits and productivity. When the arrangement works, everyone is happy.
“It’s a nice option,” she said. “You don’t have to face a snowstorm. You can do your work at home. In some cases, people are more productive at home; there are often less day-to-day interruptions, and they’re surprised how much they get done from their home office.”
In terms of productivity and retention, van Schouwen had similar thoughts.
“It’s all positive — again, when using the right people,” she said. “For example, among our employees, we have parents of younger children who likely stay with the job in part because it allows them a work-life balance. In addition, we’ve been able to keep people who have moved away with a spouse or made other life changes that would have made an ordinary commute inconvenient.
“For a small company,” she concluded, “it’s a benefit that’s both affordable and valued, and that’s a precious thing.”
Joseph Bednar can be reached
at bednar@businesswest.com
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Editorial - U.S. must do better at enabling federal employees to telework
U.S. must do better at enabling federal employees to telework
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
THIS TIME IT was record-breaking snowfalls that forced the federal government to close. Next time, it could be any number of natural or man-made events that keep federal employees from venturing into their offices.
But empty downtown buildings should not create a government standstill. And it should not take a natural disaster or terrorist attack to highlight the importance of having federal employees plugged in and ready to do the government's work from home.
According to the Office of Personnel Management, roughly 30 percent of the federal workforce at some point during the past week worked from home. This is an improvement from the roughly 1 percent who were able to telework during the massive 1996 snowstorm that paralyzed Washington. It is still not good enough.
The vast majority of homes in the Washington area are equipped with computers and Internet service, not to mention land-lines and cellphones. Federal employees should be encouraged to use these tools to remain productive when they are unable to come into the office.
There are advantages to allowing government employees to work from home even when they are not snowbound. For example, notorious Washington traffic jams could be eased by permitting telecommuting. Lost workdays due to lack of child care could be also be decreased. Savings could also be realized. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office started a telework program more than a decade ago with 18 attorneys; today, 4,000 PTO employees spend at least part of their workweek toiling at home. The agency reports that it has saved $11 million by not having to acquire additional office space because of its homework-friendly approach. It has also reported higher morale and steady productivity.
John Berry, director of the Office of Personnel Management, has done a commendable job advocating teleworking; he has set a goal of increasing the government's telework capabilities by 50 percent by the end of 2011. His office should be given the authority, under emergency circumstances such as those experienced last week, to require teleworking for eligible employees.
Reps. John Sarbanes (D-Md.), Frank R. Wolf (R-Va.) and Gerald E. Connolly (D-Va.) have proposed legislation that would help nudge the government toward that goal while recognizing that each agency must choose an approach that makes sense for its particular mission and cybersecurity needs.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
THIS TIME IT was record-breaking snowfalls that forced the federal government to close. Next time, it could be any number of natural or man-made events that keep federal employees from venturing into their offices.
But empty downtown buildings should not create a government standstill. And it should not take a natural disaster or terrorist attack to highlight the importance of having federal employees plugged in and ready to do the government's work from home.
According to the Office of Personnel Management, roughly 30 percent of the federal workforce at some point during the past week worked from home. This is an improvement from the roughly 1 percent who were able to telework during the massive 1996 snowstorm that paralyzed Washington. It is still not good enough.
The vast majority of homes in the Washington area are equipped with computers and Internet service, not to mention land-lines and cellphones. Federal employees should be encouraged to use these tools to remain productive when they are unable to come into the office.
There are advantages to allowing government employees to work from home even when they are not snowbound. For example, notorious Washington traffic jams could be eased by permitting telecommuting. Lost workdays due to lack of child care could be also be decreased. Savings could also be realized. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office started a telework program more than a decade ago with 18 attorneys; today, 4,000 PTO employees spend at least part of their workweek toiling at home. The agency reports that it has saved $11 million by not having to acquire additional office space because of its homework-friendly approach. It has also reported higher morale and steady productivity.
John Berry, director of the Office of Personnel Management, has done a commendable job advocating teleworking; he has set a goal of increasing the government's telework capabilities by 50 percent by the end of 2011. His office should be given the authority, under emergency circumstances such as those experienced last week, to require teleworking for eligible employees.
Reps. John Sarbanes (D-Md.), Frank R. Wolf (R-Va.) and Gerald E. Connolly (D-Va.) have proposed legislation that would help nudge the government toward that goal while recognizing that each agency must choose an approach that makes sense for its particular mission and cybersecurity needs.
Monday, February 15, 2010
eWorkPlace "Telework Twin Cities"
eWorkPlace "Telework Twin Cities"
Twin Cities metro area commuters are making the pledge to telework for one or more days per week from April 11 - 24, and have the chance to a win a mini-notebook computer, an Apple iPad, and more great prizes!
Participants can access free telework training, download a sample proposal to address with their manager and learn the "business case" for telework. Telework benefits the environment by reducing CO2 emissions, promotes workplace efficiency, saves time, money and energy and reduces traffic congestion.
eWorkPlace "Telework Twin Cities" is a state-sponsored telework program for the Twin Cities metro area, its employers and individual community members.
With the assistance from Mn/DOT and from researchers at the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, you will be counted as a person who is making a difference! Celebrate the Earth!
Visit www.eworkplace-mn.com or contact Adeel Lari, Program Director, University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute. Email larix001@umn.edu or call 612.624.7746 to learn more.
More information: http://www.eworkplace-mn.com
Twin Cities metro area commuters are making the pledge to telework for one or more days per week from April 11 - 24, and have the chance to a win a mini-notebook computer, an Apple iPad, and more great prizes!
Participants can access free telework training, download a sample proposal to address with their manager and learn the "business case" for telework. Telework benefits the environment by reducing CO2 emissions, promotes workplace efficiency, saves time, money and energy and reduces traffic congestion.
eWorkPlace "Telework Twin Cities" is a state-sponsored telework program for the Twin Cities metro area, its employers and individual community members.
With the assistance from Mn/DOT and from researchers at the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, you will be counted as a person who is making a difference! Celebrate the Earth!
Visit www.eworkplace-mn.com or contact Adeel Lari, Program Director, University of Minnesota Humphrey Institute. Email larix001@umn.edu or call 612.624.7746 to learn more.
More information: http://www.eworkplace-mn.com
How to Use the Internet to Work From Home
How to Use the Internet to Work From Home
Time. What would you do with one extra hour a day? Two? Three? How about a whole day? What if you never had to go to the office again, but could more efficiently work from the comfort of home. This isn’t just a daydream. It is an achievable goal in today’s Internet-based economy. All you need is a plan, and the will to follow it.
Never in modern history have there been more opportunities to work from home. But are you taking advantage of them? You could be doing any number of things to increase the amount of free time and disposable income you have. It may be as simple as asking your boss if you can work from home on Wednesdays, or you may want to create a business plan for an Internet venture. The important thing is to look at the Internet as more than just email and instant weather reports- the Internet can give you that most important of life’s commodities: Time.
While not all of us can consider telecommuting as a viable option, many can cut down on how often they need to physically be at work. Take teachers as one example. With the use of on-line lesson plan sites such as Web English Teacher you can do almost all of your planning from the comfort of your own living room. Need to get grading done? A variety of on-line grading tools are available which allow you to grade right from your own living room. Some sites, like Blackboard.com, even give you the ability to interact with students as they are doing their homework with instant chat and help files. If you think creatively, you’ll find many ways to work productively from home, effectively giving you more time.
However, the Internet revolution can give you much more than just a few more hours at home. It can provide you with substantial supplemental income and even the possibility of not needing to go to that 9-5 job ever again. The trick is finding something you are good at and developing it into a revenue stream. One of the most popular on-line businesses is the eBay store. Here you can create your own virtual retail operation. Or maybe you want to provide a service instead of selling. Are you a decent writer? People will pay up to $100.00 for a well-written resume. I speak from experience, as I have been doing this for over 7 years, and it has allowed my wife the opportunity to stay home with our young children. Here are just a few of the literally hundreds of potential revenue builders you could create:
Bookkeeping
Business support
Consulting
Desktop publishing
Medical claims
Security specialist
Seminar production
Transcription service
Virtual assistant business
So, what do you need to get started? A computer with Internet access and some basic skills; nothing more complicated than what you could find in one of those ever popular Dummies, or Idiot’s Guide books. Then just decide what you would like to do. Take a look on-line at sites such as homebusinessmag.com, hbwm.com and home-based-business-world.com or any number of other quality sites to get ideas and start making plans for your own financially secure future.
It is as easy as that. Start small. As with any business venture you need to give it time to grow. Don’t quit that day job, yet. But remember, never before has there been such opportunity in the marketplace. Don’t let it pass you by. You have more than just financial security to gain; you can also have more time.
Steve is the owner/manager of Quality-Resumes.net, an resume writing service sopecializing in new graduates and entry level job seekers.
Time. What would you do with one extra hour a day? Two? Three? How about a whole day? What if you never had to go to the office again, but could more efficiently work from the comfort of home. This isn’t just a daydream. It is an achievable goal in today’s Internet-based economy. All you need is a plan, and the will to follow it.
Never in modern history have there been more opportunities to work from home. But are you taking advantage of them? You could be doing any number of things to increase the amount of free time and disposable income you have. It may be as simple as asking your boss if you can work from home on Wednesdays, or you may want to create a business plan for an Internet venture. The important thing is to look at the Internet as more than just email and instant weather reports- the Internet can give you that most important of life’s commodities: Time.
While not all of us can consider telecommuting as a viable option, many can cut down on how often they need to physically be at work. Take teachers as one example. With the use of on-line lesson plan sites such as Web English Teacher you can do almost all of your planning from the comfort of your own living room. Need to get grading done? A variety of on-line grading tools are available which allow you to grade right from your own living room. Some sites, like Blackboard.com, even give you the ability to interact with students as they are doing their homework with instant chat and help files. If you think creatively, you’ll find many ways to work productively from home, effectively giving you more time.
However, the Internet revolution can give you much more than just a few more hours at home. It can provide you with substantial supplemental income and even the possibility of not needing to go to that 9-5 job ever again. The trick is finding something you are good at and developing it into a revenue stream. One of the most popular on-line businesses is the eBay store. Here you can create your own virtual retail operation. Or maybe you want to provide a service instead of selling. Are you a decent writer? People will pay up to $100.00 for a well-written resume. I speak from experience, as I have been doing this for over 7 years, and it has allowed my wife the opportunity to stay home with our young children. Here are just a few of the literally hundreds of potential revenue builders you could create:
Bookkeeping
Business support
Consulting
Desktop publishing
Medical claims
Security specialist
Seminar production
Transcription service
Virtual assistant business
So, what do you need to get started? A computer with Internet access and some basic skills; nothing more complicated than what you could find in one of those ever popular Dummies, or Idiot’s Guide books. Then just decide what you would like to do. Take a look on-line at sites such as homebusinessmag.com, hbwm.com and home-based-business-world.com or any number of other quality sites to get ideas and start making plans for your own financially secure future.
It is as easy as that. Start small. As with any business venture you need to give it time to grow. Don’t quit that day job, yet. But remember, never before has there been such opportunity in the marketplace. Don’t let it pass you by. You have more than just financial security to gain; you can also have more time.
Steve is the owner/manager of Quality-Resumes.net, an resume writing service sopecializing in new graduates and entry level job seekers.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
How to Find Balance as a Telecommuting Mom
How to Find Balance as a Telecommuting Mom
Working mothers constantly struggle to balance their career and their family life. This struggle is even more difficult for a telecommuting mom. Without the advantage of having a separate space for work and play, it becomes easy for you to let your work bleed over into your family life and vice versa. However, there are a few simple things you can do to maintain productivity and maximize the time you spend with your family.
Designate An Office Space
You may be tempted to tinker with your laptop while you make dinner, but it's not the most efficient way to get your work done. Create a space that is dedicated to work-at-home pursuits. Make sure this area is in a quiet place in the home, free from distractions like television sets and stereos. Also, try to keep your home office away from the kitchen so you're not tempted to wash the pile of dirty dishes in the sink while you're working.
Create a Schedule
Creating a schedule will not only give your work day structure, but it will help you divide your time equally between your job and your family. When establishing a routine, work around the kid's meals and nap-times. Once you've established a routine, stick with it. If you don't finish a task within the allotted time frame, don't cut into your family time to finish it. Respect the boundaries you've created.
Get Some Fresh Air
Being cooped up in the house all day is bound to drive you crazy. When you're not working, get out of the house. Take the kids to the zoo or take a walk around the mall. Leaving the house will allow you to leave your work behind for a few hours and enjoy the time you have with your children.
Stay Connected
Telecommuting, like motherhood, can be a lonely enterprise. You may have the luxury of working in your pajamas, but you lose the opportunity to interact with colleagues and connect around the water cooler. To avoid feeling isolated, make an effort to meet up with friends at least once a week. Join a working mother's group or take a recreational evening class. Make sure you create ample opportunities to converse and connect with other adults.
Save the Best Part of Your Day for Your Family
You want to succeed as a telecommuter. However, it's important to remember that you're working at home so you can spend more time with your family. Don't spend all day in front of the computer while your child watches PBS. Schedule your work day, but allocate a large chunk of time to spend with your kids. While you're working, focus solely on your job. But when you're with your family, don't let thoughts of work get in the way.
Enjoy the time you have with your kids and make every minute count!
Working mothers constantly struggle to balance their career and their family life. This struggle is even more difficult for a telecommuting mom. Without the advantage of having a separate space for work and play, it becomes easy for you to let your work bleed over into your family life and vice versa. However, there are a few simple things you can do to maintain productivity and maximize the time you spend with your family.
Designate An Office Space
You may be tempted to tinker with your laptop while you make dinner, but it's not the most efficient way to get your work done. Create a space that is dedicated to work-at-home pursuits. Make sure this area is in a quiet place in the home, free from distractions like television sets and stereos. Also, try to keep your home office away from the kitchen so you're not tempted to wash the pile of dirty dishes in the sink while you're working.
Create a Schedule
Creating a schedule will not only give your work day structure, but it will help you divide your time equally between your job and your family. When establishing a routine, work around the kid's meals and nap-times. Once you've established a routine, stick with it. If you don't finish a task within the allotted time frame, don't cut into your family time to finish it. Respect the boundaries you've created.
Get Some Fresh Air
Being cooped up in the house all day is bound to drive you crazy. When you're not working, get out of the house. Take the kids to the zoo or take a walk around the mall. Leaving the house will allow you to leave your work behind for a few hours and enjoy the time you have with your children.
Stay Connected
Telecommuting, like motherhood, can be a lonely enterprise. You may have the luxury of working in your pajamas, but you lose the opportunity to interact with colleagues and connect around the water cooler. To avoid feeling isolated, make an effort to meet up with friends at least once a week. Join a working mother's group or take a recreational evening class. Make sure you create ample opportunities to converse and connect with other adults.
Save the Best Part of Your Day for Your Family
You want to succeed as a telecommuter. However, it's important to remember that you're working at home so you can spend more time with your family. Don't spend all day in front of the computer while your child watches PBS. Schedule your work day, but allocate a large chunk of time to spend with your kids. While you're working, focus solely on your job. But when you're with your family, don't let thoughts of work get in the way.
Enjoy the time you have with your kids and make every minute count!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Thanks to telecommuting, snow days are no longer fun
Thanks to telecommuting, snow days are no longer fun
By Stephanie Armour, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — Faster computers, broadband connections and free public Wi-Fi are taking the fun out of snow days.
The federal government was shut down for the second day in a row Tuesday and many offices were empty in the nation's snowbound capital, but work continued — in homes across the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia region. It showed just how seamlessly well-equipped workers can soldier on even through disruptions such as heavy snowstorms.
With more snow expected today, some businesses are extending teleworking plans. At Adaptive Marketing, an Internet marketing services company based in Norwalk, Conn., employees have been told to call a toll-free number to find out if the office will be open. If not, they can use their work-provided laptops to log in and do business from home.
"We're going to be hit, and they're saying it's going to be huge," human resources Vice President Marcella Barry says. "But whether we're open or closed, it will be business as usual."
Not all government officials get to take a snow day: Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has shown up every day this week in a suit to work. With the cafeteria workers off, staffers have gotten coffee from local downtown cafes.
For many companies, it's the information technology departments that keep business running smoothly. Employers need to be sure they have sufficient network capacity.
"Telework works with the right policy, procedures and process combined with IT. Then you wouldn't have a problem," says Chuck Wilsker, president and CEO of the Telework Coalition. "The burden is when you haven't planned ahead."
The ability to work from anywhere also means snow days no longer offer a break from work. Many are like Nicko Margolies, a communications assistant at the Sunlight Foundation, a Washington-based non-profit.
With the federal government shut down, his office closed. Margolies worked at home.
"No snowstorm, no matter how big, will keep me from working. I lost heat, but I had my space heater and network access, so I kept on trucking. It's actually a seamless transition from home to work," he says. "The only difference is I'm in my pajamas."
But some employees lament the days when a big storm meant no work. Joe Starkey, a marketing associate with the Advisory Board, a Washington-based research firm, plans to work at home today.
"We might have extenuating circumstances here (like the storm), but we don't get to take time off," Starkey says. "A snow day just means you don't get to work at the office."
By Stephanie Armour, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — Faster computers, broadband connections and free public Wi-Fi are taking the fun out of snow days.
The federal government was shut down for the second day in a row Tuesday and many offices were empty in the nation's snowbound capital, but work continued — in homes across the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia region. It showed just how seamlessly well-equipped workers can soldier on even through disruptions such as heavy snowstorms.
With more snow expected today, some businesses are extending teleworking plans. At Adaptive Marketing, an Internet marketing services company based in Norwalk, Conn., employees have been told to call a toll-free number to find out if the office will be open. If not, they can use their work-provided laptops to log in and do business from home.
"We're going to be hit, and they're saying it's going to be huge," human resources Vice President Marcella Barry says. "But whether we're open or closed, it will be business as usual."
Not all government officials get to take a snow day: Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has shown up every day this week in a suit to work. With the cafeteria workers off, staffers have gotten coffee from local downtown cafes.
For many companies, it's the information technology departments that keep business running smoothly. Employers need to be sure they have sufficient network capacity.
"Telework works with the right policy, procedures and process combined with IT. Then you wouldn't have a problem," says Chuck Wilsker, president and CEO of the Telework Coalition. "The burden is when you haven't planned ahead."
The ability to work from anywhere also means snow days no longer offer a break from work. Many are like Nicko Margolies, a communications assistant at the Sunlight Foundation, a Washington-based non-profit.
With the federal government shut down, his office closed. Margolies worked at home.
"No snowstorm, no matter how big, will keep me from working. I lost heat, but I had my space heater and network access, so I kept on trucking. It's actually a seamless transition from home to work," he says. "The only difference is I'm in my pajamas."
But some employees lament the days when a big storm meant no work. Joe Starkey, a marketing associate with the Advisory Board, a Washington-based research firm, plans to work at home today.
"We might have extenuating circumstances here (like the storm), but we don't get to take time off," Starkey says. "A snow day just means you don't get to work at the office."
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Telework in the Coming Decade
Telework in the Coming Decade
Posted By: Adeel Lari on 2/1/2010
Categories:Employers Employees Over one month into 2010 already. Time always slips by faster than I expect. In the meantime, plenty of predictions have rolled in about the future of telework in the coming decade. These predictions are not pulled out of thin air. Instead, many seem to predict that we will build off trends that have already been occurring over the last few years. These ideas are compatible and will spur one another forward. What am I talking about?
In the next year and beyond, experts agree that we will be going green and going mobile. We see it all around us in the small and the big ways. Need an example of a small and a big way all in one? Well.
A personal ‘green example’: I was at Target the other day. I declined a bag and was given a small discount on my purchase as a result. Perhaps I am behind on the times and/or living under a rock, but this was news to me. I knew of other retailers that offered similar incentives, but I simply didn’t expect it from the Minnesota-based giant.
These types of practices are becoming more and more common as businesses of all shapes and sizes become more and more green. A few cents off for not using a bag may not seem like a big deal, but I see it as an indicator that our culture is changing. The small ways are reflective of the big changes. These kinds of changes, while indirect, pave the way for telework.
And, while the idea of mobility is desired for more than just its green compatibility, there is no denying these concepts often go hand in hand. Our wireless capabilities are growing and our hesitancies are diminishing.
This is good news for telework, good news for business, and good news for us all. Not convinced?
How about a direct example in the government: Even the White House encourages its employees to telework – not just during emergencies but routinely as a practice that supports the Obama administration’s policy to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions. If you want people to take you seriously, you’ve got to set a good example, right?
Paternalism aside, everywhere in the country we see telework catching on.
In fact, another large private employer gets it too: Chattanooga, Tennessee, anyone? Their biggest employer, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, wants to double its telecommuting staff from 400 to 800 in the next year because the program is working so well in terms of cost savings as well as productivity. And on top of all that? Mobile and green!
Call me an optimist, but this decade is looking mighty, mighty good for all these reasons and more.
Adeel Lari, M.B.A., P.E.
Director of Innovative Financing, Research Fellow, and Teleworker
Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs
University of Minnesota
Posted By: Adeel Lari on 2/1/2010
Categories:Employers Employees Over one month into 2010 already. Time always slips by faster than I expect. In the meantime, plenty of predictions have rolled in about the future of telework in the coming decade. These predictions are not pulled out of thin air. Instead, many seem to predict that we will build off trends that have already been occurring over the last few years. These ideas are compatible and will spur one another forward. What am I talking about?
In the next year and beyond, experts agree that we will be going green and going mobile. We see it all around us in the small and the big ways. Need an example of a small and a big way all in one? Well.
A personal ‘green example’: I was at Target the other day. I declined a bag and was given a small discount on my purchase as a result. Perhaps I am behind on the times and/or living under a rock, but this was news to me. I knew of other retailers that offered similar incentives, but I simply didn’t expect it from the Minnesota-based giant.
These types of practices are becoming more and more common as businesses of all shapes and sizes become more and more green. A few cents off for not using a bag may not seem like a big deal, but I see it as an indicator that our culture is changing. The small ways are reflective of the big changes. These kinds of changes, while indirect, pave the way for telework.
And, while the idea of mobility is desired for more than just its green compatibility, there is no denying these concepts often go hand in hand. Our wireless capabilities are growing and our hesitancies are diminishing.
This is good news for telework, good news for business, and good news for us all. Not convinced?
How about a direct example in the government: Even the White House encourages its employees to telework – not just during emergencies but routinely as a practice that supports the Obama administration’s policy to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions. If you want people to take you seriously, you’ve got to set a good example, right?
Paternalism aside, everywhere in the country we see telework catching on.
In fact, another large private employer gets it too: Chattanooga, Tennessee, anyone? Their biggest employer, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, wants to double its telecommuting staff from 400 to 800 in the next year because the program is working so well in terms of cost savings as well as productivity. And on top of all that? Mobile and green!
Call me an optimist, but this decade is looking mighty, mighty good for all these reasons and more.
Adeel Lari, M.B.A., P.E.
Director of Innovative Financing, Research Fellow, and Teleworker
Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs
University of Minnesota
Federal government closes: Why can't they all work from home?
Federal government closes: Why can't they all work from home?
All D.C.-area federal agencies were closed Monday after the snowstorm last weekend. Shutting down the federal government costs $100 million a day in lost productivity.
Talk about a budget freeze: The storm they call “Snowmageddon” has halted the federal government in its tracks.
With roads inside the Beltway impassable, and trains and buses running a minimum schedule, and schools closed, and crowds having snowball fights in Dupont Circle, and yeti wandering K Street (we made up that last one), all D.C.-area federal agencies were closed Monday. They might close Tuesday, as well.
There’s another storm due Tuesday night, so it is possible that the government shutdown will last until the D.C. government unveils its secret snow-removal strategy, otherwise known as “spring.”
But closing down the federal government costs $100 million a day in lost productivity. Why can’t bureaucrats, you know, telecommute? Like everybody else does in this Era of the iPhone.
The answer to that is, they do. At least, some of them do. About 9 percent of eligible federal employees have approved telework agreements that allow them to work from home, according to an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) report from August 2009.
That’s a little over 102,000 people. And Uncle Sam would like that figure to be higher.
“They encourage it,” says one federal employee with such an agreement, who requested anonymity. He’s tired of his name being misspelled.
For instance, the personnel office of the agency this employee works for has sent out a series of messages in recent days suggesting that everyone who has signed up to work via computer should do so.
It’s the government, though, so signing up for telecommuting is kind of an involved process. You’ve got to apply (tip: don’t tell them about working from coffee shops), get your supervisor to sign on, and so forth.
Also, the Feds are coming a little late to the whole working-in-your-pajamas party, so they have yet to catch up to the private sector in this area. OPM is fully aware of this, and they’re trying to change as fast as they can.
Telework clearly aids productivity, said OPM director John Berry at a conference on the subject last September.
“It needs to be part of the ethos of an office. No meeting or conference call should be canceled because someone is working from home,” he said.
There is a catch, however. On days the federal government shuts down, teleworkers may have to labor anyway, while their commuting brethren get the day off.
“Agencies may require teleworkers to work when the agency is closed,” notes OPM’s handbook on emergency closure procedures.
-----
All D.C.-area federal agencies were closed Monday after the snowstorm last weekend. Shutting down the federal government costs $100 million a day in lost productivity.
Talk about a budget freeze: The storm they call “Snowmageddon” has halted the federal government in its tracks.
With roads inside the Beltway impassable, and trains and buses running a minimum schedule, and schools closed, and crowds having snowball fights in Dupont Circle, and yeti wandering K Street (we made up that last one), all D.C.-area federal agencies were closed Monday. They might close Tuesday, as well.
There’s another storm due Tuesday night, so it is possible that the government shutdown will last until the D.C. government unveils its secret snow-removal strategy, otherwise known as “spring.”
But closing down the federal government costs $100 million a day in lost productivity. Why can’t bureaucrats, you know, telecommute? Like everybody else does in this Era of the iPhone.
The answer to that is, they do. At least, some of them do. About 9 percent of eligible federal employees have approved telework agreements that allow them to work from home, according to an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) report from August 2009.
That’s a little over 102,000 people. And Uncle Sam would like that figure to be higher.
“They encourage it,” says one federal employee with such an agreement, who requested anonymity. He’s tired of his name being misspelled.
For instance, the personnel office of the agency this employee works for has sent out a series of messages in recent days suggesting that everyone who has signed up to work via computer should do so.
It’s the government, though, so signing up for telecommuting is kind of an involved process. You’ve got to apply (tip: don’t tell them about working from coffee shops), get your supervisor to sign on, and so forth.
Also, the Feds are coming a little late to the whole working-in-your-pajamas party, so they have yet to catch up to the private sector in this area. OPM is fully aware of this, and they’re trying to change as fast as they can.
Telework clearly aids productivity, said OPM director John Berry at a conference on the subject last September.
“It needs to be part of the ethos of an office. No meeting or conference call should be canceled because someone is working from home,” he said.
There is a catch, however. On days the federal government shuts down, teleworkers may have to labor anyway, while their commuting brethren get the day off.
“Agencies may require teleworkers to work when the agency is closed,” notes OPM’s handbook on emergency closure procedures.
-----
Technology Could Make Telecommuting More Common
Technology could make telecommuting more common
Monday, February 08, 2010
BY DAN MILLER danmiller@patriot-news.com
Teleworking, also known as telecommuting, are terms experts use to refer to people whose employer allows them to work from home some or all of the time.
Telecommuting is growing nationwide and is expected to rise sharply, experts say.
Ted Schadler, an analyst for Forrester Research Inc., said a report done in March estimated that by 2016, 43 percent of all workers in the U.S. will telecommute at least some of the time.
Schadler said the trend will be driven by the spread of broadband Internet service, instant messaging and other technology that makes it easier to interact with people no matter where they are, and management becoming more accepting of telecommuting.
Sean Saffle used to work in Atlanta, helping companies set up telecommuting for their employees. Wanting to get back closer to his western Pennsylvania roots, Saffle took a job late last year with Commuter Services of Pennsylvania, a nonprofit that promotes car and van pooling and other transportation alternatives throughout the south-central region.
Saffle and Brandy Heilman, program director of Commuter Services of Pennsylvania, discussed telecommuting in the midstate with The Patriot-News.
Q: What is teleworking? Saffle: Telework is any time somebody is working in a remote location, typically their home when they could be reporting to an office. In our mind, you have to be eliminating a trip because you are working from home that day and you are not driving on the road.
Q: Is teleworking becoming more popular across the country? Saffle: It definitely is growing nationally. Employers are starting to realize that there are some real benefits, whether it's getting new talent or retaining talent. If you have a job where you can telework, a lot of times you are not going to take a job that pays a little bit more money because you have the flexibility and freedom to work from home. A lot of employers realize they can hold on to their talent that they have right now without having to give them any more money.
Q: To what extent do you think teleworking is catching on in our area? Heilman: I've been running the program for almost five years now, and it is definitely progressing.
We see a lot of companies that have informal policies right now, and they are looking to make them more formalized. We have some companies that have expressed interest that before said, 'That's just not an option for us.' The level is going up here.
There are ones that maybe let somebody work from home a few days a week. Now they are saying, 'That's working, so what can we do to actually adopt that as a policy and let more people take advantage of it and let the company benefit from it as well.'
Q: What do you think needs to happen in our area to encourage the growth of teleworking? Heilman: If we can just find some businesses in the community that can step up and be leaders and actually do these types of things, once other companies see they are doing it, they will be more likely to kind of jump on with that.
That is why we are encouraging some of our larger employers that if you can try this out we can do a pilot with you, see how it goes.
Q: What are the biggest challenges that must be overcome in getting a company to allow employees to work from home? Saffle: We always want to formalize a program with policies. If you are teleworking and you have your company laptop and you all of a sudden take another job, how do they get that computer back. We want to have some policies behind that. Heilman: A lot of people think that when they do a policy like this it has to be all or nothing and it's definitely not that way.
It's usually something that we try out as a pilot for the top performers, people that would be able to still produce when they are first trying this out. It also doesn't have to be an all or nothing as far as time spent out of the office. It could be one day a week, it could be one day a month.
It's kind of getting over that thing where they think, 'If I let people telework I'm never going to see them again.' We definitely want companies to know that's not the case -- you set the ideas of how often are you going to allow it, who do we start with to see how it works then see if we can spread it out to more people throughout the company.
Monday, February 08, 2010
BY DAN MILLER danmiller@patriot-news.com
Teleworking, also known as telecommuting, are terms experts use to refer to people whose employer allows them to work from home some or all of the time.
Telecommuting is growing nationwide and is expected to rise sharply, experts say.
Ted Schadler, an analyst for Forrester Research Inc., said a report done in March estimated that by 2016, 43 percent of all workers in the U.S. will telecommute at least some of the time.
Schadler said the trend will be driven by the spread of broadband Internet service, instant messaging and other technology that makes it easier to interact with people no matter where they are, and management becoming more accepting of telecommuting.
Sean Saffle used to work in Atlanta, helping companies set up telecommuting for their employees. Wanting to get back closer to his western Pennsylvania roots, Saffle took a job late last year with Commuter Services of Pennsylvania, a nonprofit that promotes car and van pooling and other transportation alternatives throughout the south-central region.
Saffle and Brandy Heilman, program director of Commuter Services of Pennsylvania, discussed telecommuting in the midstate with The Patriot-News.
Q: What is teleworking? Saffle: Telework is any time somebody is working in a remote location, typically their home when they could be reporting to an office. In our mind, you have to be eliminating a trip because you are working from home that day and you are not driving on the road.
Q: Is teleworking becoming more popular across the country? Saffle: It definitely is growing nationally. Employers are starting to realize that there are some real benefits, whether it's getting new talent or retaining talent. If you have a job where you can telework, a lot of times you are not going to take a job that pays a little bit more money because you have the flexibility and freedom to work from home. A lot of employers realize they can hold on to their talent that they have right now without having to give them any more money.
Q: To what extent do you think teleworking is catching on in our area? Heilman: I've been running the program for almost five years now, and it is definitely progressing.
We see a lot of companies that have informal policies right now, and they are looking to make them more formalized. We have some companies that have expressed interest that before said, 'That's just not an option for us.' The level is going up here.
There are ones that maybe let somebody work from home a few days a week. Now they are saying, 'That's working, so what can we do to actually adopt that as a policy and let more people take advantage of it and let the company benefit from it as well.'
Q: What do you think needs to happen in our area to encourage the growth of teleworking? Heilman: If we can just find some businesses in the community that can step up and be leaders and actually do these types of things, once other companies see they are doing it, they will be more likely to kind of jump on with that.
That is why we are encouraging some of our larger employers that if you can try this out we can do a pilot with you, see how it goes.
Q: What are the biggest challenges that must be overcome in getting a company to allow employees to work from home? Saffle: We always want to formalize a program with policies. If you are teleworking and you have your company laptop and you all of a sudden take another job, how do they get that computer back. We want to have some policies behind that. Heilman: A lot of people think that when they do a policy like this it has to be all or nothing and it's definitely not that way.
It's usually something that we try out as a pilot for the top performers, people that would be able to still produce when they are first trying this out. It also doesn't have to be an all or nothing as far as time spent out of the office. It could be one day a week, it could be one day a month.
It's kind of getting over that thing where they think, 'If I let people telework I'm never going to see them again.' We definitely want companies to know that's not the case -- you set the ideas of how often are you going to allow it, who do we start with to see how it works then see if we can spread it out to more people throughout the company.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Good news for employers and employees: Flexible schedules often lead to happier -- and more productive -- workers
Good news for employers and employees: Flexible schedules often lead to happier -- and more productive -- workers. By Josh Clark Thu Feb 4, 2010 07:00 AM ET
Every employee who's ever worked from home is probably familiar with the feeling: Your company pays you for a set amount of hours you work at the office. You're at home, though -- in your pajamas. You feel like your company has given you something extra. You feel as if you should return the favor, but how?
A recent study out of Cranfield School of Management in the United Kingdom suggests that workers given flexible hours by their employers tend to work more intensely than their counterparts with more rigid office hours.
The researchers posit that the reason for this phenomenon is a kind of payment to the employer from the worker in exchange for the freedom to choose where and when to work.
Management professors Clare Kelliher and Deirdre Anderson conducted the study, published in the January issue of the journal Human Relations. The researchers used a questionnaire to survey more than 2,000 employees at three large multi-national, UK-based corporations.
From the responses, the researchers found that employees who worked remotely one day a week and workers who had reduced their required weekly office hours tended to report higher job satisfaction, lower stress and higher loyalty to their company than employees who didn't have flexible hours.
These findings aren't new; research into flexible working schedules has yielded a number of positive outcomes.
However, in 37 random interviews with these so-called flex workers from the three companies studied, the Cranfield researchers discovered that flexible schedules are also linked to increased work intensity in the form of higher productivity and longer hours.
These findings may appear counterintuitive at first glance. Logically speaking, and as shown by previous research, a more intense work schedule is linked to negative consequences, like familial strain and increased stress.
Yet employees with flexible hours, especially those working remotely, not only reported working more intensely but also claims higher job satisfaction, lower stress levels and greater company loyalty.
In other words, working remotely appears to be connected with working harder and being happy with your job.
Anderson and Kelliher suggest that this phenomenon is based on an employee's willingness to maintain equilibrium between that worker and his or her employer. Since the employer has added a new dimension that benefits the employee -- in this case, the freedom of a flexible schedule -- the worker is interested in keeping an equal balance and adjusts the scales by working harder in return.
"We argue that flexible workers 'repay' the choice opened up to them, by means of extending a greater effort," Kelliher told Discovery News.
This argument is based on social exchange theory, a psychological and sociological concept asserting that payment between individuals can take place voluntarily and under informal arrangements.
Russell Cropanzano, a professor at the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona, describes the basis for social exchange as the Golden Rule.
"In its simplest form, (the Golden Rule) argues that humans are motivated, in part, by a norm of reciprocity," he said. "You do onto others as they have done unto you."
Cropanzano, who isn't affiliated with the Cranfield study, says that over time, a series of positive social exchange transactions lead to strong relationships, whether it's between individuals or an employee and a company. These transactions provide individuals and institutions alike with a way to build trust, since these exchanges usually aren't obligatory.
The Cranfield study's findings that flexible hours can lead to harder work sounds like good news both for employers that offer flexible schedules and the employees afforded flexibility. The study's lead author warns that there may be a down side, however.
"In the article, we don't necessarily present work intensification as a positive thing. There is a whole body of evidence which suggests that in the longer term, there are costs to employee well-being," Kelliher points out. "We caution, therefore, that there may be longer-term costs associated with work intensification."
Josh Clark is a writer for HowStuffWorks.com.
Every employee who's ever worked from home is probably familiar with the feeling: Your company pays you for a set amount of hours you work at the office. You're at home, though -- in your pajamas. You feel like your company has given you something extra. You feel as if you should return the favor, but how?
A recent study out of Cranfield School of Management in the United Kingdom suggests that workers given flexible hours by their employers tend to work more intensely than their counterparts with more rigid office hours.
The researchers posit that the reason for this phenomenon is a kind of payment to the employer from the worker in exchange for the freedom to choose where and when to work.
Management professors Clare Kelliher and Deirdre Anderson conducted the study, published in the January issue of the journal Human Relations. The researchers used a questionnaire to survey more than 2,000 employees at three large multi-national, UK-based corporations.
From the responses, the researchers found that employees who worked remotely one day a week and workers who had reduced their required weekly office hours tended to report higher job satisfaction, lower stress and higher loyalty to their company than employees who didn't have flexible hours.
These findings aren't new; research into flexible working schedules has yielded a number of positive outcomes.
However, in 37 random interviews with these so-called flex workers from the three companies studied, the Cranfield researchers discovered that flexible schedules are also linked to increased work intensity in the form of higher productivity and longer hours.
These findings may appear counterintuitive at first glance. Logically speaking, and as shown by previous research, a more intense work schedule is linked to negative consequences, like familial strain and increased stress.
Yet employees with flexible hours, especially those working remotely, not only reported working more intensely but also claims higher job satisfaction, lower stress levels and greater company loyalty.
In other words, working remotely appears to be connected with working harder and being happy with your job.
Anderson and Kelliher suggest that this phenomenon is based on an employee's willingness to maintain equilibrium between that worker and his or her employer. Since the employer has added a new dimension that benefits the employee -- in this case, the freedom of a flexible schedule -- the worker is interested in keeping an equal balance and adjusts the scales by working harder in return.
"We argue that flexible workers 'repay' the choice opened up to them, by means of extending a greater effort," Kelliher told Discovery News.
This argument is based on social exchange theory, a psychological and sociological concept asserting that payment between individuals can take place voluntarily and under informal arrangements.
Russell Cropanzano, a professor at the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona, describes the basis for social exchange as the Golden Rule.
"In its simplest form, (the Golden Rule) argues that humans are motivated, in part, by a norm of reciprocity," he said. "You do onto others as they have done unto you."
Cropanzano, who isn't affiliated with the Cranfield study, says that over time, a series of positive social exchange transactions lead to strong relationships, whether it's between individuals or an employee and a company. These transactions provide individuals and institutions alike with a way to build trust, since these exchanges usually aren't obligatory.
The Cranfield study's findings that flexible hours can lead to harder work sounds like good news both for employers that offer flexible schedules and the employees afforded flexibility. The study's lead author warns that there may be a down side, however.
"In the article, we don't necessarily present work intensification as a positive thing. There is a whole body of evidence which suggests that in the longer term, there are costs to employee well-being," Kelliher points out. "We caution, therefore, that there may be longer-term costs associated with work intensification."
Josh Clark is a writer for HowStuffWorks.com.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
How Much Can Telecommuting Cut Carbon Footprint?
February 01, 2010
How Much Can Telecommuting Cut Carbon Footprint?
By Gary Kim
Contributing Editor
Lots of people these days are interested in telecommuting, at least in part because of its ability to reduce carbon footprint. Assume that a 100-person company could allow telecommuting three days a week.
Also, assume that employees commuting an average of 33 miles one day to reach their workplace, and that those employees switch to telecommuting three days a week. Also assume that all those avoided trips are taken by automobile.
That enterprise can avoid producing 6,351 pounds of hydrocarbons, 47,362 pounds of carbon monoxide, 3,146 pounds of oxides of nitrogen and 943,124 pounds of carbon dioxide, while saving 47,773 pounds of gasoline each year.
That analysis uses an average fuel economy of 21.5 miles per gallon.
Assume a fuel price of $2.75 per gallon. Workers save $750 in avoided fuel costs each week. Over a month those employees commuting three days a week save $3,250 in fuel costs and over a year will save $39,000 in fuel expenses.
Those are "gross savings." There are some costs to produce electricity to power the communication networks, boost satellites into orbit, maintain network monitoring centers and so forth. Those net reductions are hard to capture on a per-user basis.
Some other carbon-producing activities are basically a wash. People will power on their PCs whether at work or at home, will consume power for their telephones, printers and other machines. But those costs are relatively insignificant, whether tasks are performed in the office or at a home office.
There also are some possible energy offsets as well. People will spend less on dry cleaning, travel to lunch and other off-site meetings during the day. They will still eat lunch, but might arguably consume less energy eating at home compared to eating at work.
Still, on balance nobody argues with the fact that substituting communications for travel reduces carbon footprint. The savings obviously are greatest when a user can substitute telecommuting for physical travel over longer distances, as well as local travel to a work site.
If one employee saves just one airline trip of 1,000 miles by airline in a year, using a conferencing solution of some sort, that traveler avoids creating 580 kilograms of carbon dioxide, or 1,276 pounds, based on a mile of air travel imposing a load of 0.29 kilograms of carbon load per mile flown.
Gary Kim (News - Alert) is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Gary’s articles, please visit his columnist page.
Edited by Amy Tierney
How Much Can Telecommuting Cut Carbon Footprint?
By Gary Kim
Contributing Editor
Lots of people these days are interested in telecommuting, at least in part because of its ability to reduce carbon footprint. Assume that a 100-person company could allow telecommuting three days a week.
Also, assume that employees commuting an average of 33 miles one day to reach their workplace, and that those employees switch to telecommuting three days a week. Also assume that all those avoided trips are taken by automobile.
That enterprise can avoid producing 6,351 pounds of hydrocarbons, 47,362 pounds of carbon monoxide, 3,146 pounds of oxides of nitrogen and 943,124 pounds of carbon dioxide, while saving 47,773 pounds of gasoline each year.
That analysis uses an average fuel economy of 21.5 miles per gallon.
Assume a fuel price of $2.75 per gallon. Workers save $750 in avoided fuel costs each week. Over a month those employees commuting three days a week save $3,250 in fuel costs and over a year will save $39,000 in fuel expenses.
Those are "gross savings." There are some costs to produce electricity to power the communication networks, boost satellites into orbit, maintain network monitoring centers and so forth. Those net reductions are hard to capture on a per-user basis.
Some other carbon-producing activities are basically a wash. People will power on their PCs whether at work or at home, will consume power for their telephones, printers and other machines. But those costs are relatively insignificant, whether tasks are performed in the office or at a home office.
There also are some possible energy offsets as well. People will spend less on dry cleaning, travel to lunch and other off-site meetings during the day. They will still eat lunch, but might arguably consume less energy eating at home compared to eating at work.
Still, on balance nobody argues with the fact that substituting communications for travel reduces carbon footprint. The savings obviously are greatest when a user can substitute telecommuting for physical travel over longer distances, as well as local travel to a work site.
If one employee saves just one airline trip of 1,000 miles by airline in a year, using a conferencing solution of some sort, that traveler avoids creating 580 kilograms of carbon dioxide, or 1,276 pounds, based on a mile of air travel imposing a load of 0.29 kilograms of carbon load per mile flown.
Gary Kim (News - Alert) is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Gary’s articles, please visit his columnist page.
Edited by Amy Tierney
Finding a Telecommuting Gig With Job Security
Finding a Telecommuting Gig With Job Security
By Thursday Bram Feb. 1, 2010, 7:00am
One of the problems with finding a telecommuting job is that it can be hard to find a position that offers the same level of job security that you might have if you went into an office every day and spent time in face-to-face meetings with your boss.”Out of sight, out of mind” isn’t so much of a problem for an employee who doesn’t telecommute. But finding a secure telecommuting position is possible, as is creating job security within an existing position.
Finding a Telecommuting Opportunity
Debra Yergen is the author of “Creating Job Security,” as well as the creator of the Green Light Scoring Model, which helps job seekers translate their experience and education into job security. She points out that while the telecommuting job market doesn’t currently have many opportunities, due to the economic situation, if you expand the definition of telecommuting to include contract and freelance staff, there are actually many more positions available.
“Telecommuting has generally differed from contract work based on how a worker is categorized according to the benefits delivered as part of compensation,” says Yergen. “It’s critical to make that distinction in light of the current economy, as a higher percentage of companies are looking to outsource positions that were formally filled by in-house employees. If telecommuting is expanded to include contract-based and freelance positions, the market is wide open as many employers that are reluctant to increase their workforce are more often looking to outsourcing and using freelancers as a stopgap solution. Until the economy and health-care insurance situation stabilizes, look for these opportunities to continue to grow.”
In order to find a position that may be a little more stable, Yergen suggests searching through industry-specific job portals. They may not have as many telecommuting opportunities, though, while larger sites, such as Monster.com, offer more results.
Building Job Security While Telecommuting
Landing a telecommuting position isn’t enough — you’ve got to keep it. Creating job security is a matter of taking charge of your own situation. Yergen suggests demonstrating your employer’s ROI for having you as a telecommuting employee: “This can be a monetary benefit such as a reduction in overhead, or it could be immaterial benefit. For instance, if you had access to files out of traditional office hours and as a result could immediately deal with a situation in a way that was more advantageous to the company than if you had only been allowed to maintain a traditional office during traditional hours.”
However, it’s important to note that job security is never a guarantee. It’s easy to slip into a mindset that you have to be available to your employer at all hours of the day since you’re not heading into the office at all — but while boundaries may not increase your sense of a secure position, they are necessary. “While increased availability may enable you to provide more value to your employer, it’s important to have boundaries you set. It one thing if you choose to offer increased availability. It’s another thing entirely if you are expected to be on call but are not paid to be on call 24/7,” points out Yergen.
If you establish those boundaries early in a working relationship, the times that you go above and beyond will mean more to your employers.
By Thursday Bram Feb. 1, 2010, 7:00am
One of the problems with finding a telecommuting job is that it can be hard to find a position that offers the same level of job security that you might have if you went into an office every day and spent time in face-to-face meetings with your boss.”Out of sight, out of mind” isn’t so much of a problem for an employee who doesn’t telecommute. But finding a secure telecommuting position is possible, as is creating job security within an existing position.
Finding a Telecommuting Opportunity
Debra Yergen is the author of “Creating Job Security,” as well as the creator of the Green Light Scoring Model, which helps job seekers translate their experience and education into job security. She points out that while the telecommuting job market doesn’t currently have many opportunities, due to the economic situation, if you expand the definition of telecommuting to include contract and freelance staff, there are actually many more positions available.
“Telecommuting has generally differed from contract work based on how a worker is categorized according to the benefits delivered as part of compensation,” says Yergen. “It’s critical to make that distinction in light of the current economy, as a higher percentage of companies are looking to outsource positions that were formally filled by in-house employees. If telecommuting is expanded to include contract-based and freelance positions, the market is wide open as many employers that are reluctant to increase their workforce are more often looking to outsourcing and using freelancers as a stopgap solution. Until the economy and health-care insurance situation stabilizes, look for these opportunities to continue to grow.”
In order to find a position that may be a little more stable, Yergen suggests searching through industry-specific job portals. They may not have as many telecommuting opportunities, though, while larger sites, such as Monster.com, offer more results.
Building Job Security While Telecommuting
Landing a telecommuting position isn’t enough — you’ve got to keep it. Creating job security is a matter of taking charge of your own situation. Yergen suggests demonstrating your employer’s ROI for having you as a telecommuting employee: “This can be a monetary benefit such as a reduction in overhead, or it could be immaterial benefit. For instance, if you had access to files out of traditional office hours and as a result could immediately deal with a situation in a way that was more advantageous to the company than if you had only been allowed to maintain a traditional office during traditional hours.”
However, it’s important to note that job security is never a guarantee. It’s easy to slip into a mindset that you have to be available to your employer at all hours of the day since you’re not heading into the office at all — but while boundaries may not increase your sense of a secure position, they are necessary. “While increased availability may enable you to provide more value to your employer, it’s important to have boundaries you set. It one thing if you choose to offer increased availability. It’s another thing entirely if you are expected to be on call but are not paid to be on call 24/7,” points out Yergen.
If you establish those boundaries early in a working relationship, the times that you go above and beyond will mean more to your employers.
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